Dill Pickle Soup is my all-time favorite soup recipe for busy weeknights. It requires merely 30 minutes of your time and provides you with a hearty and satisfying bite. This easy soup is savory and creamy and kids love it too. Perfect for lunch or dinner, especially in cold winter weather.
Also try my Vegan Pickle Soup. Same great taste made without dairy.
There are many reasons why people love dill pickles. They are briny, a little bit sweet, juicy and of course crunchy. When eaten in moderation, dill pickles can be healthy too.
Apart from all the above, my reason for why I love dill pickles is that they make an excellent soup - Pickle Soup that came to us straight from Poland.
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Just like with Borscht, countries such as Lithuania, Russia and Ukraine have their own version of this savory soup.
I guess Eastern Europeans are really into pickles, because the amount of recipes using this popular condiment is insane. Russin Beet Salad With Pickles, anyone?
My husband is not much of a soup person (unless it's his favorite Green Borscht), but I love making this Polish Pickle Soup for myself and kids for lunch.
Whenever we're running errands or spending our morning on a playground and lunch time is approaching, I often refer to this soup recipe. Just 30 minutes and the soup is done.
And since it's loaded with delicious dill pickles and it's creamy and thick, my children always devour this soup with a great appetite.
Here's Why This Recipe Works
- simplicity. The soup is made with really simple ingredients that everyone have in their pantry. I bet you have them too;
- fast preparation time. You only need 30 minutes from start to finish to make this amazing soup. Perhaps, you did a meal prep days earlier and you already have veggies chopped, then it'll take you even faster;
- savory bite. Soup is always comforting and satisfying, but when you add pickles and pickle juice, it instantly gets transformed into a flavor powerhouse that you'll want to eat at any time of the year
Ingredients
Here's an overview of the specific ingredients for this recipe. For the exact ingredients and measurements, please scroll to the recipe card below.
Zuppa Ogórkowa is an amazingly yummy and comforting soup that features several key ingredients:
- onion and carrot. Yellow or white onions work best.
- potatoes. You can make this Dill Soup with russet potatoes, yellow or red potatoes
- pickle slices. When you choose dill pickles, make sure they don't contain much vinegar. You can read my specific recommendations below
- a bit of a pickle brine. You can get this from your pickle jar.
- sour cream
- fresh dill
- Combine flour and sour cream
In a small bowl add all purpose flour, sour cream and broth. I used homemade vegetable broth and it's always on a lighter side. Give everything a whisk and set aside.
- Sauté the veggies
Melt butter in large non-stick pan and over medium heat. Add onion and carrot and sauté for 7 minutes stirring occasionally.
Add dill pickles and cook for 3 more minutes.
- Cook potatoes and vegetables together
Add vegetable broth to a large stockpot and bring to a boil. Add potatoes, reduce the heat to medium low and simmer for 10 minutes.
Stir in sautéed vegetables, salt, pepper, sour cream and flour mixture and cook for another 5 minutes or until potatoes are tender when poked with a knife. Remove soup from the heat and serve immediately. You can also garnish with fresh dill for even more dill flavor.
Cook's Tip
If you don't have sour cream, you can use a regular heavy cream and then mix it with some flour. In this case, you might also increase the amount of pickle brine. Just don't add too much. A little goes a long way.
Frequently Asked Question
This soup has a mild acidic taste. It's also slightly thick and creamy. Thanks to the soup's unusual combination of ingredients, I feel like it's a wonderful recipe for colder months.
It will keep you warm, cozy and satisfied.
Simply speaking it's an ultimate comfort food in a bowl.
For this creamy and briny soup I recommend using salty and not sweet dill pickles. If you have a Polish grocery store in the area, get their Polish pickles, and if not - this is what I use.
One of my readers also recommended Bubbies kosher dill pickles found in a refrigerated section of most grocery stores.
A word of advice: for this recipe I don't recommend Trader Joe's dill pickles. They are too vinegary and might ruin the taste of the soup.
Pickle soup is easy to make keto or low carb. Replace the potatoes with chopped cauliflower or celery root. Flour - replace with coconut flour or simply omit it. As for the carrots - you can either omit them or replace with bell pepper.
Serving Suggestions
Polish Cucumber Soup add-ons
If you'd like a more heartier version of this soup, here's what you can add:
- ham
- hot dog links
- Kielbasa
- small meatballs, like my Ikea-style meatballs
- seared ground beef
- fried bacon crumbles
Also, if you want to add some heat, feel free to add a small pinch of Cayenne pepper. ⅛ to ¼ teaspoons should be enough.
Storing Suggestion
This Pickle soup is best when consumed on the same day. However, if you have leftovers, it will last for 1 more day in the refrigerator.
