Krupnik, Polish Barley and Root Vegetable Soup
Krupnik is the barley soup of the Polish countryside, named for the krupy, the grain, that thickens it. It is a soup of the pantry and the root cellar: a scoop of hulled barley, whatever carrots, celery root, and potatoes are on hand, and an onion. What lifts it above plain is a small handful of dried mushroom, soaked and stirred in with its dark soaking water, which gives the meatless pot the savory depth it would otherwise get from a hambone. Marjoram and a shower of fresh dill at the end mark it as unmistakably Polish. It is filling, high in fiber, costs very little, and like most one-pot soups it tastes even better reheated the next day.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup Hulled barley, rinsed
- 1/4 oz Dried porcini
- 2 wholes Carrots (cooking), diced
- 1/2 cup Celery root, diced
- 2 wholes Celery, sliced
- 1/2 lb Potatoes, peeled and cubed
- 1 whole Yellow onions, diced
- 1 tbsp no-salt vegetable bouillon
- 1 whole Bay leaves
- 3 wholes Allspice, berries
- 1 1/2 tsp Dried marjoram
- 3 tbsp Dill, chopped
- 2 tbsp Flat-leaf parsley, chopped
- 1/2 tsp Black peppercorns, freshly ground
Method
- Soak the dried porcini in 1 cup (240 ml) hot water for 15 minutes, then lift them out, chop them, and save the soaking liquid. That dark liquid is the secret of a meatless krupnik: it carries the deep, savory flavor a bone broth would, so keep every drop and leave the gritty last spoonful behind.
- Sweat the onion in a pot with a few tablespoons of water until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the rinsed barley, the chopped porcini, the mushroom soaking liquid, the bouillon, bay leaf, and allspice with 5 cups (1.2 L) fresh water. Simmer, partly covered, for 25 minutes. Barley is the krupa the soup is named for, and it needs a long head start to turn tender and to thicken the pot as its starch loosens.
- Add the carrots, celery root, celery, and potatoes and simmer until the barley and vegetables are all soft, about 25 minutes more. Celery root is the quiet Polish backbone here, earthier than celery stalk, and cutting everything small helps it dissolve some of its body into the broth.
- Fish out the bay leaf. Stir in the marjoram and black pepper, then finish off the heat with a generous handful of dill and parsley. Marjoram and dill are the herbs that make this taste Polish rather than generic, and adding them late keeps them fragrant in a soup that carries no salt.
Nutrition
Estimated per serving: 160 calories, 5 g protein, 8 g fiber, 70 mg sodium. Computed from USDA FoodData Central reference values for the main ingredients. This is an approximation, not a laboratory measurement. How these are computed.
Cost per serving is estimated from US national-average retail prices for cheap staple forms, using BLS dried-bean prices and USDA produce prices. Prices vary by store and season, so treat it as a guide, not a receipt. How this is computed.
