Ukrainian Sweet & Sour Cabbage Soup (Kapusnyak/Kapusniak)

Smoky, sweet, tart, sour, loaded with cabbage (fresh or fermented), this traditional Ukrainian soup is a hearty, delicious winter staple.

Ukrainian Sweet & Sour Cabbage Soup, also known as Kapusnyak or Kapusniak, is a delightful dish with a garlicky, mildly spicy flavor and a beautiful golden hue. It features an array of spices such as oregano, paprika, garlic, pepper, and cumin. To add a sweet and sour touch, the soup incorporates reduced vinegar combined with brown sugar. This soup can be customized by adding loose pork sausage, minced garlic, sweet and smoked paprika, or even raisins for an extra burst of flavor.

My German Hutterite grandmother, Mary Pullman Stahl, grew up in The Colony in South Dakota. Speaking only German, she left with Joseph Stahl and their six young children toward the end of the Great Depression. Subsequent years saw a steady stream of visiting Hutterite relatives at my grandparent’s home in Seattle, many of whom stayed for months or years.

Times were tough. Chickens lived in the house in the winter as they were a main source of food. The six children, my mother, Virginia Francis Stahl, among them, struggled to learn English.

Gramma, even well into her 90’s, didn’t eat dinner with the rest of the family. She stood and heaped plates with food. Only after everyone was fed did she sit alone in the kitchen and pick through the scraps. I watched her eat the remains of a chicken many times. There was nothing left but bone when she finished. So I wondered. And asked. She laughed. And said. “You’re too skinny, Susala.”

It seems remarkable to me today that I grew up, never hungry, always warmly dressed, knowing so little about my family history. And especially about this strong, resilient, inordinately generous woman whom I loved so dearly.

Mary knew how to feed a family. To keep them alive. And one of her key tactics was a large barrel of heavily salted cabbage, otherwise known as sauerkraut, fermenting in the cellar. With it she made a German version of this soup weekly when I was a kid. A huge pot of it was always on the stove, ready to eat. I assume that my mother, aunts, and uncles grew up with it as well.

Many Eastern European countries–Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Russia, and Slovakia, as well as the republics of Belarus, Moldova, and Ukraine–make a version of this soup. And depend mightily on it for sustenance.

For earlier generations, sauerkraut was a dependable, nutritious vegetable source during cold winter months. Today we’re more likely to encounter it as an optional hot dog condiment or as an integral part of a sandwich, such as my fave, The Reuben.  

So when I first ran into recipes for this Ukrainian soup, I was intrigued. Kapusnyak is made in numerous styles, most of which rely on the distinctive sour flavor of sauerkraut. It can be made with or without meat (usually pork). There are also versions that include tomatoes.

For this version I didn’t stray too far from tradition. I experimented with several different smoked pork sausages and finally settled on Portuguese Linguica. It’s a fully cooked sausage made with pork butt, which gives it a lean, meaty taste. I love the garlicky, mildly spicy flavor and array of spices (oregano, paprika, garlic, pepper, cumin). The bonus is that it gives this soup a lovely golden hue. (You can also experiment with loose pork sausage mixed with minced garlic and sweet or smoked paprika.)

Raisins were a last-minute hunch, and they work beautifully. In fact, my Main Man said “Add MORE next time.”

TIP When cooking with vinegar, in most cases, you’ll want to soften its acid by reducing it before adding it to the recipe. That’s what we do here by reducing vinegar by half before combining it with brown sugar to create the sweet-and-sour aspect of this soup.

Sauerkraut Soup Q & A

Which countries make a version of sauerkraut soup?

Wow! What a question. Perhaps I should have asked which countries DO NOT create a version of cabbage or sauerkraut soup. Here’s a short list of those that do, along with the name they use:

• Czechia: Zelňačka or Zelná Polévka
• France: Soupe Aux Choux
• Finland: Kaalikeitto
• Germany: Kohlsuppe or Krautsuppe
• Poland: Kapusniak
• Russia: Sour Shchi
• Sweden: Kålsoppa
• Ukraine: Kapusniak (often called Ukrainian Penicillin for it’s restorative quality)

Ukrainian Sweet & Sour Cabbage Soup (Kapusnyak/Kapusniak)

My version of Ukrainian Sweet & Sour Cabbage Soup is a hearty meal in a bowl with a garlicky, mildly spicy flavor and a beautiful golden hue. It features an array of spices (oregano, paprika, garlic, pepper, and cumin) that work together to create more than the sum of their individual flavors. Reduced vinegar together with brown sugar adds the requisite sweet and sour pop.

Ingredients

1. In a large sauté pan, heat olive oil and brown sausage on all sides.
2. Push sausage to the side, add additional olive oil if necessary, and add onion and garlic. Sauté until translucent but not browned.
3. Push all ingredients to the side and add sauerkraut.
4. Sauté for a couple of minutes and then combine with other ingredients.
5. Add bay leaf, rosemary, oregano, thyme, and sage. Stir to combine.
6. Add carrots, celery, potatoes, cabbage, and raisins.
7. Toss and sauté for several minutes to combine.
8. Push all vegetables to the side.
9. Add cider vinegar and reduce by half.
10. Add brown sugar and whisk to melt and smooth. Combine with other ingredients in pan.
11. Add stock and bring to a simmer.
12. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
13. Serve piping hot, with or without a drizzle of sour cream.

Makes 2-3 quarts. Serves 4-6.