{ "slug": "jota", "url": "https://nonnario.com/recipes/jota/", "name": "Jota", "english": "Trieste bean, sauerkraut and potato soup", "aka": [ "iota", "yota", "jota triestina", "Trieste bean and sauerkraut soup" ], "summary": "Trieste's dense winter soup of borlotti beans, potatoes and sauerkraut with smoked pork, bound with a dark roux of olive oil, garlic and flour, and on Italy's list of traditional foods of Friuli Venezia Giulia.", "essentials": [ "Dried borlotti beans, potatoes and sauerkraut (capuzi garbi in Trieste), with smoked pork.", "The sauerkraut simmers on its own with bay leaf and caraway, in the beans' cooking liquid, until it has absorbed it.", "A dark roux of olive oil, garlic and flour, browned until it darkens, takes the sauerkraut, then everything else.", "Cooked slowly for at least 40 minutes into a dense, creamy, sour soup.", "It needs a rest: made in the morning for the evening, and finished with pepper and raw olive oil." ], "diet": [], "region": { "slug": "friuli-venezia-giulia", "name": "Friuli-Venezia Giulia", "url": "https://nonnario.com/regions/friuli-venezia-giulia/" }, "place": "Trieste", "coords": [ 45.6495, 13.7768 ], "course": { "id": "zuppe", "it": "Zuppe", "en": "Soups" }, "level": { "id": "tradition", "name": "Documented tradition", "it": "Tradizione documentata", "description": "A regional tradition documented in cookbooks and local practice, with no single official text.", "url": "https://nonnario.com/method/#level-tradition" }, "status": "checked", "published": "2026-11-02", "checked": "2026-11-02", "cooked": null, "pending": null, "provenance": { "by": "Triestine tradition", "reference": "Compared across 7 sources, listed below; this page publishes the most widely recognised version.", "year": null }, "sources": [ { "label": "Guido Tommasi Editore: Trieste in cucina, by Rita Mazzoli and Marina Raccar, the jota recipe in the publisher's sample pages (Italian)", "url": "https://www.guidotommasi.it/uploads/2022/08/29/triesteincucina-sf.pdf" }, { "label": "Accademia Italiana della Cucina: jota, a recipe of Friuli Venezia Giulia from its collection (Italian)", "url": "https://accademia1953.it/it/ricette/ricetta/jota" }, { "label": "Comune di Trieste, Discover Trieste: jota, a recipe on the city's tourism portal", "url": "https://www.discover-trieste.it/live/food-and-wine/triestine-recipes-and-typical-dishes/jota" }, { "label": "La Cucina Italiana: jota, its recipe from Friuli Venezia Giulia, 18 October 2019 (Italian)", "url": "https://www.lacucinaitaliana.it/ricetta/primi/jota/" }, { "label": "PromoTurismoFVG, the regional tourism agency: jota triestina, among the typical products (Italian)", "url": "https://www.turismofvg.it/it/enogastronomia/prodotti-tipici/jota-triestina" }, { "label": "Italia.it, Italy's official tourism portal: an overview of the typical products and dishes of Friuli Venezia Giulia (Italian)", "url": "https://www.italia.it/it/friuli-venezia-giulia/cosa-fare/prodotti-piatti-tipici-friuli-venezia-giulia" }, { "label": "Ministry of Agriculture (MASAF): national list of traditional agri-food products, 25th revision, 2025, Friuli Venezia Giulia no. 147 (Italian)", "url": "https://www.masaf.gov.it/flex/cm/pages/ServeBLOB.php/L/IT/IDPagina/22781" } ], "story": [ "Jota is one of the best-known dishes of Trieste: a dense winter soup of beans, potatoes and sauerkraut, which the Triestines call capuzi garbi, flavoured with smoked pork. It is also made on the Karst and around Gorizia. It began as a frugal way with leftovers, made from whatever beans, cabbage and pork the house had, and references to it go back to the fifteenth century. What its name means is still debated: perhaps the late Latin jutta, a mixture or a thin soup. Across the region it comes to the Christmas table, and it is on the national list of traditional agri-food products for Friuli Venezia Giulia (2025 revision, number 147).", "There is no official recipe. We compared seven sources and publish the most widely recognised version: dried borlotti cooked with the potatoes, the sauerkraut simmered apart with bay leaf and caraway in the beans' liquid, then everything brought together in a dark roux of olive oil, garlic and flour, cooked slowly and left to rest from morning to evening. The sources agree on beans, sauerkraut, potatoes and pork, most often smoked, on flour browned in fat to bind the soup, and most of