The Atlas · Spain's Comfort-Food Department

Spanish Soups & Stews

69 of Spain's 456 ranked dishes are soups and stews, and by our raters the best is Rabo de toro, the Andalusian oxtail braise, Nº 1,146 in the world.

69 dishes ranked·15.1% of the cuisine·1,232 diner ratings·Top rank Nº 1,146

Spain does its cold-weather cooking in a single deep pot. 69 of its ranked dishes land in this department, and they skew heavily to the stew: the slow oxtail braise, the bean-and-sausage cocidos, the seafood suquet of the Catalan coast. Even the soups are hearty things, thick with bread or chickpeas, closer to a meal than a starter.

The best-rated by our diners is Rabo de toro, the Andalusian oxtail stew, though fame runs elsewhere: the most-reviewed Spanish bowl is Asturias's white-bean Fabada Asturiana, with 78 ratings to Rabo de toro's 51. Andalusia keeps the deepest pot of any region. Read them below: the signature stews, by region, or the complete list of all 69.

The Signature Stews

Twelve signature soups and stews in rank order, four told in full, then eight more from the pot.

Rabo de toro, stew from Spain
Plate IStew · Andalusia

1Nº 1,146 worldwide

Rabo de toro

Stew · Andalusia

Andalusia's oxtail stew, braised slow in red wine and sherry with garlic, paprika and carrot until the meat slides from the bone. Roman legionaries are said to have eaten a version of it; today it usually arrives with fried potatoes on the side.

★ 4.0|51 ratings

Porra Antequerana, bread soup from Spain

2Porra AntequeranaNº 1,563

Bread Soup · Antequera

A thick, cold tomato purée from Antequera near Málaga, pounded from stale bread, garlic and olive oil in the mortar that gives it its name. Peasant food turned tapa, it comes crowned with chopped ham and hard-boiled egg.

★ 3.9|26 ratings

Olla de trigo, soup from Spain

3Olla de trigoNº 1,656

Soup · Province of Almería

A hearty Almería soup of chickpeas and whole wheat berries simmered with bacon, chorizo and morcilla. Chili, pimentón and a slice of fried bread are crushed in a mortar and stirred through; a splash of vinegar sharpens each bowl.

★ 3.9|6 ratings

Escudella i carn d'olla, stew from Spain

4Escudella i carn d'ollaNº 1,765

Stew · Catalonia

Catalonia's great winter and Christmas stew, eaten in two acts: first a broth swimming with big pilota meatballs and pasta shells, then the boiled meats and vegetables served after. Chicken, pork, botifarra sausage and chard all go in the pot.

★ 3.9|25 ratings

  1. Chanfaina, stew from Spain5

    Chanfaina

    Nº 1,933

    Stew · Extremadura★ 3.9

  2. Suquet de peix, stew from Spain6

    Suquet de peix

    Nº 1,958

    Stew · Catalonia★ 3.9

  3. Gazpachos Manchegos, stew from Spain7

    Gazpachos Manchegos

    Nº 1,963

    Stew · Castilla-La Mancha★ 3.9

  4. Fabada Asturiana, stew from Spain8

    Fabada Asturiana

    Nº 2,031

    Stew · Asturias★ 3.9

  5. Cocido montañés, stew from Spain9

    Cocido montañés

    Nº 2,042

    Stew · Cantabria★ 3.9

  6. S10

    Sopa de picadillo

    Nº 2,237

    Soup · Andalusia★ 3.8

  7. Cocido lebaniego, stew from Spain11

    Cocido lebaniego

    Nº 2,570

    Stew · Liébana★ 3.8

  8. Puchero canario, stew from Spain12

    Puchero canario

    Nº 2,573

    Stew · Canary Islands★ 3.8

The Gazetteer

Where the pots run deepest

The regions of Spain with the richest stew traditions. Choose one to filter the complete ledger below.

Placed dishes only · top 6 regions

  7. Another 5 ranked dishes are logged simply as pan-Spanish, with no single regional home.

The Complete Ledger

All 69 Spanish soups & stews in the world ranking, every entry.

