Sopa de fideo: what's in it and how to make it at home

What is it?

Sopa de fideo is probably the most cooked soup in Mexican homes. It is made by toasting dried noodles in oil until they brown and then hydrating them in a sauce of blended tomato, garlic and onion, all with chicken broth or water. The result is a thin, reddish soup, with the pasta tender but firm. It is served as a starter soup in the Mexican 'comida corrida' —that set menu of the day combining a thin soup, a dry soup or rice, a stew and a dessert— and appears in eateries, family canteens, budget restaurants and school kitchens. There are dry versions, brothy ones, with or without vegetables, with chipotle chilli or without it. It is a recipe of mestizo origin that arrived in Mexico with European dried pasta and adapted to the profile of tomato and local chillies. México en mi Cocina and Excélsior consider it an indispensable family comfort soup.

Origin and history

Sopa de fideo is a direct heir of Spanish and Arab-Andalusian cuisine. Noodles —short dried pasta— arrived in New Spain via Seville and Cádiz during the sixteenth century, in the same shipments that brought wheat, olive oil and rice. In Sephardic and Andalusian cuisine there were already noodle soups with tomato. When the American tomato was integrated into the peninsular diet and returned to Mexico with Creole seasoning, sopa de fideo found its present form. The historian José N. Iturriaga documents that in the nineteenth century sopa de fideo was a common dish in middle-class Mexican households, and by the early twentieth century it became democratised as a popular soup. The industrialisation of pasta —with brands such as La Moderna (founded in 1920) and Carozzi de Toluca— consolidated its place at the daily table. Larousse Cocina classifies it as a 'thin soup' of the national repertoire, distinct from the 'dry soup' that is the dry fideo or sopa seca de fideo.

Characteristic ingredients

Mexican fideo is sold in presentations of 200 to 1,000 grams, short and of medium thickness —in brands such as La Moderna, Carozzi or Yemina. Some presentations are 'fideo enroscado' (vermicelli) and others 'fideo número 5' or 'angel hair type'. The base of the sauce is ripe guaje tomato, garlic and onion, blended raw or lightly roasted for a deeper profile. It is strained so that no skins remain. Some cooks add adobo chipotle chilli for a version with smoky heat, others incorporate epazote, parsley or coriander. The broth can be chicken, beef or just water with a stock cube. Regional variants include sopa de fideo with blended black beans (in Veracruz), with chipotle chilli (a modern version in CDMX), dry with cream and cheese on top, or as a base for 'dry fideo' tostadas. It is an easy-to-prepare dish: in 20 minutes it is ready, which makes it ideal for an office or school lunch.

Cultural significance

Sopa de fideo is an everyday dish of the Mexican 'comida corrida', that system of daily set menus that structures the eating of millions of Mexicans in eateries and budget restaurants. Sociologically, it represents the soup of childhood: it appears in Profeco surveys and magazines such as Animal Gourmet among the 'grandmother's flavours' that Mexicans associate with home. The 2010 UNESCO declaration of traditional Mexican cuisine focuses on the milpa-maize-chilli system, but the mestizo corpus —soups with pasta, rice dishes, beef stews— forms part of the everyday national food identity. The pasta industry in Mexico, according to Inegi, produces more than 280,000 tonnes a year, and short noodles are the most consumed. Sopa de fideo is also a starter dish for children: many paediatricians and nutritionists recommend it as a first brothy solid food for infants. Its versatility has led chefs such as Enrique Olvera (Pujol) and Gabriela Cámara (Contramar) to reinterpret versions for their menus as a nod to the national taste memory.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between sopa de fideo and sopa seca de fideo?

Thin sopa de fideo has broth and is eaten with a spoon as a starter soup. Sopa seca de fideo (or fideo seco) carries the same toasted fideo and tomato sauce, but is cooked until the liquid evaporates completely, leaving a dry pasta similar to paella. It is served with cream, fresh cheese and avocado, as a side or tostada.

What does sopa de fideo taste like?

It tastes of ripe roasted tomato with garlic and onion, with a toasted undertone provided by the fideo browned in oil before being hydrated. The pasta turns tender and absorbs the broth. If it carries chicken broth, there is umami depth; if it carries chipotle, smoky heat. It is comforting, slightly sweet from the tomato and very easy to eat.

How is sopa de fideo served?

It is served hot in a deep bowl with lime, diced avocado, cream or crumbled fresh cheese to taste. In many homes it is accompanied by tortillas, totopos or white bread. It is a starter soup in the Mexican comida corrida —before the main dish— and also a single dish for a light lunch or a children's dinner. Some diners add piquín chilli or hot salsa.

Where does sopa de fideo come from?

It is a mestizo soup born in Mexico from the combination of European dried noodles (via Spain, an Arab-Andalusian legacy) with the American tomato. By the nineteenth century it was already a common dish in Mexican homes. Today it is one of the most cooked soups in the country and is considered an everyday national dish with no specific region of origin.