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Pantrucas
Pantrucas: Central Valley soup with hand-torn dumplings and a ribbon of egg
Pantrucas, sometimes called pancutras, are what a Central Valley farmhouse cooks on a cold evening when the cupboard is nearly bare: a simple dough is stretched thin over the pot and torn straight into a bubbling broth with potato and vegetables, then an egg is stirred in at the end to make soft yellow ribbons. It is warming, filling and cheap, a soup many Chileans connect with their grandmothers. This version uses vegetable stock. The most common mistake is leaving the dough thick, which makes heavy, gluey dumplings: pull it until you can almost see through it. Chef's tip: rest the dough for 15 minutes before stretching, so it relaxes and tears cleanly instead of springing back.
- Total time
- 55 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
For the dough
- 9 oz plain flour
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ cup warm water
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
For the soup
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 onionfinely chopped
- 1 carrotgrated
- ½ red pepperfinely diced
- 2 garlic clovescrushed
- 1 tsp sweet paprika
- ½ tsp dried oregano
- 2 potatoespeeled, cut into 1.5 cm cubes
- 7 ¼ cups vegetable stockhot
- 2 eggsbeaten
- 2 tbsp fresh corianderchopped
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Method
0/7 doneStep 1: Mix 9 oz plain flour and ½ tsp salt, add ½ cup warm water and 1 tbsp vegetable oil and knead for 5 minutes into a soft, smooth dough. Cover and rest.
15 minStep 2: Heat 2 tbsp vegetable oil in a large pot over a medium heat and cook 1 onion, 1 carrot and ½ red pepper until soft.
8 minStep 3: Add 2 garlic cloves, 1 tsp sweet paprika and ½ tsp dried oregano, stir for 1 minute, then add 2 potatoes and 7 ¼ cups vegetable stock. Bring to the boil and simmer until the potatoes are nearly tender.
12 minStep 4: With the soup at a steady boil, pinch off walnut-sized pieces of dough, stretch each between your fingers until very thin and tear it into the pot. Work quickly and stir now and then so the pantrucas don't clump.
Step 5: Simmer until the dumplings float and taste cooked through, with no raw floury centre when you bite one.
6 minStep 6: Turn the heat to low and pour in 2 eggs in a thin stream while stirring gently, so they set in soft strands. Cook 1 more minute until the egg is no longer runny.
1 minStep 7: Taste for salt, scatter over 2 tbsp fresh coriander and serve hot.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 380 kcal
- Protein
- 12 g
- Carbs
- 58 g
- Fat
- 11 g
- Fibre
- 4 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does pantrucas take?
- About 55 minutes in total: 25 minutes to prepare and 30 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- What can I use instead of plain flour?
- Self-raising flour, same amount (then leave out the baking powder).
- What can I use instead of onion?
- 2 shallots per onion.
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