Moldova's queen-of-the-kitchen chicken soup: a thin sour broth with homemade egg noodles, lovage and a finishing splash of fermented bran liquid or lemon juice.

Zeamă (also spelled zama) developed from Bessarabia's rural pantry of fermented grains and barnyard chickens. The sourness comes from fermented wheat-bran liquid called borș, sour grape juice or, in modern kitchens, lemon. The herb lovage gives zeamă its unmistakable celery-anise lift. Moldovan wedding custom names the day after the ceremony La Bors or La Zama, when a huge pot of zeamă is served before all other courses to revive the guests; the soup is reputed across Moldova to be the country's most reliable hangover cure.

Where to eat Zeamă in Chișinău

3 editor picks for Zeamă in Chișinău, ranked by editorial score. All Chișinău signature dishes · Zeamă across every city.

  • La Taifas

    Order Tocăniță cooked in the cauldron with mămăligă and a shot of house țuică.

    La Taifas in Chișinău is the old village house with porch on Strada București, serving rustic Moldovan cooking and live folk music in a clay-pottery room.

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  • Sălcioara

    Order Sarmale wrapped in vine leaves with sour cream and mămăligă on the side.

    Sălcioara in downtown Chișinău is the traditional Moldovan dining room with carved-wood interiors, evening live music and a kitchen built on village recipes.

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  • La Plăcinte (Hâncești 58)

    Order Plăcinte with cabbage and cheese, mămăligă with brânză and smântână on the side.

    La Plăcinte on Șoseaua Hâncești 58 is the Botanica-side branch of Moldova's plăcinte chain, with the largest dine-in room and a kids' play area attached.

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Make it at home

Serves 62 hrEasy

Ingredients

  • 1.5 kg whole farm chicken
  • 2 medium carrots, diced
  • 1 medium parsnip, diced
  • 1 large onion, diced
  • 2 medium potatoes, diced
  • 1 sweet red pepper, diced
  • 2 tbsp white rice or 100g homemade thin egg noodles (tăiței de casă)
  • Small bunch of fresh lovage, finely chopped (substitute celery leaves plus a pinch of anise seed)
  • Small bunch of fresh parsley, chopped
  • 200 ml fermented bran borș (substitute juice of 1 lemon)
  • 1 tbsp fine sea salt
  • 1 tsp black pepper
  • Smântână or sour cream, to serve

Method

  1. Place the chicken in a heavy 5-litre pot, cover with 3 litres of cold water and bring slowly to the boil. Skim the foam carefully for the first 10 minutes.
  2. Reduce heat to a bare simmer. Add the carrot, parsnip and onion and cook gently for 1 hour, until the chicken is fully tender.
  3. Lift the chicken out, let it cool slightly, then strip the meat from the bones in bite-sized pieces. Reserve.
  4. Add the potato and red pepper to the broth. Simmer for 12 minutes, then add the rice or noodles and cook for a further 8 minutes.
  5. Return the chicken meat to the pot. Stir in the lovage and parsley.
  6. Off the heat, pour in the borș (or lemon juice). Taste and adjust salt and pepper; the soup should be tangy and herb-forward.
  7. Ladle into bowls, finish each with a spoonful of smântână and an extra pinch of lovage.

Editor tip. Use bone-in legs and thighs if you cannot find a whole farm chicken; supermarket roasters give a flat broth and the soup loses its body.

Common allergens: Egg, Gluten.