You can also freeze the soup. To ensure maximum freshness, I recommend storing the soup in the airtight freezer-friendly bags.
Properly stored, the soup will last in a freezer for up to 6 months.
To thaw, simply transfer the soup into a pot and simmer for 5 to 10 minutes.
Similar Recipes
If you're looking for a quick overview of the recipe, please check out my Dill Pickle Soup Web Story.
If you make this recipe, please leave me a comment below and rate it. I always appreciate the feedback. Also, you can follow me on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest.
Recipe
Dill Pickle Soup
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 1 medium onion finely minced
- 1 large carrot grated on large holes of box grater
- 1 c dill pickles cut in half lengthwise and then thinly sliced
- 5 c vegetable broth or chicken broth if you want
- 3 medium potato peeled and cubed
- 4 ½ tablespoon sour cream
- 1 ½ tablespoon flour
- 4-5 tablespoon pickle juice
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 4 tablespoon fresh dill chopped
Instructions
- In a medium bowl whisk together sour cream, flour and 3 tablespoons of dill pickle juice.
- Heat butter in large non-stick pan (avoid Teflon pans) over medium heat.
- Add onion and carrot and cook until vegetables begin to soften, approximately 7 minutes. Stir in dill pickles and cook for 3 more minutes.
- Meanwhile, add broth to a large stockpot and bring to a boil. Once boiling, add potatoes, reduce heat to medium low and cook for 10 minutes.
- Stir in sautéed vegetables, salt, pepper, sour cream and flour mixture into the pot with potatoes and cook for another 5 minutes or until potatoes are tender when poked with a knife.
- Remove from the heat, and serve immediately garnished with fresh dill.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
If you don’t have a good stock pot in your kitchen, now is the time. This affordable stock pot has 20 quart capacity, durable, with handles that stay cool during cooking. It’s perfect for homemade soups and stews and for when you want to double or triple the recipe to put in your freezer. This Cook N Home Stock Pot has the best reviews and is under $45.
Kim Mackay-Lane says
Excellent!!
Dee says
Really delicious!! I used an immersion blender to blend up about half of it and it turned out great.
Iryna says
Dee, thank you so much for sharing your feedback and a 5-star rating! I'm happy you enjoyed this recipe!
Alexis says
so yummy!!! This turned out great! Will definitely save this for the book!
Iryna says
Alexis, thank you so much for your comment and a 5-star rating! I'm very happy you liked this recipe!
Evelyn says
I am Polish so I will just add one thing to this recipe, pickles should be peeled. You don't want to eat tough pickle skin in the soup. Otherwise, the recipe is spot on.
Cindy Straub says
The soup was very tasty. We prefer less broth so I would use only 4 cups of broth or more veggies next time.
Iryna says
Cindy, thank you so much for your comment! I'm very glad you liked this soup!
Carley says
WOW…. Amazing soup. So different but oh so good.
Iryna says
Carley, thank you so much for your comment and a 5-star rating! I'm happy you liked it:)
Joy says
Our family favorite soup! We are addicted! Even the picky eaters love it!
Iryna says
Joy, thank you so much for your comment and a 5-star rating! I'm very happy your family loved this soup.:)
Linda says
fast and delicious! I used Bubbies pickles & they were great. had to use dried dill. there was no fresh dill available in this town at this time of year. will be making this again. thanks for the recipe!
Iryna says
Linda, I'm so happy you enjoyed this recipe! Thank you for your comment and a 5-star rating!
Adina says
I was wondering if I could use mayo or dairy free yogurt in place of sour cream?
Iryna says
Hi Adina, I would not use the mayo but yogurt should be fine.
Bobbi J says
We thought this very good. I try to eat lactose free, so didn’t use sour cream, but some LF half and half. I like celery in soups, so added two thinly sliced stalks. It turned out yummy and will probably be even better warmed up. I think some others had some good suggestions to make it a more filling soup with the addition of hamburger, pancetta, etc. Adding to my repertoire.
Iryna says
Bobbi, thank you so much for your comment and a 5-star rating! I'm so happy you loved this recipe:)
Jill says
This soup is quick, easy and delicious plus I had everything on hand other than fresh dill. Because I love the brine flavor I upped the amount little by little until it suited my taste. Fantastic and satisfying lunch on a dreary, cold day.
Iryna says
Jill thank you so much for your comment and a 5-star rating! I'm happy you enjoyed this recipe!
Sandra Murphy says
This is the perfect pickle lovers soup! I added ground beef and was amazing!
Iryna says
Sandra, I'm so happy you liked this recipe! Thank you for sharing!