Nutritious, oil-free, filling, simple, delicious.
This is a typical cabbage soup we make here in Slovakia during the holiday season. Traditionally, it is made of cabbage, mushrooms, and potatoes. Then, depending on the local customs, sour cream, smoked meat, or sausage is added.
It is like a traditional pizza in the sense that it is very simple, and uses few ingredients, but that is why it is very important to get it right.
This is the first year I tried to veganize it and it was a miss on Christmas Eve but a hit when I refined the recipe and made it the second time on Silvester.
As you can see, the recipe is very basic, but without added salt or oil, you can enjoy a delicious plate of soup that will warm your body, stomach, and heart.
Ingredients
- 1 kilogram Sauerkraut ((This is the most important ingredient. If it is too sour, no matter what you do, the final result will be sour. Home-made sourkraut is the best option for taste and your gut.))
- 6 Plums (dried)
- 2 deciliter Soy Milk (unsweetened ((0.8 cups)) or sour cream)
- 50 gram Dried mushrooms (cep/porcini (summer cep is a local mushroom that has with an intense aroma and a specific "wooden taste" ))
- 1 Potatoes
- 2 teaspoon Smoked paprika
- 180 gram Smoked Tempeh (big)
- 1 Onion (big)
- 3 cloves Garlic
- 3-6 Bay leaf
- 1 teaspoon Pepper (whole, black)
Instructions
- Cut onion and potato and clean garlic cloves and saute them over light heat until onions get a golden colour.
- Toss cabbage, diced potato, and water into the pot. Adjust the water amount based on how soupy you want it—around 3-4 liters usually does the trick. Top it off as it simmers away.
- Let it cook on low to medium heat for 30-40 minutes until the cabbage, mushrooms, and potato get soft enough. Cabbage should hold structure and not break into a mush.
- Pour in soy milk or vegan sour cream, and keep cooking on low heat for another ~20 minutes. If you have a vegan sauage that holds shape well, this is when you add it into the soup.
Tempeh
- If you are using tempeh, lay out 1cm thick smoked tempeh pieces on a pan and sear it. Just a few minutes before you serve, toss in the smoked tempeh slices.
Notes
No smoked tempeh? No problem. Splash some liquid smoke or more smoked pepper in it. If going the pepper route, go easy in the soup—it’s potent.
And here’s a pro tip: this soup hits its peak flavor the next day. Let it mingle in the fridge for the ultimate taste experience!
Vegan sausage with a smoky flavor is optimal for this recipe.