69 entries
  1. 1,146 Rabo de toro Stew Andalusia ★ 4.0
  2. 1,563 Porra Antequerana Bread Soup Antequera ★ 3.9
  3. 1,656 Olla de trigo Soup Province of Almería ★ 3.9
  4. 1,765 Escudella i carn d'olla Stew Catalonia ★ 3.9
  5. 1,933 Chanfaina Stew Extremadura ★ 3.9
  6. 1,958 Suquet de peix Stew Catalonia ★ 3.9
  7. 1,963 Gazpachos Manchegos Stew Castilla-La Mancha ★ 3.9
  8. 2,031 Fabada Asturiana Stew Asturias ★ 3.9
  9. 2,042 Cocido montañés Stew Cantabria ★ 3.9
  10. 2,237 S Sopa de picadillo Soup Andalusia ★ 3.8
  11. 2,570 Cocido lebaniego Stew Liébana ★ 3.8
  12. 2,573 Puchero canario Stew Canary Islands ★ 3.8
  13. 2,614 Carcamusa Stew Province of Toledo ★ 3.8
  14. 2,689 C Caldillo de pintarroja Fish Soup Province of Málaga ★ 3.8
  15. 3,009 Marmitako Stew Basque Country ★ 3.8
  16. 3,363 Caparrones Stew La Rioja ★ 3.8
  17. 3,602 Pollo al chilindrón Stew Province of Huesca ★ 3.7
  18. 3,880 G Gypsy Stew (Olla gitana) Stew Murcia ★ 3.7
  19. 3,941 A Abajao Bread Soup Arcos de la Frontera ★ 3.7
  20. 3,949 P Pochas a la riojana Stew La Rioja ★ 3.7
  21. 3,987 F Freginat Stew Lleida ★ 3.7
  22. 3,993 C Choto al ajillo Stew Province of Granada ★ 3.7
  23. 4,066 Caldo gallego Vegetable Soup Galicia ★ 3.7
  24. 4,339 Gazpachuelo Seafood Soup Málaga ★ 3.7
  25. 4,505 Cocido Stew Spain ★ 3.7
  26. 4,684 Faves a la Catalana Stew Catalonia ★ 3.7
  27. 4,972 Rancho canario Soup Canary Islands ★ 3.7
  28. 5,236 Puré hortelano Vegetable Soup Andalusia ★ 3.6
  29. 5,306 Potaje de garbanzos con chorizo Stew Spain ★ 3.6
  30. 5,465 Bollit Stew Province of Valencia ★ 3.6
  31. 5,484 O Olla de San Antón Stew Province of Granada ★ 3.6
  32. 5,689 Caldereta de cordero Stew Extremadura ★ 3.6
  33. 5,730 Sopa de almendras Soup Spain ★ 3.6
  34. 5,827 Salmorejo Bread Soup Córdoba ★ 3.6
  35. 6,284 Olla podrida Stew Burgos ★ 3.5
  36. 6,363 Ollada Stew Valencia ★ 3.5
  37. 6,398 All i pebre Stew Albufera ★ 3.5
  38. 6,669 Sopa de ajo Vegetable Soup Castilla-La Mancha ★ 3.5
  39. 6,675 Puchero Stew Andalusia ★ 3.5
  40. 6,709 B Berza de acelgas Stew Province of Seville ★ 3.5
  41. 6,792 Ajoblanco Cold Soup Andalusia ★ 3.5
  42. 7,171 Cocido madrileño Stew Madrid ★ 3.4
  43. 7,219 Boles de picolat Stew Catalonia ★ 3.4
  44. 8,239 S Sopa de gato Bread Soup Cádiz ★ 0.0
  45. 8,255 Escudella barrejada Stew Catalonia ★ 0.0
  46. 8,324 Espinacas con garbanzos Stew Province of Seville ★ 3.1
  47. 8,336 Caldo de papas Vegetable Soup Canary Islands ★ 3.1
  48. 8,351 Gazpacho de mango Cold Soup Andalusia ★ 3.1
  49. 8,383 Porrusalda Vegetable Soup Basque Country ★ 3.1
  50. 8,437 Menestra de verduras Vegetable Soup Spain ★ 3.0
  51. 8,575 Gazpacho Vegetable Soup Andalusia ★ 2.9
  52. 8,577 S Sopeao Vegetable Soup Andalusia ★ 0.0
  53. 8,763 E Estofado de carne de lidia Stew Province of Málaga ★ 0.0
  54. 9,165 Zurrukutuna Bread Soup Basque Country ★ 0.0
  55. 9,558 Gazpacho de trigueros Vegetable Soup Extremadura ★ 0.0
  56. 9,690 Watercress and Corn Soup (Potaje de berros) Vegetable Soup Canary Islands ★ 0.0
  57. 9,829 S Sopa al cuarto de hora Seafood Soup Community of Madrid ★ 0.0
  58. 10,018 B Berza Malagueña Stew Province of Málaga ★ 0.0
  59. 10,056 F Fava Beans with Milk and Egg Yolks (Habas con leche y yemas) Stew Spain ★ 0.0
  60. 10,153 C Carne al desarreglo Stew Madrid ★ 0.0
  61. 10,300 E Escaldums Stew Balearic Islands ★ 0.0
  62. 10,301 Cebollada con almendras Soup Andalusia ★ 0.0
  63. 10,333 Caldillo de perro Fish Soup El Puerto de Santa María ★ 0.0
  64. 10,476 S Stewed Pigeons (Pichones estofados) Stew Valladolid ★ 0.0
  65. 10,489 Bullinada Stew Catalonia ★ 0.0
  66. 10,525 O Oliaigua Vegetable Soup Menorca ★ 0.0
  67. 10,634 S Sofrit pagés Stew Ibiza ★ 0.0
  68. 10,640 H Habas con calzones Stew Andalusia ★ 0.0
  69. 10,771 F Fava parada Soup Mallorca ★ 0.0

