Tripe Soup
Ciorbă de burtă is a defining fixture of Romanian Sunday tables, rooted in the kitchens of Muntenia and Oltenia. The gentle acidity from white wine vinegar and full-fat sour cream, paired with long-simmered beef tripe, produces a dense, warming soup that has been served at weddings, feasts — and, by folk tradition, as a hangover remedy. The defining technique is the liaison: egg yolks tempered with hot broth that thicken the soup to a rich, velvety consistency without curdling.
Romanian icon
Beloved at every Romanian wedding and feast
Long simmer
2–3 hours for truly tender tripe
Tempering technique
Egg yolk liaison — silky smooth, never curdled
Serve with chilli
Tradition demands hot peppers on the side
Ingredients 4 servings
- 800g pre-cleaned beef tripe, cut into 5×1 cm strips
- 2 medium carrots (about 200g)
- 1 parsley root
- 1 piece celeriac (about 150g)
- 1 large onion
- 4 garlic cloves, crushed
- 3 large eggs, yolks only
- 300ml full-fat sour cream (min. 20%)
- 3 tbsp white wine vinegar
- Salt and white pepper to taste
- Fresh lovage leaves (optional)
How to make it
- 1If tripe is not pre-cleaned, rub thoroughly with coarse salt under cold running water and rinse 3–4 times.
- 2Boil tripe in salted water for 2–3 hours on low heat until easily pierced with a fork — or 40–50 minutes in a pressure cooker.
- 3Drain and cut into 5×1 cm strips.
- 4Simmer carrots, parsley root, celeriac, and onion in 2L salted water for 40 minutes, then discard the vegetables (or blend and return for a thicker soup).
- 5Add the tripe strips to the broth and simmer 15 minutes.
- 6Whisk egg yolks with sour cream until smooth.
- 7Temper the mixture: ladle several spoonfuls of hot broth into the cream gradually, whisking constantly before pouring it back into the pot — this prevents curdling.
- 8Stir in crushed garlic, vinegar, salt, and white pepper.
- 9Do not boil again after adding the liaison — it will curdle.
- 10Serve piping hot with chilli and garlic sauce on the side.
Nutritional info
per serving (~350 g)
Estimated nutritional values.
Pairs perfectly with