them on bay leaf. They differ on the fat (olive oil or lard), on whether half the beans are puréed, on caraway, which only this version adds, and on the meat (smoked ribs, a ham bone, sausages, pancetta). Two things on this page are ours, for safety: the beans boil hard for their first half hour, and the soup rests in the fridge rather than on the stove, then comes back to the boil before it is served." ], "serves": 4, "makes": null, "minutes": { "handsOn": 30, "cooking": 190, "resting": 1080, "days": 2 }, "plan": "Two days, with little work on either. The evening before: put the beans to soak. The morning: cook the beans with the potatoes (1–1½ hours), then the sauerkraut in their liquid (45–60 minutes), then the roux and the soup (about 50–70 minutes): 3–4 hours in all, mostly unattended. Cool it in shallow containers in iced water and get it into the fridge within 2 hours of it coming off the heat. The evening: bring it back to the boil (15–20 minutes) and serve.", "equipment": [ "Bowl for soaking the beans", "Saucepan of about 4 l for the beans and potatoes, with a lid", "Colander set over a large bowl, to keep the cooking liquid", "Medium saucepan for the sauerkraut", "Heavy pot or casserole of about 4 l for the roux and the soup, and a wooden spoon", "Two or three shallow metal containers or trays, no deeper than about 5 cm, and a sink of iced water", "Probe thermometer" ], "ingredients": [ { "group": null, "items": [ { "quantity": 300, "unit": "g", "item": "dried borlotti beans", "note": "soaked the evening before", "text": "300 g dried borlotti beans (soaked the evening before)", "recipe": null }, { "quantity": 0.5, "unit": "tsp", "item": "bicarbonate of soda", "note": "for the soaking water", "text": "½ tsp bicarbonate of soda (for the soaking water)", "recipe": null }, { "quantity": 300, "unit": "g", "item": "potatoes", "note": "peeled, in pieces of about 2 cm", "text": "300 g potatoes (peeled, in pieces of about 2 cm)", "recipe": null }, { "quantity": 300, "unit": "g", "item": "sauerkraut", "note": "loose, as it is sold in Trieste, or from a tin or jar; drained of its brine", "text": "300 g sauerkraut (loose, as it is sold in Trieste, or from a tin or jar; drained of its brine)", "recipe": null }, { "quantity": 300, "unit": "g", "item": "smoked pork ribs", "note": "cut into single ribs; or smoked pancetta, a ham bone or prosciutto trimmings", "text": "300 g smoked pork ribs (cut into single ribs; or smoked pancetta, a ham bone or prosciutto trimmings)", "recipe": null }, { "quantity": 2, "unit": "tbsp", "item": "plain white flour", "note": null, "text": "2 tbsp plain white flour", "recipe": null }, { "quantity": 2, "unit": "clove", "item": "garlic", "note": "peeled and crushed", "text": "2 cloves garlic (peeled and crushed)", "recipe": null }, { "quantity": 1, "unit": "pc", "item": "bay leaf", "note": null, "text": "1 bay leaf", "recipe": null }, { "quantity": 0.5, "unit": "tsp", "item": "caraway seeds (Kümmel)", "note": null, "text": "½ tsp caraway seeds (Kümmel)", "recipe": null }, { "quantity": 12, "unit": "tbsp", "item": "extra virgin olive oil", "note": "about 10 tablespoons for the roux, the rest raw, to serve", "text": "12 tbsp extra virgin olive oil (about 10 tablespoons for the roux, the rest raw, to serve)", "recipe": null }, { "quantity": null, "unit": null, "item": "water", "note": "for soaking, and about 2 l for cooking the beans, plus a little more if needed", "text": "water (for soaking, and about 2 l for cooking the beans, plus a little more if needed)", "recipe": null }, { "quantity": null, "unit": null, "item": "salt and black pepper", "note": "a pinch of salt, only at the end; pepper to season and to serve", "text": "salt and black pepper (a pinch of salt, only at the end; pepper to season and to serve)", "recipe": null } ] } ], "method": [ { "phase": "The evening before: soak the beans", "intro": null, "steps": [ { "n": 1, "url": "https://nonnario.com/recipes/jota/#step-1", "title": "Soak the borlotti", "text": "Rinse the 300 g of dried borlotti and put them in a bowl with about three times their volume of cold water. Stir in the ½ teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda and leave them overnight, about 12 hours.", "kind": "rest", "minutes": 720, "celsius": null, "heat": null, "official": false, "check": "The beans are plump, roughly doubled in size, with smooth, unwrinkled