Hungarian Heritage Review, 1987 (16. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)

1987-01-01 / 1. szám

“KORHELYLEVES” or SAUERKRAUT SOUP

..... du' (Culinary Art of Hungary

1-pound can sauerkraut

1 quart finely sliced or

shredded cabbage

2 quarts water

1 pound smoked pork neck bone or smoked pork hock Vi pound Hungarian or Polish

sausage

4 ounces bacon

Vi cup finely minced onion

2 tablespoons flour

1 tablespoon Hungarian or Spanish

paprika

Vi teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

2 cups sour cream

1. Rinse and press out sauerkraut. Save the juice.

2. Mix sauerkraut with cabbage. Place in a large soup pot.

3. Add water and smoked pork. Cover, bring to a gentle boil over medium heat, and cook for 1V2 to 2 hours.

4. Remove pork. Pick off the meat and put it back into the soup, discarding the bones. Slice the sausage into 'A-inch slices and add to the soup. Continue to cook.

5. Cut the bacon into small pieces and fry it in a small frying pan until the small bits turn brown and crisp. Remove the bits and add to the soup. Saute onions in the bacon fat until limp and translucent. Remove from heat and add flour, cornstarch, paprika, and pepper. Stir and return to heat until it starts to bubble around the edges. Remove from heat and slowly add 2 to 2Vi cups of soup liquid. With a small wire whisk, stir it until smooth; then add to the soup. Bring to a boil, adjust heat to low, and simmer the soup for 15 to 20 minutes.

6. Heat the sour cream by adding small amounts of the soup to it; then add it to the soup. Serve with salt sticks or garlic bread. In a separate small bowl, serve the sauerkraut juice if someone wishes to add it to the soup.

This recipe has no salt as an ingredient because as a rule the sauerkraut, sausage, and smoked neck bones or hocks are salty enough. If you like the soup saltier, add some before serving.

This soup improves a good deal if it is cooked one or two days ahead to the point when the sour cream would be added, then reheated in a 250 F oven for about 3 hours before adding the sour cream. If you really want all the flavor possible, withstand the temptation to eat it immediately and take the trouble to heat it up two days in a row and eat it on the third day.

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HUNGARIAN HERITAGE REVIEW

JANUARY 1987