About the Recipe
Sopa Coada is a historic baked dish from Treviso in the Veneto region, whose name translates from the local dialect as "buried soup." It originated in the 16th-17th centuries and consists of alternating layers of stale bread, shredded cooked pigeon (or sometimes other poultry), sautéed onions and celery, and a rich meat broth, all capped with a thick crust of grated Grana Padano cheese that forms a lid during slow baking. It was traditionally a festive dish for special occasions and is served as a rich, single-course meal, distinct in texture from a typical soup.
Ingredients
6 squab pigeons (about 500gm each)
3 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
1 each carrot and celery stalk, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 rosemary sprig and a few sage leaves
250 ml red wine
2.5 litres butcher-quality chicken stock
10 thick slices day-old rustic sourdough, halved
170 gm finely grated parmesan
Extra-virgin olive oil
Preparation
Step 1
Wash and pat dry the pigeons. Heat 2 tbsp oil in a casserole over low-medium heat and sauté onion until soft and translucent (10-15 minutes). Add carrot, celery, garlic and herbs, season with salt and stir until tender and golden (10-15 minutes). Set vegetables aside, add remaining oil and cook pigeons until golden (3-5 minutes). Add wine and simmer until liquid is reduced by half (4-8 minutes). Add stock, return vegetables to pan, cover and simmer over low heat until meat starts to fall off the bone (1-1½ hours). Transfer pigeons and half the vegetables to a plate and keep separate. When cool enough to handle, pull the meat off the bones. Add bones back to the pan and cook over medium-high until stock has reduced by half (35-45 minutes).
Step 2
Strain stock through a sieve and press the vegetables with the back of a spoon to extract as much liquid as possible (discard remaining vegetables). Refrigerate until required. Skim fat from surface before using.
Step 3
Preheat oven to 140C. Line a deep casserole dish with a layer of bread, then top with half the pigeon meat and soffritto. Sprinkle generously with a third of the parmesan, then repeat, finishing with parmesan and a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil. Pour 1.3 litres stock over, cover with foil and bake for 1 hour, checking often and adding more stock if dry. Remove foil and bake until golden brown (30-40 minutes). Serve hot with a good drizzle of your best green extra-virgin olive oil.