Christmas dinners frequently feature this Slovak sauerkraut soup with smoked ham, mildly spiced sausage, and sweet prunes. Everyone who gives it a try is in awe of how excellent it is.
| Prep Time: | 15 mins |
| Cook Time: | 2 hrs 5 mins |
| Total Time: | 2 hrs 20 mins |
| Servings: | 10 |
Ingredients
- 2 ½ quarts chicken broth
- 1 (32 ounce) package sauerkraut, chopped
- 2 cups dried forest mushroom blend
- 6 black peppercorns
- 4 large bay leaves
- salt to taste
- ¾ pound Hungarian style dry paprika sausage
- ¾ pound smoked ham
- ¾ cup chopped pitted prunes
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 large onion, finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons sweet Hungarian paprika
- 1 cup water
- 1 cup sour cream
Instructions
- Combine broth, sauerkraut, dried mushrooms, peppercorns, bay leaves, and salt in a large stockpot over medium heat; bring to a boil. Add whole sausage links and ham slice; simmer for 1 hour. Add prunes and continue to simmer for 30 minutes.
- Transfer sausage and ham to a plate. Remove and discard bay leaves.
- Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and sauté until translucent, about 5 minutes. Sprinkle flour and paprika over onion; cook and stir for 1 minute. Gradually add water and stir with a fork until no lumps remain. Bring to a boil, then cook until thickened, 3 to 5 minutes.
- Meanwhile, cut sausage and ham into cubes.
- Pour thickened liquid into the stockpot, then stir in sausage and ham. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes.
- Ladle into bowls and top each with a dollop of sour cream.
Nutrition Facts
| Calories | 386 kcal |
| Carbohydrate | 21 g |
| Cholesterol | 53 mg |
| Dietary Fiber | 6 g |
| Protein | 16 g |
| Saturated Fat | 10 g |
| Sodium | 1326 mg |
| Sugars | 8 g |
| Fat | 27 g |
| Unsaturated Fat | 0 g |
Reviews
Really amazing recipe, was delicious. My Grandma used to make this for me when I was little and so making it for myself on Christmas eve was a beautiful thing. I really do think that I will be making this a tradition from now on. I followed the recipe exactly, and it turned out perfect. Make sure you soak and rinse the mushrooms before you put them in your pot, because you need to be able to rinse of residue and cut them into bite size pieces. Thanks for the recipe!
Everyone loved it! I ordered the paprika and sausage to use in the soup. I also used a package of dried wild mushrooms soaking them in chicken stock for fifteen min before adding to soup We make our sauerkraut which is easy to do and more flavorful than store bought
AMAZING … but you had better love sauerkraut; which we do. Saw the review regarding adding apples, if you do, omit the prunes.
I modified the recipe. I added 2 whole sliced apples and a a few chunks potatoes, some nutmeg and cloves. The apples add some sweetness and the potatoes absorb some of the saltiness. Nutmeg and clove add subike unique flavor.
Flavorful and versatile
Good soup but not a classic Slovak recipe. This soup if prepared on the eve of Christmas would not have had meat, as it was a holy day to fast. But very tasty soup and well written.
Hey, I’m not Laura, I’m just bootlegging her reviews. This is the ABSOLUTE BEST kapustnica recipe on the North American Continent. Try it. I’ve had Slovak friends in fits because they’ve not tasted anything like it since they lived back home. One of the most surprisingly flavorful meals you’ll ever have. I wish I could find the person who submitted it, zizala. A pure genius!
Made it for a Christmas party. Very divergent opinions. Some Russian friends felt it was really spicy (???) others loved it. I think spicy actually meant too “paprilkay” but who knows. Here is my opinion: Disgusting combination of sauerkraut and pork led to a greasy soup that was also very very – yes – sour. It was thoroughly unpleasant, making a fair number of people sick. In the end a lot of wasted money on specialty ingredients. Would have been better off with borscht or something similar. Try it at a restaurant first.
I made this in honor of my Gpa, who was 100% Slovak. We had it for Christmas Eve, and everyone thoroughly enjoyed it. Wish I had made a double batch! None of us thought it tasted too “krauty.” I used Andoullie sausage because I couldn’t find Hungarian sausage. The mushrooms gave us a problem, as they were gritty, and we didn’t rinse or soak them ahead of time, which may just be a rookie error. This is definitely the start of a new tradition in our home. Thank you so much for sharing!
I made this in honor of my Gpa, who was 100% Slovak. We had it for Christmas Eve, and everyone thoroughly enjoyed it. Wish I had made a double batch! None of us thought it tasted too “krauty.” I used Andoullie sausage because I couldn’t find Hungarian sausage. The mushrooms gave us a problem, as they were gritty, and we didn’t rinse or soak them ahead of time, which may just be a rookie error. This is definitely the start of a new tradition in our home. Thank you so much for sharing!
This is absolutely delicious…so full of flavor! I’m living in the Czech Republic at the moment, and it tastes just like the soup served in my favorite local restaurant. The only change I made was to substitute cream for sour cream, as it was what I had on hand. Thank you for the recipe.
An excellent recipe to use up leftover ham, this is absolutely delicious and easy to make. I did not have Hungarian paprika or Hungarian dry sausage, so I used Spanish smoked paprika and extra leftover sliced ham. I also used chicken broth instead of water. When I make it again, I will not cook the ham for so long, I might add more sauerkraut and prunes, but there is no need to change anything else. I fully expect this to be a leftover favorite, as well..
Don’t be afraid to try this recipe! 😉 I was looking for some sauerkraut soup and decided to try this one although it sounded so strange. Also I am a Czech, so I was intrigued that it was a Slovak recipe. Thanks so much to the poster for sharing it with us! It is absolutely amazing! I love both sauerkraut soups, potato soups and mushroom soups. This soup combines two of them. I think next time I will try to add some potatoes – boiled separately ;-). I used a real wild mushroom mixture – picked by my mom and dried by her. But I think I will be fine using a mixture of dried wild mushrooms which are now available in the supermarkets here in US. The dried plums/prunes – I was reluctant, but they gave the soup an amazing slight hint of them in the final result. Smoked ham – I used a regular ham and added a bit of liquid smoke. Overall this soup was a hit! My husband now considers this my best recipe ever! It made a ton and it didn’t really get old to us although we are only two people eating the whole batch.