Sopas Perotas de Álora

Sopas Perotas belong to Álora, in the Guadalhorce Valley of Málaga, and they are Andaluz cocina de cuchara, spoon food, made from bread, vegetables, olive oil, and the market's green things. What makes them perotas is not just stale bread in broth. It is the way the fried potato, asparagus, pepper, onion, garlic, and tomato are poured over thick slices of country bread and left to settle until the bread takes the broth but still stands up under the spoon.

The method that decides the dish is this: once the bread is in, you don't boil it. You make the vegetable broth lively and well seasoned first, then pour it over the bread in a deep bowl or earthenware dish, cover it, and let time do the last work. Boil the bread and you get paste. Rest it and you get sopas, soft, full, and separate enough to eat properly.

If you can't find pan cateto where you are, use a dense day-old country loaf with a tight crumb and a good crust, not sandwich bread. The change is simple: a lighter loaf drinks faster and falls apart sooner, so cut it thicker and pour a little less broth at first. No hace falta haber pisado España. With good bread, ripe tomato, and patience, this comes out. Siempre sale, si lo sigues.