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Top 27 Cold Soups in the World

Last update: Thu Feb 13 2025
Top 27 Cold Soups in the World
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01
Porra Antequerana
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Porra Antequerana is a Spanish soup originating from the Malaga town called Antequera. Originally, the soup was served warm, and it was made with old bread, tomatoes, olive oil, garlic, vegetables, pieces of ham, hard-boiled eggs, and other ingredients the peasants had on hand.


The ingredients were puréed into a soup using a mortar (porra) and pestle. Over time, the soup started to be served cold, usually as an appetizer or a tapa. Nowadays, there are many variations on porra Antequerana, with some recipes adding ingredients such as tuna on top of the soup.

MOST ICONIC Porra Antequerana

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02
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This refreshing, cold beetroot soup is a part of traditional Lithuanian cuisine. It consists of a creamy blend of pickled or boiled beetroots and tangy kefir or buttermilk, poured over grated cucumbers and hard-boiled eggs. The whole soup is generously seasoned with dill, and usually left to set until all the flavors are thoroughly combined.


It is usually prepared in the summertime, and is best served chilled, preferably with potatoes on the side. It can be enjoyed as an appetizer or a light main course.

MOST ICONIC Šaltibarščiai

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03
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This thick French soup is made with puréed leeks, onions, potatoes, cream, and chicken stock. There is an ongoing debate about its origin – some claim it has French roots, while others insist that the soup is an American invention.


One group of food historians say that the soup was invented by French chef Jules Gouffe in 1859, while others believe the original creator to be Louis Diat, a French chef who worked at the New York Ritz-Carlton. Inspired by the potato and leek soup of his childhood, he named the soup crème Vichyssoise glacée after his hometown of Vichy.


Today, the soup is traditionally served cold and is often garnished with fresh chopped chives.

MOST ICONIC Vichyssoise

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04

Dip

TURKIYE
4.1
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Found in various forms throughout cuisines of Southeast Europe and the Middle East, cacık is a refreshing Turkish dip made with strained or diluted yogurt mixed with finely chopped cucumbers and minced garlic. It is traditionally flavored with olive oil, dill weed, mint, either lemon juice or vinegar, and sometimes even oregano, thyme, sumac, and paprika.


Cacık is served chilled and it is used for virtually everything from various appetizers to main dishes. It pairs especially well with classic Turkish meat fare such as köfte and kebabs of all kinds. As a side dish, cacık is typically enjoyed in place of a salad, diluted with water and eaten with a spoon, like soup.

MOST ICONIC Cacık

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05

Cold Soup

BULGARIA and  one more region
4.1
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Tarator is a Bulgarian cold soup made with Bulgarian yogurt, cucumbers, garlic, chopped dill, sunflower oil, walnuts, and a bit of water or ice. However, there are numerous varieties of this refreshing soup (especially in North Macedonia), so some ingredients might be omitted, while others might be added – nuts are sometimes replaced with bread and cucumbers are sometimes replaced with carrots or lettuce.


A variety known as simple tarator is made with vinegar and water instead of yogurt. The soup is always served well-chilled, and it is especially popular on hot summer days.

MOST ICONIC Tarator

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06

Bread Soup

CÓRDOBA, Spain
4.0
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Salmorejo is a refreshing Andalusian soup that is traditionally served cold. It is especially popular during the warm, summer days. The soup consists of puréed tomatoes, bread, garlic, oil, and vinegar. Thick and creamy, salmorejo is often garnished with ingredients such as hard-boiled eggs or Spanish ham.


In some cases, it can be served as a tapa dish or as a sauce accompanying toasts or omelets.

MOST ICONIC Salmorejo

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07

Cold Soup

ANDALUSIA, Spain
4.0
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This Andalusian cold almond soup is known as the precursor of gazpacho; it originated during the Moorish middle ages, predating the arrival of tomatoes and peppers by several centuries. Ajoblanco traditionally consisted of a puréed mixture of stale bread that was moistened with vinegar and water, a hefty amount of fresh garlic, and almonds — the region's most abundant crop, but modern recipes also often include ingredients such as milk and green grapes.


If available, always use Marcona almonds when making ajoblanco. The perfect starter for a summer lunch, this creamy soup is best enjoyed well chilled, drizzled with olive oil, and topped with toasted almonds.

MOST ICONIC Ajoblanco

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08

Noodle Soup

PYONGYANG, North Korea
4.0
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It is enough to read this combination of ingredients to make a gourmet salivate: buckwheat and starch noodles placed into a cool beef broth accompanied by pickled radish, slices of hard-boiled eggs, and Korean pear, all of the ingredients seasoned with mustard and vinegar.


That's naengmyeon, a cold noodle soup and a favorite summertime treat in Korea. In the past, the dish was typically consumed during winter with radish kimchi, obtained from the pots buried in the yard where kimchi was left to ferment. Buckwheat noodles originate from North Korea, since it was the main production center of buckwheat, but after the Korean War, the dish became popular throughout the country and was consumed regardless of the season. 

MOST ICONIC Naengmyeon

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09
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Aukstā zupa is a refreshing Latvian cold soup with an unusual, deep pink color. It is made with beets, cucumbers, kefir, hard-boiled eggs, and milk sausage. Greens such as dill and scallions are essential, and most people also enjoy the soup with a dash of vinegar.


All of the ingredients are mixed together, seasoned with salt and pepper, and the soup is then left in the refrigerator until well-chilled. It's recommended to serve the soup with a few slices of dark bread on the side. Aukstā zupa is a seasonal dish, so it's practically impossible to find it in restaurants during winter, but most places have the soup on their menus in summer.

MOST ICONIC Aukstā zupa

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Ab doogh Kkhiar is a traditional Iranian savory and cold yogurt-based soup.


It's a refreshing dish often enjoyed in the summer months and is known for its mix of textures and flavors. The basic ingredients for ab doogh khiar include yogurt, cucumbers, herbs (such as dill, mint, and sometimes tarragon or rose petals), water, and occasionally a small amount of carbonated water. 
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Noodle Dish
PYONGYANG, North Korea
3.9
12
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14
Vegetable Soup
ANDALUSIA, Spain
3.7
15
Cold Soup
AZERBAIJAN
3.7
16
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19
20
21
22
Cold Soup
CALIFORNIA, United States of America
n/a
23
Cold Soup
ALGARVE, Portugal
n/a
24
Cold Soup
PROVINCE OF CÓRDOBA, Spain
n/a
25
Vegetable Soup
ANDALUSIA, Spain
n/a
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TasteAtlas food rankings are based on the ratings of the TasteAtlas audience, with a series of mechanisms that recognize real users and that ignore bot, nationalist or local patriotic ratings, and give additional value to the ratings of users that the system recognizes as knowledgeable. For the “Top 27 Cold Soups in the World” list until February 13, 2025, 3,637 ratings were recorded, of which 1,757 were recognized by the system as legitimate. TasteAtlas Rankings should not be seen as the final global conclusion about food. Their purpose is to promote excellent local foods, instill pride in traditional dishes, and arouse curiosity about dishes you haven’t tried.