skins.", "tips": [ "In a warm kitchen, soak them in the fridge." ] } ] }, { "phase": "The morning: beans and potatoes", "intro": null, "steps": [ { "n": 2, "url": "https://nonnario.com/recipes/jota/#step-2", "title": "Rinse the beans, cut the potatoes", "text": "Drain the beans and rinse them well under cold water. Peel the 300 g of potatoes and cut them into pieces of about 2 cm.", "kind": "active", "minutes": 10, "celsius": null, "heat": null, "official": false, "check": null, "tips": [] }, { "n": 3, "url": "https://nonnario.com/recipes/jota/#step-3", "title": "Cook them together from cold", "text": "Put the beans and potatoes in the saucepan with about 2 l of cold water, enough to cover them by about 5 cm. Do not salt it. Bring it to the boil and keep it at a steady boil for the first 30 minutes, counted from when it boils, skimming off the foam. Then lower the heat and simmer, partly covered, until the beans are soft, 1–1½ hours in all, topping up with hot water to keep them covered.", "kind": "passive", "minutes": [ 60, 90 ], "celsius": null, "heat": "a steady boil for 30 minutes, then low", "official": false, "check": "Squeeze a bean between two fingers: it is creamy right through, with no chalky core. The potatoes are soft and starting to break up at the edges.", "tips": [ "Undercooked beans can make you ill: the first half hour at a full boil is not optional.", "Salt goes in only at the very end of the soup." ] }, { "n": 4, "url": "https://nonnario.com/recipes/jota/#step-4", "title": "Drain, keeping the liquid", "text": "Set the colander over the large bowl and drain the beans and potatoes, keeping all the cooking liquid.", "kind": "active", "minutes": 3, "celsius": null, "heat": null, "official": false, "check": "Beans and potatoes in the colander, the cloudy cooking liquid in the bowl.", "tips": [] } ] }, { "phase": "The sauerkraut", "intro": null, "steps": [ { "n": 5, "url": "https://nonnario.com/recipes/jota/#step-5", "title": "Simmer the sauerkraut in the bean liquid", "text": "Drain the 300 g of sauerkraut of its brine, squeezing it lightly, but do not rinse it. Put it in the medium saucepan with the bay leaf and the ½ teaspoon of caraway seeds and pour over just enough of the bean liquid to cover it, keeping the rest; if there is not enough to cover it, top it up with water. Simmer it gently, uncovered, until it has absorbed all the liquid, 45–60 minutes. If the pan runs dry before the sauerkraut is soft, add a splash of water.", "kind": "passive", "minutes": [ 45, 60 ], "celsius": null, "heat": "low, a gentle simmer", "official": false, "check": "The pan is almost dry, with no liquid left at the bottom when you tilt it, and the sauerkraut is soft and has lost its raw crunch.", "tips": [ "Tinned or jarred sauerkraut is already cooked and is ready sooner than loose sauerkraut: go by the check, not the clock.", "Rinsing would make it milder; the sourness is part of the dish, though jotas differ in how sour they are." ] } ] }, { "phase": "The roux and the soup", "intro": null, "steps": [ { "n": 6, "url": "https://nonnario.com/recipes/jota/#step-6", "title": "Brown the roux", "text": "In the heavy pot, warm about 10 of the 12 tablespoons of olive oil over medium-low heat with the 2 crushed garlic cloves for 1–2 minutes. Add the 2 tablespoons of flour and stir without stopping until the flour turns a deep hazelnut brown, 5–8 minutes.", "kind": "active", "minutes": [ 6, 10 ], "celsius": null, "heat": "medium-low", "official": false, "check": "The roux is the colour of a hazelnut shell and smells toasted, with no black specks and no acrid smell.", "tips": [ "Keep the other 2 tablespoons of oil for serving.", "If the garlic turns black before the flour has browned, lift it out. If the roux smells burnt, start again: burnt flour makes the whole soup bitter." ] }, { "n": 7, "url": "https://nonnario.com/recipes/jota/#step-7", "title": "Stir in the sauerkraut", "text": "As soon as the roux has darkened, add the sauerkraut with its bay leaf and stir until it is coated all over.", "kind": "active", "minutes": 2, "celsius": null, "heat": "medium-low", "official": false, "check": "No dry flour left in the pot; the sauerkraut is evenly brown.", "tips": [] }, { "n": 8, "url": "https://nonnario.com/recipes/jota/#step-8", "title": "Add the potatoes, the beans and the pork", "text": "Add the potatoes and beans and the 300 g of smoked