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Smoked pork soup

Name: Smoked pork soup recipe
Yield: 6
Ingredients: 500g dried cannellini beans (see notes); 700g rack smoked pork ribs (optional); 50.00 ml extra virgin olive oil; 100g smoked bacon, cut into small cubes; 1 onion, thinly sliced; 1 red capsicum, finely chopped; 50.00 ml white vinegar; 2 (90g each) smoked pork sausages, cut 2cm thick on the diagonal; 35g unsalted butter; 2 garlic cloves, finely grated; 40.00 ml plain flour; Charred Turkish bread, to serve

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by delicious. team

delicious. team

Jun 26, 2025

"A hearty winter soup that is a staple of Balkan and Eastern European households. This soup can feed as many as you want, and you can always add additional meat, beans and water to feed more. Get your smoked meat from a quality butcher who smokes their own product, as it will make all the difference. Ribs are traditional and the place to start. Smoked sausages, lardo (cured pork fat) or speck chunks are all welcome in this dish. I make it with different meats every time, but always with a quality smoked pork base." - Marcus Papadopoulo and Amina Latypova

Recipe note: Begin this recipe a day ahead. You’ll need a large, deep frypan with a lid.

This recipe is by Marcus Papadopoulo

500g dried cannellini beans (see notes)
700g rack smoked pork ribs (optional)
2 1/2 tbs extra virgin olive oil
100g smoked bacon, cut into small cubes
1 onion, thinly sliced
1 red capsicum, finely chopped
2 1/2 tbs white vinegar
2 (90g each) smoked pork sausages, cut 2cm thick on the diagonal
35g unsalted butter
2 garlic cloves, finely grated
2 tbs plain flour
Charred Turkish bread, to serve

Method

1.

Soak beans in water overnight. The next day, rinse well and drain.
2.

If using ribs, slice every two ribs, cutting hard along the third bone to make double rib pieces. This way, each double rib has a full piece of rib meat along the side.
3.

Heat the oil in a large, deep frypan with a lid over medium heat. Add bacon, onion and capsicum and cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes, or until bacon is golden. Add vinegar and cook, stirring continuously and scraping base of pan with a spoon, for 2 minutes, or until vinegar has evaporated.
4.

Add ribs and sausages to pan with enough water to just cover ribs (about 6 cups, or 1.5L). Bring to a simmer over high heat, then reduce heat to low and skim any impurities and fat that rise to the surface. Cook, covered with a lid, for 1 hour 30 minutes, or until rib meat is tender. Stir in beans and cook, covered, for a further 1 hour, or until beans are tender (if using canned beans, rinse, drain and add to pan without cooking any further).
5.

To thicken soup, melt butter in a small non-stick saucepan over medium heat and add garlic. Cook, stirring frequently, for 2 minutes, or until garlic is fragrant. Stir in flour and cook, stirring constantly, for 2-3 minutes, until flour is toasted and fragrant. Stir flour mixture into soup with a whisk and simmer for 5 minutes, or until soup is lightly thickened. Season to taste. Remove from heat, cover with a circle of baking paper and stand for 1 hour for flavours to develop (see notes).
6.

To serve, heat soup over low heat, stirring frequently, until heated to your liking. Serve with bread on the side.

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Recipe Notes

If you don’t have dried beans, you can use canned beans and skip the overnight soaking. If you have small children to feed or don’t want to eat meat off the bone, once cooked, remove ribs from pot and leave until cool enough to handle. Strip meat off the bones and shred, adding back into pot for a boneless soup. The soup can be covered and refrigerated overnight; it’s even better the next day.