Żurek

How to Make Żurek

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1. Five days ahead, whisk the rye flour into the cooled water in a clean jar, add the garlic and bread crust, cover with a cloth and leave at room temperature. Stir daily. It is ready when it smells sharply sour. Strain before use.

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2. On the day, render the bacon in a large pot for 6 minutes, then add the onion and cook 8 minutes until soft.

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3. Add the stock, bay, allspice and potatoes and simmer 15 minutes.

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4. Poach the white sausages whole in the soup for 20 minutes, then lift out, slice thickly and set aside.

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5. Stir in the garlic and marjoram, crushing the marjoram between your palms as it goes in.

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6. Take the pot off the boil. Whisk 250 ml of the zakwas with the soured cream, then stir it into the soup. Never let it boil again from this point.

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7. Return the sliced sausage and warm through for 5 minutes.

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8. Taste and add more zakwas if you want it sharper, then season.

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9. Serve with half a boiled egg in each bowl, extra marjoram and a little horseradish.

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Related guide: Prep, cook and total time.

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Small Things That Help

• Make the zakwas. Vinegar żurek is a different, lesser soup.
• Never boil after the starter and cream go in.
• Crush the dried marjoram between your palms to wake it up.

Common Substitutions & Variations

• An eighth of a teaspoon of garlic powder per clove is the stand-in usually given when you are out of fresh garlic; it will not brown the same way, and it burns easily, so add it with the liquid.

Serving Suggestions

• Rye bread or a bread bowl
• Horseradish
• Cold vodka

Sides from the same cuisine on this site: Modra Kapusta, Polish Cucumber Salad.

Storing & Reheating Żurek

Refrigerate up to 3 days and reheat below a simmer. The zakwas keeps 2 weeks refrigerated.

Questions About Żurek

Żurek Nutrition

Per serving, an approximate calculation from the ingredient list. Treat it as a rough guide: where a line offers a choice of foods, only one of them is counted; salt added to taste is not counted, so the sodium is low; garnishes, greasing and other items with no amount are not counted; part of the energy comes from foods, or weights per item, with no recorded source. How the figures are worked out.

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