ribs, cut into single ribs. Pour in enough of the kept bean liquid to just cover everything (add hot water if there is not enough), stir and bring it to a simmer.", "kind": "active", "minutes": 5, "celsius": null, "heat": "medium", "official": false, "check": "It is simmering gently, with the ribs under the liquid.", "tips": [] }, { "n": 9, "url": "https://nonnario.com/recipes/jota/#step-9", "title": "Cook slowly, at least 40 minutes", "text": "Turn the heat to low and cook, lid ajar, for at least 40 minutes, stirring often so the flour does not catch on the bottom. If it gets too thick, loosen it with a little more of the bean liquid or hot water. Forty minutes is the least it needs: if the meat is not yet tender, keep cooking and check again every 10 minutes.", "kind": "passive", "minutes": [ 40, 60 ], "celsius": null, "heat": "low, lid ajar", "official": false, "check": "A dense, creamy, brownish soup, the potatoes partly broken into it, and the meat tender and coming away from the bone; at least 75 °C at the centre of a rib.", "tips": [ "Smoked pancetta or prosciutto trimmings go in the same way; a ham bone is lifted out at the end, any meat on it shredded back into the soup." ] }, { "n": 10, "url": "https://nonnario.com/recipes/jota/#step-10", "title": "Season", "text": "Taste, then season with a pinch of salt and some freshly ground pepper. Take out the bay leaf.", "kind": "active", "minutes": 2, "celsius": null, "heat": null, "official": false, "check": null, "tips": [ "Taste before salting: the smoked pork and the sauerkraut are already salty." ] } ] }, { "phase": "The rest: from morning to evening", "intro": null, "steps": [ { "n": 11, "url": "https://nonnario.com/recipes/jota/#step-11", "title": "Cool it quickly", "text": "Divide the soup between the shallow metal containers, no deeper than about 5 cm, and stand them in a sink of iced water for 30–60 minutes, stirring now and then.", "kind": "passive", "minutes": [ 30, 60 ], "celsius": null, "heat": null, "official": false, "check": "The soup is no longer steaming and feels cool to the touch through the container.", "tips": [] }, { "n": 12, "url": "https://nonnario.com/recipes/jota/#step-12", "title": "Rest in the fridge until the evening", "text": "Within 2 hours of the soup coming off the heat, cover the containers and put them in the fridge at 4 °C, whatever the probe reads. Leave them there until the evening, at least 6 hours.", "kind": "rest", "minutes": 360, "celsius": 4, "heat": null, "official": false, "check": "In the fridge no more than 2 hours after the soup came off the heat; by evening it has set thick.", "tips": [ "The rest lets the flavours blend and the soup thicken. Do not leave it to rest on the stove: a pot of soup at room temperature for hours is a risk." ] } ] }, { "phase": "The evening: back to the boil and serve", "intro": null, "steps": [ { "n": 13, "url": "https://nonnario.com/recipes/jota/#step-13", "title": "Bring it back to the boil", "text": "Put the soup back in the heavy pot over medium-low heat, with a splash of water if it has set very thick, and heat it, stirring often so the bottom does not catch, until it bubbles all the way through, 15–20 minutes.", "kind": "passive", "minutes": [ 15, 20 ], "celsius": null, "heat": "medium-low", "official": false, "check": "Bubbling across the whole surface, not only at the edges, and at least 75 °C at the centre.", "tips": [] }, { "n": 14, "url": "https://nonnario.com/recipes/jota/#step-14", "title": "Serve with pepper and raw olive oil", "text": "Serve in bowls, hot or warm, with a sprinkling of pepper and a thin drizzle of the 2 tablespoons of olive oil you kept back, raw.", "kind": "active", "minutes": 2, "celsius": null, "heat": null, "official": false, "check": null, "tips": [ "Leftovers: back in the fridge in shallow containers within 2 hours, eaten within 3 days, and brought back to the boil each time." ] } ] } ], "quick": [ "The evening before, soak the borlotti in cold water with ½ teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda.", "In the morning, rinse them and cook them from cold water with the potatoes in small pieces, without salt: a steady boil for the first 30 minutes, then a simmer until soft. Drain, keeping all the liquid.", "Simmer the sauerkraut with the bay leaf and the caraway in enough of that liquid to cover it, topping up with water if needed, until it has