Ukrainian Christmas Tradition-Kapusniak Recipe (Cabbage Soup)

When it comes to the Ukraine and its national food we would be talking about cabbage. When it comes to how much cabbage Ukrainians eat you should know its about 8 times more then North Americans.

If we take a look at the history of cabbage we are told that cabbage has been grown for over 4000 years and has been very popular for over 2500 years.

Before cabbage crops were used as food they were harvested from wild growths and used for medicinal reasons.

We see cabbage in a head form today. Many years ago cabbage was grown in a loose leaf variety. The youngest form of cabbage known to exist is brussel sprouts which were discovered 500 years ago.

If you are wondering why cabbage has been so popular in Ukrainian cooking for so long then you need to know that cabbage was first introduced into the Black Sea region by Greeks and Romans in the 9th century. It can be fresh which is sweet or sour which is made out of fermented cabbage.

Below I will give you the recipe for the Ukrainian Christmas Tradition soup Kapusniak.

• 1 pound of sour cabbage, keep the juice out right now.
• About 3 cups of cabbage finally shredded
• 3 tablespoons of oil or bacon fat
• one large chopped onion
• Two chopped celery stalks
• 5 carrots that need to be peeled and then diced
• 3 medium potatoes also need to be peeled and diced
• Two finely minced cloves of garlic.
• Three tablespoons of tomato paste
• Two pounds of pork ribs
• One pound of sausage cut up into small cubes
• Two jars of beef stock
• One large teaspoon of paprika
• Two Turkish bay leaves
• 3 Tablespoons of sugar
• 3 heaping tablespoons of flour
• 1 tablespoon of parsley
• 1 tablespoon of dill
• Sour cream for the soup

1. In a large stock pot you can put in the oil or bacon fat. Then you can brown the spare ribs and the sausage pieces.
2. The next things that will need browning are onions, carrots, garlic and the celery.
3. Now you can put the meat back in the pot and then add the rest of the ingredients. Just leave the cabbage juice, flour, parsley and dill out for now. Bring all this stuff to a boil.
4. Now you want to reduce the heat to low and simmer until the pork is nice and tender which should take a couple of hours.
5. Now you can take the ribs out, cut all the meat off the bones and then return the meat to the soup.
6. Now you get to use some of the sour cabbage juice. Stir some into the flour and make sure it is mixed until it becomes a liquid. The next thing you will do is mix in the flour mixture slowly until the soup starts to get thick.
7. Use the salt and pepper to season the soup to taste. What tops the soup off is a spoon of sour cream and a sprinkle of dill and parley.
8. This recipe will make a lot of soup but the great thing is Kapusniak still tastes great when it is warmed up. This is the kind of soup you will love eating for a long time.