Polish Dill Pickle Soup – Zupa ogórkowa

Polish Dill Pickle Soup, also known as “Zupa Ogórkowa,” is a traditional Polish soup my Mom used to make very often during winter. We loved it so much, Mom would cook it at least once a week.

This is without a doubt one of the most unique soups you’ve ever had. If you enjoy the flavour of dill pickles and like to try new things, I highly recommend it.

Here’s Mom’s recipe for you to try at home:

Ingredients:

900 ml of chicken or vegetable broth
4 cups of water
3 chicken breasts or 1 lb (500g) port ribs
6 medium white potatoes, peeled and cubed into 1/2-inch pieces
2 large carrots, peeled and diced
1 large onion, peeled and chopped
2 large stalks celery, chopped
1 leek
1 parsley root or parsnip
2 cups of dill pickles, grated
1 cup of dill pickle juice
1 cup of sour cream
2 tablespoons of all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
2 bay leaves
1 pinch Vegeta seasoning
2 tablespoons fresh dill
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper to taste

Instructions:

Wash all the ingredients for the broth (always wash the meat at the end).
In a large pot, pour in chicken or vegetable broth and 4 cups of water. Add the chicken breasts, peeled carrot, parsley root, celery and a leek. Add bay leaves, 1/2 teaspoon of seasoning, salt and pepper.
Peel the potatoes, cubed them into 1/2-inch pieces and add to the broth.
In a medium frying pan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the chopped onion, and sauté until the onion is translucent. Transfer to the soup.

Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and let the soup simmer for about 15-20 minutes or until the meat and potatoes are cooked. After boiling, use a spoon to collect the white foam from the top of the broth. If you don’t, the soup may turn bitter or sour.

In a meantime, prepare pickles while cooking the broth. Grate them on a grater with large holes for vegetables. Set aside.

When the chicken is cooked and vegetables are tender, remove them from the pot and let it cool for a minute or two. Personally, I don’t like leek and parsley root that much, so I discard them.

Dice the carrots and celery all about the same size. My Mom likes to grate them but I prefer cubes. This way the vegetables have the right structure and do not disappear in the soup, but it depends on personal preference.

Transfer chopped carrots and celery back to the pot. Add grated pickles and 1 cup of dill pickle juice. Let the soup simmer for about 5-10 minutes.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the sour cream and all-purpose flour until smooth. Slowly add a ladleful of the hot soup to the sour cream mixture, whisking constantly. This will help to temper the sour cream and prevent it from curdling when added to the soup.

Gradually pour the sour cream mixture into the pot of soup, stirring constantly. Cook for an additional 5 minutes.