absorbed it all.", "In a heavy pot, brown the flour in the olive oil with the crushed garlic until it darkens, then stir in the sauerkraut, followed by the potatoes, the beans and the smoked ribs.", "Cook slowly for at least 40 minutes, until the meat is tender, stirring often and loosening with the kept liquid, then season with a pinch of salt and pepper.", "Cool it quickly in shallow containers and keep it in the fridge until the evening: it needs a rest.", "Bring it back to the boil and serve with a sprinkling of pepper and a thin drizzle of raw olive oil." ], "when": { "text": "A winter soup, to be eaten hot on cold winter days.", "source": { "label": "PromoTurismoFVG, the regional tourism agency: jota triestina, among the typical products (Italian)", "url": "https://www.turismofvg.it/it/enogastronomia/prodotti-tipici/jota-triestina" } }, "keeps": { "text": "Like every minestra it needs a rest: it is made in the morning for the evening, so the flavours blend and it thickens.", "source": { "label": "Guido Tommasi Editore: Trieste in cucina, by Rita Mazzoli and Marina Raccar, the jota recipe in the publisher's sample pages (Italian)", "url": "https://www.guidotommasi.it/uploads/2022/08/29/triesteincucina-sf.pdf" } }, "variants": [ { "name": "With half the beans puréed", "text": "Smoked ribs or a ham bone boiled from the start with the soaked beans and the potatoes; half the beans and two or three potatoes passed; the sauerkraut boiled apart in water with salt, pepper and bay until dry; a very dark roux of oil, flour and crushed garlic stirred in once it all boils.", "source": { "label": "Accademia Italiana della Cucina: jota, a recipe of Friuli Venezia Giulia from its collection (Italian)", "url": "https://accademia1953.it/it/ricette/ricetta/jota" }, "recipe": null }, { "name": "With Cragno sausages", "text": "Smoked Cragno sausages (or ribs, or a ham bone) cooked with the beans in vegetable broth; the sauerkraut simmered in water after garlic fried in lard; half the beans and potatoes puréed; flour toasted in oil or lard stirred in at the end.", "source": { "label": "Comune di Trieste, Discover Trieste: jota, a recipe on the city's tourism portal", "url": "https://www.discover-trieste.it/live/food-and-wine/triestine-recipes-and-typical-dishes/jota" }, "recipe": null }, { "name": "With cornmeal", "text": "Diced pork boiled with the beans; flour toasted in oil, then a second soffritto of pounded lard, garlic, sage, onion and parsley bound with cornmeal; the sauerkraut sautéed with smoked pancetta and added shortly before the end.", "source": { "label": "La Cucina Italiana: jota, its recipe from Friuli Venezia Giulia, 18 October 2019 (Italian)", "url": "https://www.lacucinaitaliana.it/ricetta/primi/jota/" }, "recipe": null }, { "name": "With turnips", "text": "In Friulian and Carnic cooking, turnips take the place of the fermented cabbage.", "source": { "label": "La Cucina Italiana: jota, its recipe from Friuli Venezia Giulia, 18 October 2019 (Italian)", "url": "https://www.lacucinaitaliana.it/ricetta/primi/jota/" }, "recipe": null } ], "variantOf": [], "usedIn": [], "mistakes": [ "Salting the beans at the start: the pinch of salt goes in only at the end.", "Cooking the beans at a bare simmer from the start: boil them steadily for the first half hour.", "Adding the sauerkraut while the roux is still pale: wait until it has darkened.", "Letting the roux burn: it turns the whole soup bitter.", "Serving it as soon as it is cooked: it needs to rest from morning to evening." ], "abroad": [ "Borlotti are sold in the US as cranberry beans or Roman beans.", "Kümmel is caraway (cumino dei prati or carvi in Italian), not cumin.", "Loose sauerkraut from a barrel, or sauerkraut from a tin or jar, both work.", "In place of smoked pork ribs: smoked pancetta (smoked slab bacon), a ham bone or prosciutto trimmings." ], "image": "https://nonnario.com/assets/img/jota.jpg", "video": "https://nonnario.com/assets/video/jota.mp4?v=d0016031b4", "versions": { "page": "https://nonnario.com/recipes/jota/", "markdown": "https://nonnario.com/recipes/jota.md", "json": "https://nonnario.com/recipes/jota.json" }, "cite": "Cite the recipe's page and the month its sources were checked; for the official text itself, cite the document listed under its sources.", "license": { "name": "CC BY-NC 4.0", "url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/" } }