About this Dish
A distinctive sour rye soup — made from fermented rye flour starter, cooked with white sausage, hard-boiled egg and sometimes served inside a hollowed bread roll. The sour, complex flavour from the fermented rye is uniquely Polish. Eaten at Easter and year-round, zurek is one of Poland's most characterful dishes.
IngredientsServes 4
🌾Rye sourdough starter (żurek starter), 500ml — made by mixing 4 tbsp rye flour with 500ml lukewarm water 3–4 days ahead, stirring daily
🌿Dried marjoram, 1 tbsp
🧄Garlic cloves, 4, crushed
🥩White kielbasa (biała kiełbasa), 400g, sliced into thick rounds
🥓Smoked bacon lardons, 150g
🧅Medium onion, 1, finely chopped
🍖Pork or chicken stock, 1 litre
🥚Eggs, 4, hard-boiled and halved
🍞Large round sourdough bread rolls, 4, tops cut off and insides hollowed out (optional, for serving)
🧴Soured cream, 4 tbsp, for stirring in at the end
Method
1
Prepare your żurek starter 3–4 days in advance by combining 4 heaped tablespoons of dark rye flour with 500ml of lukewarm water in a jar, adding 2 crushed garlic cloves, stirring well, and leaving loosely covered at room temperature, stirring once a day until it smells pleasantly sour and slightly tangy.2
Fry the smoked bacon lardons in a large pot over medium heat until the fat renders, then add the chopped onion and cook for 5 minutes until softened and lightly golden. Add the sliced white kielbasa and cook for another 3–4 minutes, turning occasionally.3
Pour in the pork or chicken stock and bring to a gentle simmer. Strain the fermented rye starter through a fine sieve into the pot, pressing to extract all the liquid, then stir to combine everything together.4
Add the remaining crushed garlic and the dried marjoram, then season with salt and a generous amount of white or black pepper. Let the soup simmer gently for 15–20 minutes so the flavours meld and the sausage cooks through fully.5
Reduce the heat to low and stir in the soured cream a spoonful at a time to temper it and prevent curdling. Taste and adjust seasoning — the soup should be deeply savoury, tangy and aromatic with marjoram.6
Ladle the hot żurek into hollowed bread rolls or deep bowls, and tuck in two halves of a hard-boiled egg per serving. Finish with an extra pinch of dried marjoram crumbled over the top and serve immediately while piping hot.User Reviews
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