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–+ servings
dill pickle soup in a white-blue bowl, fermented cucumbers in the background
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5 from 5 votes

Dill Pickle Soup (Polish Zupa Ogórkowa)

Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time25 minutes
cooking the broth (optional)1 hour 30 minutes
Total Time40 minutes
Servings: 6 small servings
Author: Aleksandra

Ingredients

for the soup:

  • 3 tablespoons butter
  • 1 lb (450g) cucumbers in brine (fermented cucumbers) NOT dill pickles
  • 1 medium carrot
  • 1 small onion
  • 6 cups (1.5 L) chicken broth or make your own brown (recipe below)
  • 1 lb (450g) potatoes 5 medium potatoes
  • 1/2-1 cup cucumbers' brine (pickle juice), from the jar with cucumbers
  • 1/3 cup heavy cream 80ml
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 2 tablespoons chopped dill

from-scratch broth (optional):

  • 8 chicken wings or carcass and neck of a chicken + a couple of wings
  • 2 large carrots
  • 1 onion
  • 1/2 leek
  • 1/2 parsley root optional
  • a couple sprigs parsley leaves
  • a piece of celeriac or 2 celery ribs
  • 3 bay leaves
  • 2 allspice berries optional
  • 10 black peppercorns
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 8 cups water 2 liter

Instructions

make the homemade broth (optional, use 6 cups store-bought broth!):

  • This step is optional. You can use store-bought broth and omit this section completely. But if you wish to make the soup from scratch, like it's made in Poland, you need to:
  • Add the chicken wings into a big pot and pour in 8 cups of cold water. Cook over medium heat until the water is simmering, but it shouldn't come to a rolling boil, it should just simmer (you will see a couple of small bubbles on the surface of the water). Skim off the grey lumps/foam on the surface of the water with a slotted spoon or with a small mesh strainer to get a clear soup (this is optional).
  • While the water in the pot is warming up clean the vegetables. Peel the carrots, parsley root and celeriac. Cut into 2-3 bigger pieces. Cut the leek in half and wash it thoroughly.
  • When the water with meat is simmering add all the vegetables and spices, season very lightly with salt. Bring again to a simmer. Cover partially and cook over low heat (the soup should only simmer) for about 1-1.5 hours.
  • Strain the broth. You can discard all the vegetables (you can leave 1 carrot for the soup if you wish). When the meat is cold enough to handle, separate it from the bones and skin and discard them (you can keep the meat and add it later to the soup).

make the soup:

  • Grate the cucumbers on the big holes of a box grater. Squeeze the grated cucumbers with your hands and reserve the liquid (you should have about 1/2 cup of the brine, add another 1/2 cup of the brine from the jar with cucumbers, you should have 1 cup of liquid/brine in total). After you have squeezed out the water you should have about 1 2/3 cups of grated cucumbers.
  • Grate the carrot on the small holes of a box grater, cut the potatoes into small cubes (about 1/2-inch / 1.5 cm), finely chop the onion.
  • Heat the butter in a medium pan and add the cucumbers, cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes, stirring from time to time. Add them to the pot with broth.
  • Add another tablespoon of butter to the pan, add the onion and carrot. Cook over medium-low heat for about 5 minutes or until the onion is soft. Add the content of the pan to the pot with broth and cucumbers.
  • Add potatoes to the pot, bring to a boil, and cook for about 10-15 minutes or until the potatoes are soft.
  • Add the cucumber's brine (juice), add it gradually, and taste the soup making sure it's not too sour or not sour enough for you.
  • Take the soup off the heat.
  • Temper the cream: pour the cream into a cup, add a couple tablespoons of soup, stirring after every added tablespoon, then add the tempered cream into the pot.
  • Season the soup with salt and pepper to taste.
  • Stir in chopped dill.
  • Enjoy!

Notes

  • For this recipe, you need to find cucumbers in brine which are naturally fermented (not quickly pickled with vinegar). The ingredients list should only include cucumbers, water, spices, and NO vinegar.
  • 1 cup of cucumber's brine/juice - this is about 1/2 cup juice that you've squeezed out of the cucumbers + about 1/2 cup brine from the jar with cucumbers. You can use less! Make sure to add it gradually and taste the soup as you go! Don't use dill pickle brine, it will be much more sour.
  • The broth for this soup is very often made with spare ribs in Poland. I'm not a fan of this soup made with spareribs, I prefer chicken, but if you wish to make it with spareribs: use 1 lb (450g) lean spareribs and cut them into smaller pieces. Everything else stays the same.
  • You can use frozen meat to make the broth. You don't have to defrost it, you can add frozen meat directly into the pot.
  • You can use other chicken parts to make the broth but I like to use chicken wings or carcass and neck, since they have lots of bone and cartilage and not much meat. I prefer to use more meaty parts of chicken like thighs and breasts for other dishes when the meat doesn't have to be cooked.
  • Calories count = 1/6 of the recipe (1 small serving). This is only an estimate!

Nutrition

Calories: 184kcal