Vegan Locro de Papa Soup
This Vegan Locro de Papa Soup recipe is a plant-based version of a traditional Ecuadorian potato soup. It’s a delicious and satisfying soup for a cold rainy day.
We learned about Locro de Papa Soup on our first trip to Ecuador. Due to a language barrier, we didn’t know it was traditionally made with cheese. We asked the server in our broken spanglish if it had cheese, but he must not have understood us because he assured us it didn’t. I’m pretty sure it did, though.
Despite having cheese (we think), our very first traditional Ecuadorian dish was a real palate pleaser! So Amelia decided to figure out how to make it “sin queso” and this was her creation thanks to a little help from Laylita’s Recipes (an Ecuadorian native from Vilcabamba).
The traditional recipe calls for little cubes of mozzarella or similar cheese, but we’ve replaced that with cubes of tofu to give it the same texture without the saturated fat. It’s best to use organic tofu if you can find it. Most tofu sold in grocery stores in the states is organic.
The key to getting the traditional locro color and taste is the achiote powder. We had a hard time finding this in Denver, but we eventually found some in a Whole Foods. Two of the three Whole Foods and none of the other grocery stores we checked carried it.
We used olive oil to saute the onions and garlic, but you can replace that with a 1/4 cup of veggie broth to make this an oil-free dish.
Like any soup, this pairs well with a salad or some whole grain bread for dipping.
If you make this recipe, please let us know your thoughts in the comments below. And please share with your friends to help spread the word about healthy plant based eating.
| Servings | Prep Time |
| 8 servings | 15 minutes |
| Cook Time |
| 75 minutes |
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This Vegan Locro de Papa Soup recipe is a plant-based version of a traditional Ecuadorian potato soup. It's a delicious and satisfying soup for a cold rainy day.
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- 2 tbsp vegetable broth for sauteing
- 1 small onion white or yellow, chopped
- 1 tbsp garlic chopped
- 1 lb potatoes peeled and cut into large pieces
- 1/2 tbsp cumin
- 1/2 tsp achiote powder
- 6 cups vegetable broth
- 1 cup unsweetened soy milk or your favorite unsweetened non-dairy milk
- 1 tbsp dried cilantro or 1/4 cup fresh
- 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
- 1 block extra firm tofu patted dry and cut into bit size cubes
- 1 tsp salt or to taste (optional)
- Chop the onion, garlic and potatoes.
- Heat 2 tbsp vegetable broth in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, cumin and achiote powder and saute until the onions are translucent, about 2 minutes.
- Add the potatoes and toss to coat in the spices. Saute for an additional 5 minutes. You may need to add a tbsp of water during the cooking process to keep the potatoes from sticking to the bottom of the pot.
- Add 6 cups veggie broth to the pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until the potatoes are very tender, about 45-60 minutes.
- Mash the potatoes using a potato masher. You want some small chunks of potato.
- Add the soy milk, salt, cilantro and nutritional yeast and simmer for another 2-3 minutes or until the flavors meld.
- Cut the tofu into cubes.
- Gently stir in the tofu and cook for an additional 2-3 minutes or until the tofu is heated through.
- Serve topped with extra cilantro, salt or nutritional yeast to taste.
Serving size is 1 cup of Vegan Locro de Papa Soup.
Recipe inspired by Laylita's Recipes.
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