Name: Pisca Andina – Andean Potato Soup with Egg
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: South American
Ingredients: 4 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into medium dice; 1 l concentrated chicken stock (homemade if possible); 500 ml whole milk; 3 scallions (spring onions), finely chopped, white and green parts; 2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed; 2 tbsp butter; 4 fresh eggs; 200 g fresh white cheese or firm mild cheese, in cubes; 1 cup fresh coriander, finely chopped (the key to this recipe!); Salt and white or black pepper, to taste; Optional, to serve: crackers, toast or plain arepas

Pisca Andina – Andean Potato Soup with Egg

⏱ 30 min in total🔪 5 min prep🍳 25 min cooking🍽 4 portiesEasyAndean

The pisca andina is the breakfast soup of the Venezuelan Andes: potato in chicken stock with milk, a poached egg with a runny yolk, cubes of fresh cheese and plenty of coriander.

The delicate moment is the milk. It goes in over the lowest heat and from then on the soup can never boil hard again: if it boils, it splits and comes out flecked instead of creamy.

And the cheese and the coriander go in with the heat already off. The residual warmth is enough to soften the cheese and release the oils in the coriander; boiled, the coriander loses exactly what it is there for.

Ingredients

Measurements

🍽 4 servings

4 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into medium dice
1 l concentrated chicken stock (homemade if possible)
500 ml whole milk
3 scallions (spring onions), finely chopped, white and green parts
2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
2 tbsp butter
4 fresh eggs
200 g fresh white cheese or firm mild cheese, in cubes
1 cup fresh coriander, finely chopped (the key to this recipe!)
Salt and white or black pepper, to taste
Optional, to serve: crackers, toast or plain arepas

Method

In a medium pot over medium heat, melt the 2 tablespoons of butter. Add the scallions and the crushed garlic. Soften for 3 to 4 minutes until the onion is tender and translucent, taking care that the garlic does not burn.

Add the diced potato to the pot and turn it in the sofrito so it takes up the flavour of the butter. Pour in the litre of hot chicken stock, season and turn the heat up until it boils. Lower to medium and cook for 15 minutes, or until the potatoes are completely tender when pierced.

Adding the milk: turn the heat to its absolute lowest. Pour in the 500 ml of whole milk slowly while stirring gently. Let the soup come up to temperature for 3 minutes, watching carefully that the liquid does not come to a hard boil, to keep the milk from splitting.

With the soup at a barely visible simmer, crack the eggs one at a time and slide them into the broth very carefully and separately. Cook them covered over the lowest heat for 3 or 4 minutes, just enough for the white to set and turn opaque while the yolk stays liquid inside.

The finish, by residual heat: turn off the heat. Only then add the cubes of fresh cheese and the cup of chopped fresh coriander. Cover the pot and let it stand for 2 minutes so the cheese starts to soften and the coriander releases all its aromatic oils.

Ladle it out very carefully with a deep ladle, making sure each bowl gets a whole egg, a good portion of potatoes and cubes of cheese. Pour the pale, fragrant broth over and serve immediately, very hot, with crackers or toast.