Known in Slovakia as the dish of choice at Christmas, this delicacy is a true Central European escape. Kapustnica literally means cabbage soup (Kapusta being the cabbage). I’ve made it 2-3 times now, and every time it’s been a success.
When I’ve been able to enjoy it in inns, it’s been a great idea to warm up, it’s a really invigorating dish.
Here’s the recipe for 4-5 people.
Ingredients
- 500-600g sauerkraut
- 2-3 smoked sausages. In Slovakia, look for Klobasa. In France, I'd say a Morteau sausage or any other sausage with a strong flavor to enrich the broth taste.
- 1 onion
- 2 garlic cloves
- Oil or pork fat
- 2-3 Liters of water (to adjust while cooking)
- 1-2 tablespoon tomato paste
- 3-4 teaspoons paprika (mild, smoked or whatever you like)
- A few pinches of salt and pepper of course
- 1 bouquet garni (or at least 1-2 bay leaves)
- Optional: pork meat (like pork knuckle) and/or a few prunes for a little kick of sweet flavor and/or dried mushrooms
Topping :
- 1 spoonful of heavy sour cream per plate served (Smotana kysla in Slovak)
- 1 oil toasted bread rubbed with garlic
Instructions
- Fry the sausages (and meat if desired) in a little oil or even better pork fat (sausages are already fatty so no need to add too much of fat).
- After a few minutes, add the onion and minced garlic.
- When the onion is nicely colored, add the sauerkraut, then one after another the bouquet garni (or bay leaf), the cumin, the paprika and the water.
- Cover and simmer for 1 hour stirring occasionally.
- Take out the sausages (and meat) and cut them into slices. Add them back to the soup. Stir in the tomato paste.
- If you feel like it, add the prunes at this point.
- Let it simmer on low to medium heat for a further half-hour, then adjust the seasoning to taste.
Serve in your best old-fashioned crockery and add a teaspoon of sour cream to spice up your concoction. Enjoy this delicacy from our beautiful Slovakia. You’ll almost feel like you’re in the Slovak paradise (Slovensky Raj, famous national park in central Slovakia). Sauerkraut tones down its flavor and loses some of its tang, so don’t worry if you’re not a fan—it’s still worth trying!
Enjoy your meal and Ahojte (Hello / Goodbye in the plural in Slovak) / vidíme sa (see you next time) my friends 🙂