Hearty Sauerkraut Soup

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This German-style sauerkraut soup is hearty, warm-your-soul good and perfect dish for fall and winter.

My husband’s ancestors are Irish and German yet he doesn’t like cabbage or sauerkraut! If he didn’t look exactly like his siblings I’d think he was adopted. Cabbage was often on the table during the summer months in my childhood home and mom would prepare enough sauerkraut to last us over the winter.

I always liked the process of preparing the cabbage for pickling/fermenting/curing: coring the cabbage heads (and eating few cores which have mild horseradish flavor); filling the core holes with salt; placing heads in a large barrel with some shredded cabbage as well and covering with water after which the barrel is hermetically sealed. Then the wait begins.

There are many uses for sauerkraut in our cuisine, but my favorite is stuffed cured cabbage leaves (sarma) and I will share that recipe with you in the future but since finding a whole cured cabbage head is difficult here in the States, this German-style sauerkraut soup is the best substitute.

It uses the same ingredients except there is no stuffing involved. I’m all about the shortcuts and this recipe definitely achieves the same flavors in less time. Of course, there’s something nostalgic about the stuffed cabbage leaves that I can’t deny but this “unstuffed” soup is the next best thing.  Serve with boiled potatoes or crusty bread like this artisan.

Hearty Sauerkraut Soup

Ingredients:
Serves 4-6

• 2 pounds sauerkraut
• 1 pound ground beef
• ½ pound smoked slab of bacon
• 1 pound Polish Kielbasa (or another smoked sausage)
• 1 large onion
• 2 garlic cloves
• ¼ cup rice
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tablespoon paprika
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 4-5 black whole peppercorns
• 2 tablespoons oil or pork lard
• 3 cups water, plus more if needed
• Salt and pepper to taste

~ Free Tip ~

Taste before adding salt as sauerkraut, bacon, and sausage are naturally salty.

 

Directions:

1. Rinse sauerkraut and leave in a colander to drain. Dice bacon and onion, mince the garlic and slice the sausage.
2. Cook onion and bacon in oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat until lightly browned. Add the sausage and cook until edges start to brown.
3. Add ground beef and cook, stirring frequently, until no longer pink. Do not allow the beef to brown. Stir in sauerkraut, garlic, bay leaves, peppercorns, and paprika. Add one cup of water, cover, and cook, stirring occasionally, for 30 minutes.
4. Stir in tomato paste and remaining water and bring to a boil. Lower the heat. Add rice, cover and simmer for another 30 minutes. Season the soup with salt and pepper to taste.

Hearty Sauerkraut Soup

A substitute for stuffed cured cabbage leaves (sarma) this unstuffed hearty soup is stuffed (pun intended) with the same great flavors.

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Print Rate

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: German

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour 15 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes

Author: Jas

Ingredients

• 2 pounds sauerkraut
• 1 pound ground beef
• ½ pound smoked slab of bacon
• 1 pound Polish Kielbasa (or another smoked sausage)
• 1 large onion
• 2 garlic cloves
• ¼ cup rice
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tablespoon paprika
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 4-5 black whole peppercorns
• 2 tablespoons oil or pork lard
• 3 cups water plus more if needed
• Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

• Rinse sauerkraut and leave in a colander to drain. Dice bacon and onion, mince the garlic and slice the sausage.
• Cook onion and bacon in oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat until lightly browned. Add the sausage and cook until edges start to brown. Add ground beef and cook, stirring frequently, until no longer pink. Do not allow the beef to brown. 
• Stir in sauerkraut, garlic, bay leaves, peppercorns, and paprika. Add one cup of water, cover, and cook, stirring occasionally, for 30 minutes. 
• Stir in tomato paste and remaining water and bring to a boil. Lower the heat. Add rice, cover and simmer for another 30 minutes. Season the soup with salt and pepper to taste.

Notes

~ Free Tip ~

Taste before adding salt as sauerkraut, bacon, and sausage are naturally salty.

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