Bean Soup El Bulli World Famous Restaurant

If this tasty little number is good enough for the folks behind this world class restaurant, it’s good enough for the rest of us!

Bean Soup from El Bulli

El Bulli was a restaurant in Catalonia, Spain, that cemented its place in dining history as one of the world’s all-time greatest restaurants. This 3-Michelin restaurant run by the chef Ferran Adrià is best known as a pioneer of molecular gastronomy – a highly technical, innovative style of food that sought to redefine traditional preconceptions of food and dining. Famously only open for 5 months of the year, landing a reservation in its heyday was akin to striking gold. Even billionaires and Hollywood elites would chopper in, clamouring for a chance to taste mind-bending nouveau-Spanish dishes like spherified liquid olives and the “vanishing ravioli”. Quite a step up from the sort of nosh I’m used to sharing on this website! The dishes cooked by the kitchen for staff meals however were much more recognisable, home-style fare by comparison. A collection of these recipes is published in “The Family Meal” El Bulli cookbook. This food is definitely much closer to home and on my level!!😂 The bean soup I’m sharing today is based on a recipe from the book. No dehydrators, Pacojets or xanthan gum needed for this one, I promise! All it is is just a good, traditional Spanish bean soup topped with a deliciously punchy, pesto-like picada that really brings it home. The original recipe from “The Family Meal” El Bulli cookbook contains clams. I was specifically looking for a vegetarian bean soup so I left it out, and still thought it was delicious. So that’s what I’m sharing today.

Ingredients in El Bulli’s Bean Soup

There’s two parts to this bean soup: the bean soup itself and picada, a pesto-like condiment used in Catalan cuisine. Don’t even think about skipping it. It really makes this otherwise very simple soup!

Ingredients in the soup

Here’s what you need for the soup:

Vegetable stock (forgive the typo above, I will fix it!) – Store-bought is fine but honestly, homemade vegetable stock is a cinch to make and takes this soup from good to great! Somehow I cannot imagine El Bulli making this with packet stock! 😂Beans – Just everyday canned cannellini beans. El Bulli made this with dried beans they cooked themselves, which do taste better than canned. I opted for canned for convenience however so I (you!) can make this soup right now. But I’ve included directions in the recipe for making this with dried beans.Tomato passata – Pureed, strained pure tomatoes, sometimes labelled “tomato puree” in the US (here’s a photo of Mutti tomato passata sold at Walmart). It’s readily available in Australian supermarkets nowadays, alongside pasta sauces. More on tomato passata here.El Bulli probably made their own from fresh tomatoes. We will do just fine with store bought. 😉Garlic and onion – Essential flavour base for an otherwise simple soup.Extra virgin olive oil – For cooking. El Bulli probably pressed their own – heh! But you can just use store bought, don’t worry 👍🏻Bay leaves, thyme and rosemary – A surprisingly small amount compared to the usual generous volumes of herbs I use in my recipes, and it’s all we need for their subtle flavour.I also feel (immaturely) very smug that I can say these are out of my own garden. 🙌🏻

The real El Bulli clam version

If you feel that you are ready for the full El Bulli experience by adding clams, here’s how: El Bulli probably made their own from fresh tomatoes. We will do just fine with store bought. 😉 I also feel (immaturely) very smug that I can say these are out of my own garden. 🙌🏻

Soak clams for 1 hour as this will help the clams to purge themselves of any sand.Remove from the water and add them to the soup 5 minutes before the end.If clams aren’t available, use mussels instead. 😊

Ingredients for the Picada

As mentioned above, Picada is to Catalans what pesto might be to Italians and sauce verte to the French. A brightly herby green paste emulsified with oil, a dollop or a smear of it just makes everything better. This bean soup is no exception! There are many variants of Picada, but generally it is made with some kind of nut (almond is most common but the hazelnut flavour here is on point), parsley, oil (to emulsify the sauce) and usually garlic. Sometimes bread is also added to thicken it, but we don’t need that for our purpose. To make the Picada, it’s as simple as 1-2-3 (4):

How to make El Bulli’s Bean Soup

The 3 key steps here to extract the most out of just a few ingredients are: That is one seriously good bowl of soup right there. And to think it’s “just” made with canned beans! Cook down tomato passata for 8 minutes – This step cooks out the water, concentrates the flavour and intensifies the sweetness. Again, don’t rush this step – it’s just another little thing that makes a difference in this otherwise simple soup! It’s best to do this just before serving to preserve the green colour. Having said that though, don’t fret about leftovers – it’s fine if the parsley loses its bright green colour because we hold some picada back to dollop on top of the soup. I know some of you may be tempted to skip the Picada, thinking it’s an extra step you’d rather avoid. But I promise you, it’s worth it. It totally makes it. Don’t leave it out! – Nagi x