Ukrainian Soljanka: meat, sausages, bacon, pickles, bell pepper…
This soup originates from East European countries and is a very popular dish in East Germany. It is based on a sour flavour from pickle juice and rounded out by sour cream and lemon when served.
I always had Soljanka at university when it was on the menu at the cafeteria because it is a favourite of mine. Back home in Germany I never cooked this soup, so this was a first here in Canada. Fortunately, it turned out pretty good and my Canadian family doesn’t mind new things to try.
The base for this recipe comes from “Kochen – Ein Rezeptbuch für alle Leute, die mit Leidenschaft backen und brutzeln, kochen und mixen und … essen” by Buchverlag für die Frau. In English: “Cooking – A Recipe Book for all People, who bake and fry, cook and mix and … eat with a passion” by the Book Publisher for Woman”. You will find the recipe on page 363. I have changed it to my liking.
Ingredients:
– 200g onions, diced
– 100g bacon, diced
– 2 cloves of garlic, chopped or garlic powder
– 100g tomato paste
– 1 tbsp. paprika
– 500g mixed meat, sliced
or a mix of meat and sausages
– 2 big dill pickles, sliced
– 2 to 3 bell peppers, sliced
– 1 to 1.5 liters beef broth
– salt & pepper
As with many soups, this can have other ingredients, such as capers. Personally, I do not like them and as such are omitted. Additionally, I used Lyoner sausage and garlic sausage instead of just meat.
Prepare all ingredients, dicing the onions and bacon and slicing the meat, sausages, pickles and bell peppers.
In a pot, sweat the bacon and onion, then add the garlic, tomato paste and paprika. Then add the meat and sausage, pickles and bell peppers. If the mixtures is too thick you can thin it with some pickle juice. Let this cook for 5 to 10 min before adding the broth. Cook for another 10 min, add salt and pepper to taste. Serve the soup, typically with a slice of lemon and a dollop of sour cream.
If you wish you can also add some parsley, dill or capers.
Happy cooking!
See the specks of dill and parsley?
Baking in Saskatoon 
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Thank you for this recipe, it is the closest to the Soljanka my husband and I had in Dresden last year at the Pulver Trum downtown. My husband is German and this in one of his favorites…. We have made Soljanka from this recipe 3 times now and it gets better every time….I think the main thing to remember is to use German or Hungarian paprika…it has a little “kick” compared to the paprika common in the south, which has little flavor and is more often used for color than taste!
Thanks again, Christina
I am happy to hear you found what you were looking for. You are right about the paprika. In Germany you can buy various types of paprika, in North America I have only seen one type so far. (But I also live in the Prairies so other, more European centers might have more selection.)
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