Friday Recipe: Ribollita (Twice-Boiled Vegetable Soup)

Twice-boiled vegetable soup

I’ve eaten a lot of the classic Tuscan soup Ribollita (re-boiled). This is one of the best I’ve had. With Stefania and Walter Gambaccini, the owners of BaoNecci on Green, it goes back 5 generations in their families in Altopascio near Lucca.

While Stefania and I were crafting this recipe she said to me that Ribollita isn’t for “big-shots.” It’s “umide” – a “humble” dish for ordinary folks. I call this food la cucina povera (kitchen of the poor) or la cucina rustica (rustic kitchen).  Walter said that a ribollita could have as its base all sorts of left-overs that the cook has at hand. The left-overs are simply augmented, re-boiled and served over stale bread. This is the kind of food I like best.

This recipe will serve 6 to 8 people and takes at least 2 days to make. Make the soup the first day, let it sit overnight and re-boil it the next day assembling the zuppa as described below. We serve this soup on a plate not in a bowl. See if you can too!

This is a vegetarian soup. For meat-eaters, if you can find them at your Italian market, add a small prosciutto end and a piece of Parmigiano Reggiano rind. Other friends make this with a beef or chicken broth. Have it any way you want!

If you can’t devote 2 days to Ribollita, the Day 1 zuppa (soup) is a wonderful minestrone.

Ribollita

Ingredients

  • 1 bunch, about 12 stalks Lacinato or Tuscan or black kale. If you cannot get it use any kale
  • 2 carrots, cut off the ends cut in half and cut in 1/4 inch slices
  • 2 ribs celery, 1 cut in 3\' pieces, 1 cut in 1/4 each slices
  • 3 small zucchini, cut off the ends, cut in half and cut in 1/4 inch slices
  • 2 large potatoes, cut in half and cut in 1/4 inch slices
  • 1 1/2 medium red onion, keep the 1/2 onion in one piece. Peel the whole onion, cut in half and in 1/4 inch slices
  • 6 cloves garlic, 2 whole and 4 minced
  • 1 small head cabbage cut in half, thinly sliced then diced
  • 6 cherry tomatoes, quartered and diced
  • 1/8 cup parsley, minced
  • 1 pound borlotti beans. (Stefania only uses borlotti beans but other beans can be used if you cannot get borlotti beans, cannellini beans for example.
  • 1/2 cup EVOO
  • 1 tablespoon sea salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Cooking Directions

  1. Cooking Directions
  2. The Night Before
  3. Put the beans in a bowl, cover with water and soak overnight.
  4. Day 1. Make the zuppa (soup).
  5. Put the soaked beans in a pot covered with water along with a couple cloves garlic. the 3 inch celery strips, and the half onion. Gently boil the beans for 60 to 90 minutes or until the beans are al dente. Drain, discard the celery, garlic and onion and set the beans aside.
  6. Cut the kale into 2 inch ribbons.
  7. Follow the directions in the Ingredient List to prepare the garlic, cabbage, cherry tomatoes and parsley.
  8. Cut or chop the other vegetables into a small dice.
  9. Put about 2 or 3 quarts of water in a soup pot add all of the vegetables and beans.
  10. Sprinkle in the EVOO.
  11. Add salt and pepper.
  12. Gently boil for at least 90 minutes stirring occasionally or until the vegetables are very tender, Much of the water should have evaporated, some beans and potato should have broken down and you have a very thick minestrone.
  13. If using, discard the prosciutto and Parmigiano rind. (Sometimes I shred/cut the prosciutto into small pieces, same with the pecorino rind and put them back in the soup. They add an nice occasional burst of flavor when one ends up in your spoon).
  14. Check for salt and pepper to your liking.
  15. Cool and store in the refrigerator overnight.
  16. Day 2. To Assemble and Serve the Ribollito
  17. Put the soup in a large pot and gently boil for 5-7 minutes.
  18. in the meantime, toast a slice of stale bread for each person at the table (a ciabatta or a batard work well).
  19. Rub the toast with a raw clove of garlic. (BTW, for another time, add a drizzle of EVOO and you have the real garlic bread!)
  20. Place the toast in a soup bowl.
  21. Pour the soup over the bread. Most of the broth should be absorbed by the bread.
  22. Top with a splash of EVOO and if you like some grated Parmigiano Reggiano (Stefania does not put the cheese).
  23. Serve immediately.
  24. Ribolitta will keep in the refrigerator for a couple of days. It gets better with age!

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5 thoughts on “Friday Recipe: Ribollita (Twice-Boiled Vegetable Soup)”

  • I love your posts and recipes, especially when accompanied by video. I’ll look forward to trying both the pollo oreganata and this ribollita. I also wanted to comment on your “You Need to Chill, North Beach” posting. If my husband and I are strolling past the galleries on Main St. in my town, and happen upon a work depicting a sexy trio, we may snicker, but I’m simultaneously thinking thankfully my 8 year old son and 12 year old daughter are not accompanying us. Is everything appropriate for all ages? No. As a parent should I be able to to take my kids to the village icecream shop and not be bombarded with images that are inappropriate for their ages? I think so. Anyway, thanks for doing what you do!

    • Ciao Lisa. Thank you for your post. Let me know how the dishes turn out for you. Thanks too for your comments about my Chill post. I was impressed by the thoughtfulness of the diverse opinions expressed in reaction to the post. It’s not often that we talk about weighty issues–the role of art and the artist in our society, freedom of expression, community values, violence and threats. I’m pleased that we are able to share our views and to learn from each other. I’m proud that our Village still has the capacity to stimulate and engage us in so many ways.

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