The scafata is a rural soup with fresh fava beans typical of Lazio, prepared in the spring, a humble but hearty dish. The basic recipe includes pork fat or lard that can be replaced with ham, guanciale, or bacon, and fresh fava beans, preferably small. The version I propose today is the one my grandmother always prepared, which also includes artichokes, fresh peas, lettuce or alternatively chard. All these ingredients, after being flavored in pork fat, were left to cook slowly over the fire and served with toasted bread and plenty of grated Pecorino Romano. The name scafata comes from “scafo“, a dialect term used to denote fava beans. Nowadays this dish can be prepared all year round using frozen fava beans and peas.
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- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Medium
- Preparation time: 1 Hour
- Portions: 2
- Cooking methods: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Spring
Ingredients
- 2 slices guanciale (or bacon)
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 fresh scallion
- 1 cup peas (fresh or frozen)
- 10.5 oz fava beans (fresh shelled)
- 1/2 head lettuce
- 1 mammola artichoke
- 4 1/4 cups vegetable broth
- salt
- pepper
- 1 carrot
- 1 stalk celery
- 1 onion
- 5 cups water
- 1 lemon (for acidulated water)
Tools
- 2 Pots
- 1 Knife
Steps
Peel the carrot and celery, clean the onion. Put the vegetables in a pot, add the water, and bring almost to a boil. Lower the heat and let it simmer for 20-30 minutes.
Clean the artichokes by removing the tough outer leaves, cut them in half, slice them, and soak them in acidulated water. Wash the lettuce and cut it into strips. Shell the fava beans and peas. Cut the guanciale or bacon into strips, chop the scallion. In a pot, add the oil and guanciale, then place it over low heat and let it brown. When the guanciale is well golden, add the scallion and sauté for a couple of minutes. Add the fava beans, peas, and artichokes. Mix well, then add the lettuce and adjust the salt. Let it simmer for 5 minutes over medium heat, then add the vegetable broth and cook for about 1 hour. Serve with toasted bread and Pecorino Romano.
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Advice
It keeps for 3 days in the refrigerator.
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