Questions, Answered

Spanish soups & stews, frequently asked, answered from 1,232 ratings.

What is the best Spanish soup or stew?
By our diners' ratings the best is Rabo de toro, the Andalusian oxtail stew braised slow in red wine and sherry. Behind it come Asturias's white-bean Fabada Asturiana, Catalonia's Christmas-time Escudella i carn d'olla, and the Extremaduran lamb stew chanfaina.
What is Spain known for in soups and stews?
The hearty one-pot stew, above all. Spain fields 69 ranked soups and stews, most of them thick simmered dishes built on beans, chickpeas, chorizo and morcilla blood sausage. True clear soups are rarer here; even a starter like sopa de picadillo carries ham and egg.
What is the most famous Spanish stew?
Fame and rank diverge. By number of ratings the most-reviewed is Fabada Asturiana, the Asturian bean stew, with 78 ratings, ahead of Rabo de toro on 51 and Madrid's cocido madrileño on 50. By score, though, Rabo de toro leads.
What is Rabo de toro?
Rabo de toro is oxtail stew, a specialty of Andalusia eaten across Spain. The tail is braised slowly with onion, garlic, carrot, paprika, red wine and dry sherry until the meat falls off the bone, then served with fried potatoes. Recipes trace back to Roman Córdoba.
Which region of Spain makes the most soups and stews?
Andalusia, with 10 ranked bowls, from Rabo de toro to the cold bread-soup porra Antequerana. Catalonia follows with 6, its seafood suquet and Christmas escudella, then the Canary Islands with 4. Five more ranked dishes are logged as pan-Spanish, without one home region.
Where else should I look for great soups and stews?
Across Spain's borders and beyond: Portugal fields 29 ranked bowls and France 43, while Italy leads the whole department with 117. Worldwide it runs to 1,592 from 176 countries, topped by Moldova's sour-chicken Zeama at Nº 3. See Soups & Stews worldwide.

This Department, Elsewhere

Soups & stews from Spain's neighbours, ranked the same way.

ItalianSoups & Stews117CroatianSoups & Stews58PortugueseSoups & Stews29GreekSoups & Stews28SlovenianSoups & Stews20MalteseSoups & Stews8BosnianSoups & Stews6SerbianSoups & Stews6MacedonianSoups & Stews5MontenegrinSoups & Stews2AlbanianSoups & Stews2MonegasqueSoups & Stews1AndorranSoups & Stews1
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