Ciorba de loboda | Romanian purple spinach soup recipe
Ciorba de loboda si stevie — This popular Romanian soup is made with deep purple loboda leaves (called purple spinach in English) and sour stevie leaves. With rice and other soup vegetables, it is a delicious, healthy, and hearty meal. The same soup recipe can be made with normal spinach leaves as well.
Prep Time10 minutesmins
Cook Time30 minutesmins
Total Time40 minutesmins
Course: Soup
Cuisine: Romanian
Servings: 4
Calories: 133kcal
Ingredients
2tbspolive oil
4clovesgarlic,smashed
1onion,chopped
2carrots,scrubbed and chopped
1cupbell peppers,chopped (use one kind or a mix.. I used half red and half green)
1/4cupshort grain rice,washed in multiple changes of water and soaked
1cuploboda leaves,purple spinach, chopped
1/2cupstevie leaves,chopped*
1lemon
1/4cupfresh parsley,chopped
Instructions
Heat oil in a deep stock pot.
Once the oil is hot, add garlic. Sauté for a minute.
Add onions, carrots and peppers. Mix well and cook for 5 mins.
Drain the soaked rice and add to the soup vegetables. Add salt, pepper and stock. Mix well and cook covered for about 15 mins till the rice is soft and cooked.
Add the loboda and stevie leaves. Cook for another 5 mins.
Add lemon juice. Mix well.
Garnish with fresh parsley and serve hot.
Notes
*Cut out the thick middle vein of stevie leaf. Only use the soft leafy part.
While it is a popular Romanian soup made during spring when these leaves are in season, the same recipe can be made with normal spinach to make a clear spinach soup.