12 Stops For Soup Around The World Slideshow

Americans have few chances to put a human face to the country of Afghanistan and the cuisine is a wonderful way to learn about the people of this ancient country. Afghan cuisine is a mélange of influences from Central Asia, Asia Minor, Persia, India, and the Middle East, yet none of these culinary traditions dominate Afghan cooking. Made differently from one household to the next, aush, a noodle soup, is typical of the fusion found in Afghan cuisine.

For lovers of seafood and soup, bouillabaisse, whose name comes from the old  Occitan words for boiling and reducing, is probably the most famous soup of Provence. Originally from the ancient port city of Marseille, this seafood soup was traditionally made with typical Mediterranean fish like bony rockfish and mussels and crabs considered less desirable in the fish market. Always thrifty, the fishermen made do by cooking their less desirable catch with other ingredients they had on hand, and served it with a fresh baguette and a glass of local wine. Now that's a meal fit for a ship's captain; and it only cost a few sous.

For a small country, Portugal is packed with an amazing variety of regional foods; its Mediterranean style cuisine is a mix of Asian, African, and Old World classics. The Portuguese love soups and stews and eat them most every day made with vegetables, fish, beef, chicken, pork, goat, and starches. Caldo verde,literally "green broth," which is considered Portugal's national dish, is a rustic soup that is like liquid gold because it costs little to make, is packed with nutrients and flavor, and the ingredients lend themselves easily to substitution with whatever greens are on hand.

Chile is a magical place of fire and ice, where poets are revered and the food is part Amerindian, part relics of Conquistadores and Catalan influences, and part trace elements from German immigrants. The cold, pristine Pacific waters that line Chile's coastline make seafood and seafood soups essential parts of the cuisine. Plus, Chile is the only country where one of the world's most important Nobel Laureate poets, Pablo Neruda, used meter to scribe a delicious recipe for this soup, made with conger eel.

In ancient Greece, the culinary arts were dictated by four tenets that are still the essence of Greek cooking today: simplicity, freshness, unpretentiousness, and variety. Food is always a family affair. Despite the country's gorgeous views and landscapes, fertile soil is hard to come by in Greece. Cooks have always been creative with the limited resources and relied on soups to offer a punch of flavor and healthy ingredients that go a long way to feed a family. The region of Macedonia is considered Greece's garden and it produces ripe vegetables that show up in a range of popular soups, but dried beans and other legumes are as ancient as the Greeks.

For those lucky enough to visit Finland, one thing you can count on every Thursday is hernekeitto, pea soup, served with thin pancakes and cloudberry jam. More than one quarter of Finland lies above the Arctic Circle and hearty, filling, nutritious foods that are easy to make are a must. Throw in a long history of religious fasting traditions on Fridays and you have an inexpensive but approved way to tide you over until Saturday.

If you want to know more about the people of Mali, listen to their infectious music — and try some of their popular dishes, like the porridge-style soup called maafe. The peanut is a subsistence food in Mali and other parts of West Africa and it is eaten raw, the oil is used for cooking, and it is roasted and served in a variety of recipes, including soup. Millet and cornmeal are staples in the diet and together with the peanut are pillars of the cuisine that are often cooked together or as side dishes.

2016 is the UN's International Year of Pulses, but Turkey was onto this pulse long before the twenty-first century. In Turkey, one of the oldest and most popular soups is mercimek çorbayı, red lentil soup, which is deceptively simple but rich with flavor. One of the three so-called royal cuisines, the fare of Turkey is one of the most complex, varied, and versatile anywhere. The Ottoman Empire dominated the Old World's geography for more than 600 years and its food reflects the agricultural range of the empire's breadth.

India is an ancient culture with a hugely diverse regional cuisine that has been influenced by cuisines and cultures from the Far East, Persia, the Moguls, and invaders as far away as Britain. In fact, British influences on Indian food and vice versa are now part of the culinary vernacular of both countries. A case in point is the famous soup called mulligatawny, whose origins may be discerned in southern India. During the colonial era, British expats combined English soup traditions with the local Indian curry flavors, added local vegetables and transplants, and let things simmer.

Goulash may be Hungary's most famous dish, but this specialty is just one of the many stews, soups, and ragouts that dominate the cuisine. Hungarians adore soup, and it is served as a first course with lunch and dinner as a matter of tradition. There are hundreds of recipes for soup that make the most of the country's superb Mangalitsa pork, fresh water fish, poultry, vegetables, and game. And for tummy-filling richness, few can compete with hearty paprikás csirkleves, or chicken paprikash soup.

The indigenous Maori of New Zealand have an ancient past that disappears into the mists of time, but central to their culture is the respect of the land and sea and reverence for the food they can catch, hunt, fish, and grow. Communal living, cooking, and eating is a long tradition, and no culinary custom is as revered as boil-up. For centuries, these soups were made with locally sourced game, seafood, and vegetables; with arrival of Europeans, pork and other staples were added to make this "boil-up" a classic.

Sopa de frijoles negros, black bean soup, is probably Cuba's most famous dish, and like the Mambo, it's a memorable blend of cultures, spices, and flavors. Cuba's culinary heritage is a combination of traditions and ingredients from Spain, products introduced by African slaves, the indigenous fare of the native Indian peoples of the Caribbean, and foods from the New World.