Soffritto Napoletano Recipe | How to Make “Zuppa Forte”

This traditional Neapolitan dish goes by a couple of names, either “Soffritto Napoletano” or “Zuppa Forte,” meaning literally strong soup. Anyone who tries it will quickly understand the latter moniker!

Soffritto Napoletano Recipe | How to Make “Zuppa Forte”

Zuppa Forte is prepared by stewing some unusual cuts of meat in what has to be one of the richest, most flavorful tomato sauces you’ll ever taste (more on the secret behind the sauce below). It’s a homemade specialty and rarely found in restaurants, but with the recipe below you’ll be able to try it for yourself! And trust us, this one is worth it.

The Secret Behind the Sauce

The thick, flavorful sauce in zuppa forte is quite unlike any other “tomato” sauce you’ll ever find. It isn’t made with fresh tomatoes or even tomato puree, rather with double-concentrated tomato paste. Already this sets things up for a very rich sauce, but we’re not done yet. We’ll also be using a sweet and spicy pepper paste for even more flavor.

There’s another contributing factor which helps the zuppa forte sauce achieve its powerful taste: the imparted flavor of some unusual meat…

The Meat (and why you shouldn’t fear it)

Neapolitan soffritto is made with pork organ meat. This means a mix of heart, liver, kidney, spleen, and/or lung.

We know, for a lot of people that’s a tough sell. But before you abandon this recipe, hear us out on why you shouldn’t be scared of these organs and how (if you must) you can make a reasonable substitution.

The sauce for zuppa forte is so strong and flavorful that having strongly flavored organ meat is really the way to go. “Normal” meat is actually too mild to contribute meaningfully to the dish, and using it will result in missing quite a bit of what makes the recipe so special. Even if you’re someone who doesn’t like liver, heart, etc. under normal circumstances, you are very likely to be quite surprised at how delicious they become when properly cooked in a manner that complements their flavor.

That being said, this recipe is so good that we would rather have someone try it with a substitution than skip it entirely. As much as we discourage it, you can substitute the organs with normal pork cut into roughly 2-inch (5 cm) chunks. Any cut of meat you would use in a stew or ragù will work well.

If you’re brave enough to try the real deal, you’ll need to prep the organ meat properly. If using kidney, boil it in advance for 2 to 3 minutes. Then cut all of the meat into roughly 2-inch (5 cm) chunks and soak it all in cold water for 1 hour prior to cooking. Drain.

Watch the Pasta Grammar video:

ZUPPA FORTE RECIPE

Makes: 4 to 6 servings

Cook Time: 3 hours

For this recipe, you will need:

• 2 to 3 large red bell peppers (better to have too much than too little; you can always save leftover pepper paste and use it elsewhere later)

• 2 tablespoons (30 ml) extra-virgin olive oil

• 2 to 3 fresh chili peppers, or to taste according to desired spiciness (optional)

• 2 tablespoons (30 g) lard

• 3 ½ pounds (~1.5 kg) pork organ meat (heart, liver, lung, spleen, and/or kidney; see above for prep instructions)

• ¾ cup (175 ml) red or white wine

• 1 ¼ cups (300 g) double concentrated tomato paste

• 3 to 4 bay leaves

• 1 sprig rosemary

• Homemade bread for serving (optional, but highly recommended)

Clean the bell peppers and chili peppers by removing the seeds and cutting them into roughly 1-inch (2.5 cm) chunks. Heat the olive oil in a large pan over medium heat and add the peppers. Sprinkle them with salt and cook the peppers, covered but stirring occasionally, until they become very tender—about 20 to 30 minutes.

Blend the cooked tomatoes in a blender until you achieve a thick, even puree. Measure out 200 grams of this puree to use in the sauce; the rest can be saved in the fridge for use elsewhere.

In a large, heavy pot (preferably terracotta or a Dutch oven), melt the lard over medium heat. Add the meat, salt it generously, and sauté until browned. If the meat releases a lot of water, which is normal, let the liquid burn off and then the meat will brown just fine. Add the wine, bring the liquid to a simmer, and let it cook for a few minutes until the smell of alcohol dissipates.

In a bowl, mix the tomato paste with 1 cup (240 ml) of water. When the alcohol has burned off in the pot, stir in the diluted tomato paste, the 200 grams of pepper paste, bay leaves, and rosemary sprig. Salt the sauce to taste.

The zuppa will be very thick, but it needs to cook for a while, so add about 1 cup of water to thin it and bring the sauce to a simmer. Cook, partially covered but stirring occasionally, for about 1 ½ hours or until the meat is tender. The finished sauce should be very thick, but you can always extend the cooking time by adding more water if it thickens too quickly.

Serve warm on top of cubed bread chunks to soak up the extra sauce.

Buon appetito!