Cabbage soup may refer to any of the variety of soups based on various cabbages, or on

sauerkraut Sauerkraut (; , "sour cabbage") is finely cut raw cabbage that has been fermented by various lactic acid bacteria. It has a long shelf life and a distinctive sour flavor, both of which result from the lactic acid formed when the bacteria ferm ...

and known under different names in national cuisines. Often it is a

vegetable soup Vegetable soup is a common soup prepared using vegetables and leaf vegetables as primary ingredients. It dates to ancient history, and is a mass-produced food product in contemporary times. Overview Vegetable soup is prepared using vegetables, ...

. It may be prepared with different ingredients. Vegetarian cabbage soup may use mushroom stock. Another variety is using a fish stock. Traditional cabbage soup is prepared using a pork stock.

In national cuisines

Cabbage soup is popular in

Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, w ...

, Slovak and

Ukrainian Ukrainian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Ukraine * Something relating to Ukrainians, an East Slavic people from Eastern Europe * Something relating to demographics of Ukraine in terms of demography and population of Ukraine * So ...

cuisine. It is known as or in

, in Slovak, and () in

. It is also found in

Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus' Places * Czech, ...

( or ),

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

( or ), French () cuisine,

Finnish Finnish may refer to: * Something or someone from, or related to Finland * Culture of Finland * Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland * Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people * Finnish cuisine See also ...

() and

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

() cuisine. The Swedish cabbage soup is usually made from white cabbage, which is browned before being boiled, and seasoned with generous amounts of allspice and sometimes served with boiled meatballs. A variety of the soup called '' shchi'' (russian: щи) is a national dish of

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

. While commonly it is made of cabbages, dishes of the same name may be based on dock, spinach or

nettle {{redirect, Nettle Nettle refers to plants with stinging hairs, particularly those of the genus '' Urtica''. It can also refer to plants which resemble ''Urtica'' species in appearance but do not have stinging hairs. Plants called "nettle" includ ...

. The sauerkraut soup is called "sour shchi", as opposed to "fresh cabbage shchi". In most of Latvia sauerkraut soup ( lv, skābu kāpostu zupa) is made with sauerkraut, potatoes, carrots and

groats Groats (or in some cases, "berries") are the hulled kernels of various cereal grains, such as oat, wheat, rye, and barley. Groats are whole grains that include the cereal germ and fiber-rich bran portion of the grain, as well as the endospe ...

, but the region in Latgale only sauerkraut and bacon is used. File:Cabbage Soup Kapuśniak 01.JPG, Polish ''kapuśniak'' File:Silvestrovska kapustnica.JPG, Slovak ''kapustnica'' File:Kapustnjak 017.jpg, Ukrainian ''kapusnyak''

Traditional kapuśniak preparation

Drained and chopped

is cooked in water with chopped

pork Pork is the culinary name for the meat of the domestic pig (''Sus domesticus''). It is the most commonly consumed meat worldwide, with evidence of pig husbandry dating back to 5000 BCE. Pork is eaten both freshly cooked and preserved; ...

, pieces of kielbasa and a bit of salt until the meat is almost tender. Instead of meat, a ready

broth Broth, also known as bouillon (), is a savory liquid made of water in which meat, fish or vegetables have been simmered for a short period of time. It can be eaten alone, but it is most commonly used to prepare other dishes, such as soups, ...

is also used. Afterwards, diced potatoes and carrots are added and boiled until they are cooked.

Tomato paste Tomato paste is a thick paste made by cooking tomatoes for several hours to reduce the water content, straining out the seeds and skins, and cooking the liquid again to reduce the base to a thick, rich concentrate. It is used to impart an inten ...

and spices may be added. In some regions the soup is served with added flour and

butter Butter is a dairy product made from the fat and protein components of churned cream. It is a semi-solid emulsion at room temperature, consisting of approximately 80% butterfat. It is used at room temperature as a spread, melted as a condimen ...

. A lean kapusniak is cooked with

root In vascular plants, the roots are the organs of a plant that are modified to provide anchorage for the plant and take in water and nutrients into the plant body, which allows plants to grow taller and faster. They are most often below the su ...

s and

fungi A fungus ( : fungi or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, separately from ...

. Kapuśniak is served hot, in some regions with sour cream and sprinkled with chopped parsley and dill.

In popular culture

Louis de Funès Louis Germain David de Funès de Galarza (; 31 July 1914 – 27 January 1983) was a French actor and comedian. He is France's favourite actor, according to a series of polls conducted since the late 1960s, having played over 150 roles in fil ...

was the protagonist of the French film '' La Soupe aux choux'' (''Cabbage Soup''). Catherine the Great, a Russian

tsarina Tsarina or tsaritsa (also spelled ''csarina'' or ''csaricsa'', ''tzarina'' or ''tzaritza'', or ''czarina'' or ''czaricza''; bg, царица, tsaritsa; sr, / ; russian: царица, tsaritsa) is the title of a female autocratic ruler (mon ...

of German origin, initially notorious at the Russian court for her poor command of Russian, was quipped to be capable of making seven misspellings in a two-letter word: a two-letter Russian word would become in German.

Sources

* Клиновецька З. ''Страви й напитки на Україні''і — Київ — Львів 1913 р.—С.4 * ''Кулинария'', Государственное издательство торговой литературы — Москва 1959 г. — С.57 * Українські страви. К.:Державне видавництво технічної літератури УРСР. 1961. 454 с. {{Soups Polish soups Ukrainian soups Cabbage soups Australian soups