Polish Pickle Soup (Zupa Ogórkowa) is my favorite soup. I learned how to make it in Poland, and it always turns out great. Polish Pickle Soup (Zupa Ogórkowa) can be made with or without meat. You can change up the vegetables, add a dollop of cream or not, but the star of the show is the pickles, fermented in brine to be exact.
If you love pickles, consider giving this recipe for Polish Pickle Soup a try.
Polish Pickle Soup can be made with or without meat.
Peel and chop carrots, parsley root or celeriac, and potatoes. Put water or broth (or a mix of the two) on to boil in a large pot. Begin cooking vegetables and add bay leaves and allspice.
This soup isn't going to be clear like Polish chicken soup (Rosół) so don't worry about bringing the soup to a boil. It can boil, no worries.
If you are using leftover chicken, add the meat to the broth.
If you have raw chicken in small legs or wings, it can be cooked along with the vegetables. Then remove, separate meat, and add back to the pot.
If your pieces of chicken are larger, cook the veggies, remove from the pot, then cook the chicken in the pot. Remove the chicken and separate the meat. Add all the meat and veggies back into the pot.
Grate, chop, or slice the pickles and add them to the soup. Reserve the brine.
Thickening the soup is up to you. You can make a roux, zasmażka in Polish, from butter and flour. Fry a couple of tablespoons of butter in a frying pan, add a tablespoon of flour and fry until the raw flour taste dissipates. Mix that with some broth and then stir it into the soup. You can also use a cooked potato or two from the soup. Remove, mash with a fork, add back to the soup.
Add dill and chives and some pepper. If you didn't use any meat at all, add a tablespoon of butter or olive oil, or one of each.
Give your soup a taste. If it isn't "pickley" enough, add in some brine by half a cup at a time (being aware that your soup may be cooking down a bit). Wait and taste, add more brine, and wait and taste until you get the level of pickle taste you want to achieve. At this point, you won't need to add any salt at all due to the brine. If for some reason, it suddenly seems to get too salty, add some water.
That's all there is to it. Ladle the Polish Pickle Soup into a soup bowl and add a dollop of cream on top.
Enjoy! Smacznego to you!
Serving Size 2 cups
Servings 8