Soups
Stracciatella alla Romana (Roman Egg Drop Soup)
Stracciatella alla romana is a Roman egg drop soup: hot chicken or meat broth into which a mixture of beaten eggs and grated Parmigiano-Reggiano is streamed, forming delicate little 'rags' of egg. It is the Italian version of egg drop soup, but unlike the Chinese one, which is often thickened with cornstarch, the Italian stays clear and brothy — the richness comes from the egg and cheese themselves. The name comes from straccetti or stracce, meaning 'little rags,' an apt description of how the beaten egg looks when it hits the simmering broth and breaks into tiny clouds. It is a first course (primo) of the Roman tradition and of central Italy more broadly, especially Marche and Abruzzo. Despite humble peasant origins, today stracciatella often opens holiday banquets at Easter and Christmas, and it is the classic comfort food many Italians remember their grandmother making at the first sign of a cold. The single technical key is heat: the broth must be at a gentle simmer, never a rolling boil, or the egg scrambles into clumps instead of forming silky rags. Stream the egg-and-cheese mixture slowly into the swirling broth, stirring in one direction. Authentic alla romana contains zero semolina — that is a northern variation that turns the delicate rags into porridge. Salt goes in at the very end because Parmigiano already brings its own. Four ingredients, ready in about 15 minutes, served immediately with olive oil, pepper, and parsley.
