Kulajda
South Bohemian creamy dill and mushroom soup with potatoes and a poached egg
Kulajda comes from South Bohemia, the land of carp ponds and pine forests around České Budějovice and Český Krumlov, where families come home from the woods in late summer with baskets of porcini. It is a thick, pale, gently sour soup of potatoes, mushrooms, cream and plenty of dill, finished with vinegar and served with a soft poached egg floating in each bowl. It is eaten as a filling lunch on its own with a slice of rye bread. Chef's tip: add the vinegar off the heat and taste as you go; the soup should be clearly tangy but never sharp, like a good pickle brine softened by cream.
- Total time
- 50 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
For the soup
To serve
Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Bring 5 cups water to the boil in a large pan with 1 tsp caraway seeds, 2 bay leaves and 4 allspice berries. Add 14 oz waxy potatoes and simmer over a medium heat for 10 minutes until nearly tender.
10 minStep 2: Meanwhile melt 1 oz butter in a frying pan over a medium-high heat and fry 9 oz mushrooms for 6–8 minutes until the liquid has gone and they smell nutty and turn golden. Tip them into the soup.
8 minStep 3: Whisk 2 tbsp plain flour into 1 cup whipping cream until smooth, then stir into the soup. Simmer gently, stirring, for 5 minutes until it thickens to the texture of single cream and the floury taste has gone.
5 minStep 4: Take the pan off the heat. Stir in 2 tbsp white wine vinegar a spoonful at a time, then 1 ½ tsp salt, ½ tsp black pepper and most of ⅔ oz fresh dill. Fish out the bay leaves.
Step 5: Poach 4 eggs: bring a pan of water to a bare simmer with 1 tbsp vinegar for poaching, swirl, slide in one egg at a time and cook for 3 minutes until the white is set and the yolk wobbles. Lift out with a slotted spoon.
6 minStep 6: Ladle the soup into warm bowls, slip an egg into each and scatter with the rest of the dill. Serve with 4 slices rye bread.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 380 kcal
- Protein
- 12 g
- Carbs
- 25 g
- Fat
- 26 g
- Fibre
- 3 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does kulajda take?
- About 50 minutes in total: 15 minutes to prepare and 35 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- What can I use instead of bay leaves?
- Leave it out, or a pinch of dried thyme (it's a background flavour).
- What can I use instead of waxy potatoes?
- Sweet potato, same weight (sweeter, cooks a little faster).
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