Ecuador has an amazing selection of delicious soup recipes, from traditional seafood soups in the coast to meat soups in the Andean Highlands. You will find Ecuadorian soups made a lot of different ingredients that you didn’t expect, we have soups made with plantains, with quinoa, with fava beans, with cow feet, and even a soup called caldo de guanchaca (possum soup). One of the most traditional soups in Ecuador is called fanesca, it’s a very special soup that is only prepared during Easter. Soups are a must have at every lunch in Ecuador. Soups in Ecuador are always served with avocado slices and aji criollo or hot sauce. I grew up eating soup at least once a day and one of things that I crave the most when I’m homesick are soups. Here’s a list of my favorite Ecuadorian soup recipes:
Aguado de gallina: Aguado de gallina is a thick soup made with chicken, rice, potatoes, onions, peppers, other vegetables, herbs and spices.
Arvejas con guineo: Arvejas con guineo is a typical Ecuadorian soup made with green bananas, peas, onion, garlic, cumin, achiote, cheese and cilantro.
Biche de pescado: Biche de pescado, also called viche, is a typical Ecuadorian soup made with fish, peanuts, yuca, sweet plantains, corn, and other vegetables and spices.
Caldo de bolas de verde: Caldo de bolas is a typical Ecuadorian soup of green plantain balls or dumplings stuffed with meat and served in a delicious broth with corn and yuca.
Caldo de pata or cow feet soup: Caldo de patas de res or cow feet soup is a traditional Latin American comfort soup made with cow feet, yuca, mote or hominy, cilantro, parsley, onions, garlic, achiote, cumin, peanuts, milk, oregano.
Encebollado de pescado: Ecuadorian fish soup recipe made with fresh tuna, yuca, tomato, onions, cilantro, cumin, hot pepper and topped with pickled onions and tomatoes.
Fanesca: Fanesca is an Ecuadorian soup or stew made only during Easter, it is made with bacalao, squash, fava beans, chochos, corn, peas, porotos or fresh beans, rice, onions, garlic, cumin, achiote, peanuts, milk, cream and cheese.
Locro de habas: Locro de habas is a thick soup made with fava beans, potatoes, milk, eggs, cheese, onions, garlic, tomatoes, cumin, hot pepper, and cilantro.
Locro de papas: Locro de papas is a classic Ecuadorian potato and cheese soup
Repe lojano: Repe is a creamy soup made with green bananas or green plantains, onions, garlic, milk, cheese and cilantro.
Sopa de quinua con carne: Healthy and delicious Ecuadorian quinoa soup made with quinoa, beef, potatoes and peas.
Sopa de zapallo: Squash soup made with squash, onions, tomatoes, garlic, cumin, and chicken or vegetable stock, served with feta or goat cheese and chives.
I had a quinoa soup that had something the cook called cuero chancho. What is that? Thanks
Cuero de chancho is pork skin or pork rind, it could have been simply cooked (thin & chewy) or crunchy(more like pork crackling).
Dear Lay;ita, I am now living in Cuenca and trying out some local recipes. I am having a problem cooking with the meat, especially for stews. It is really tough. I tried to make sancocho using recipies found on YouTube. The meat it called for (hueso blanco I think) was so touht my dish was inedible. I’ve been cooking for most of my life althoughh I am not a trained chef. Any suggestions?
Hi Harvey – I would recommend a pressure cooker for those tough cuts of meat, I remember almost always used a pressure cooker for meat (even for chicken if it as a gallina vieja or an old hen). For stews you can remove the meat once it’s tender and continue cooking the sauce part if you want a thicker richer sauce.
Que lindos recuerdos. My mom used to make these soups for us when we lived in Guayaquil.
Fish Garlic Soup
I live in Puerto Cayo, Ecuador and frequently eat the fish garlic soup. I am wondering if you have the recipe for this soup?
Thanks, Di