Haitian · soup

Soup Joumou

Soup Joumou reads sourness 6.0, citrus 5.8 and richness 4.5 on Palate's 0–10 flavor X-ray — a Haitian soup, about 4 hr 29 min. Measured from the recipe itself: ingredients and technique.

The flavor X-ray — six axes, 0–10

• Umami & Savory — 4.2 / 10
• Sweet & Fruity — 3.7 / 10
• Sour & Bright — 7.7 / 10
• Bitter & Earthy — 2.4 / 10
• Rich & Fat — 4.8 / 10
• Aromatic & Spice — 3.3 / 10

The measured notes (of 18)

Sourness 6.0 · Citrus 5.8 · Richness 4.5 · Umami 3.8 · Salinity 3.6 · Sweetness 3.2 · Heat 2.9 · Warm Spice 2.4 · Earthy 2.3 · Floral 1.7 · Fruity 1.6 · Herbaceous 1.1 · Bitterness 1.1 · Nutty 1.0

What's in it (16)

• calabaza — 900 g
• beef shin — 700 g
• lime juice — 60 g
• epis — 80 g
• water — 2500 g
• olive oil — 41 g
• potatoes — 200 g
• carrots — 200 g
• white turnips — 150 g
• white cabbage — 150 g
• celery stalks — 100 g
• rigatoni pasta — 200 g
• scotch bonnet chillies — 5 g
• cloves — 1 g
• salt — 10 g
• freshly ground black pepper — 5 g

Time & effort: about 4 hr 29 min (2 hr 29 min active) · effort: involved

Nutrition (per 100 g, engine-estimated): 28.8 kcal, 0.9 g protein, 0.6 g fat, 5.3 g carbs

Dietary: Contains meat — engine-derived; double-check anything allergy-critical.

How it's cooked (10 steps)

1. This soup is not a recipe so much as a national anniversary. Under French rule the enslaved population of Saint-Domingue grew and prepared joumou but were forbidden to eat it; on 1 January 1804, the day Haiti declared independence, they ate it, and Haitian families have eaten it every New Year's Day since. UNESCO inscribed the soup on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in December 2021. It is made in quantity and carried to neighbours.
2. Epis is the Haitian seasoning base and belongs in almost everything: blend parsley, thyme, scallion, garlic, bell pepper, onion, a little scotch bonnet, lime juice, oil and cloves to a coarse green paste. It is not sofrito and not green seasoning — cloves and a heavier hand with parsley are what mark it.
3. Wash the beef in the lime juice, rubbing every surface, then drain it and marinate it in the epis for at least 2 hours, or overnight.
4. Heat the olive oil in a large pot over high heat and brown the beef in batches, about 8 minutes total. Do not wipe off the marinade; those scorched flecks are flavour.
5. In a second pot, boil the squash in the water until completely soft, about 30 minutes.
6. Purée the squash with its cooking water for about 4 minutes until it is a smooth deep-orange broth. This is the body of the soup; there is no cream and no flour in it.
7. Pour the squash broth over the beef, add the whole unbroken scotch bonnet and the cloves, and simmer, partly covered, for 75 minutes, until the beef gives to a fork.
8. Add the potatoes, carrots, turnip, cabbage and celery and cook 20 minutes more.
9. Add the rigatoni and boil 12 minutes until just tender. The pasta is not a modern shortcut; it has been in the soup for generations.
10. Remove the pepper whole, season with salt and black pepper, and serve very hot with bread. It should be thick enough to coat the spoon but still be a soup.

Dishes with a similar flavor shape

• Legim (Pureed Vegetable Stew with Beef and Salt Cod) — Haitian
• Bake and Shark — Trinidadian
• Sheet-Pan Loaded Vegetarian Nachos — Mexican
• Esquites (Elote en Vaso) — Mexican
• Pudding and Souse — Barbadian

Keep reading: what sourness, citrus, richness mean in the flavor lexicon · the world's cuisines, by flavor.

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Every number above is Palate's engine-measured estimate, computed from this recipe's ingredients and techniques — not human-tasted ratings or reviews.