Name: Żurek: Polish Sour Rye Soup with White Sausage
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 50 min
Total time: 75 min
Yield: About 3.6 kg
Cuisine: Polish
Ingredients: 1.5 L unsalted chicken stock; 700 ml prepared rye zakwas for żurek, shaken or stirred to redistribute the settled flour; 700 g potatoes, peeled and cut into 2 cm cubes; 600 g raw fresh Polish white sausage (biała kiełbasa), kept refrigerated until cooking; 150 g yellow onion, finely diced; 12 g garlic, finely chopped; 15 ml neutral oil; 2 bay leaves; 4 whole allspice berries; 3 g dried marjoram; 1 g freshly ground black pepper; 0–5 g fine salt, added only after tasting; 4 l arge eggs, hard-boiled, peeled and halved for serving

A wide view of „Żurek: Polish Sour Rye Soup with White Sausage“ arranged on a table for serving.

Yield About 3.6 kg

Serving basis 8 servings of about 450 g, with half an egg each

Difficulty Moderate

Dietary classification Contains pork, rye gluten and egg

Ingredients ↓

Introduction and overview

Żurek: Polish Sour Rye Soup with White Sausage

Żurek is a Polish sour soup built around zakwas, a fermented rye-flour liquid that brings its distinctive tartness and a little body. The name overlaps with żur in everyday use, although culinary sources do not draw the boundary in exactly the same way. This recipe follows a rye-based, hearty household style and keeps the Polish name rather than treating it as another country’s soup.

Here, raw fresh white sausage gently cooks in unsalted stock, which becomes the soup’s base. Potatoes, softened onion and garlic, dried marjoram and prepared rye zakwas turn that broth into a substantial meal. A hard-boiled egg is served in the bowl; it is not simmered in the soup.

Żurek varies by household and region. Some versions include potatoes, sausage and egg, while others are lighter or use different accompaniments. This is a practical general version, not the registered Kujawy żur or a claim that every Polish żurek follows the same formula. Add the zakwas gradually and taste before salting: its acidity and the seasoning in the sausage and stock can vary by brand.

What makes this version work

Simmering the fresh sausage gently cooks it through while flavouring the stock.
Potatoes cook directly in that broth and stay in the soup, making each bowl filling.
Prepared rye zakwas is stirred in after the potatoes soften, so its sour flavour remains clear.
Marjoram, onion and garlic complement the rye without obscuring its tang.

Ingredients

Soup base

1.5 L unsalted chicken stock
700 ml prepared rye zakwas for żurek, shaken or stirred to redistribute the settled flour
700 g potatoes, peeled and cut into 2 cm cubes

Sausage and aromatics

600 g raw fresh Polish white sausage (biała kiełbasa), kept refrigerated until cooking
150 g yellow onion, finely diced
12 g garlic, finely chopped
15 ml neutral oil

Seasoning and serving

2 bay leaves
4 whole allspice berries
3 g dried marjoram
1 g freshly ground black pepper
0–5 g fine salt, added only after tasting
4 l arge eggs, hard-boiled, peeled and halved for serving

Method

Directions

Cook the eggs.Hard-boil the eggs in a small saucepan until both whites and yolks are fully set. Cool, peel and halve them. This can happen while the soup cooks.
Soften the aromatics.Warm the oil in a heavy 5–6 L pot over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for 6–8 minutes until soft. Stir in the garlic and cook for 30 seconds without browning. Transfer the aromatics to a plate.
Simmer the sausage.Pour the chicken stock into the pot and add the raw white sausage, bay leaves and allspice. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook for 18–22 minutes, without a rolling boil, until the centre of the thickest sausage reaches at least 71 °C / 160 °F. Lift out the sausages and keep covered.
Cook the potatoes.Add the potato cubes to the broth and simmer gently for 12–15 minutes, until fork-tender but still holding their shape. Return the onion and garlic to the pot.
Add the rye zakwas.Shake or stir the zakwas to lift the settled rye flour, then pour it into the soup gradually while stirring. Add the marjoram and black pepper. Return to a gentle simmer and cook for 8–10 minutes, until the soup is lightly thickened and no longer tastes of raw flour. Do not boil hard.
Finish the soup.Slice the cooked sausages into thick coins and return them to the pot. Heat for 2 minutes until hot throughout. Taste and add up to 5 g salt only if needed. Remove the bay leaves and allspice berries if found.
Serve.Ladle the soup into 8 bowls, dividing the potatoes and sausage evenly. Top each serving with half a hard-boiled egg.

Troubleshooting

The soup is too sourStir in the zakwas gradually next time and taste as you go; prepared starters vary in acidity. Do not dilute a finished pot unless the factual ingredients allow additional stock.
The broth is too thinLet it simmer gently for a few more minutes after adding the zakwas so the rye flour cooks and lightly thickens the soup. Avoid a hard boil.
The potatoes are falling apartCheck them as they simmer and stop cooking once a fork passes through while the cubes still hold their shape.
The sausage casing splitsKeep the stock at a gentle simmer rather than a rolling boil.

Nutrition per serving

Serving sizeAbout 450 g soup plus half a hard-boiled egg
CaloriesAbout 360 kcal
CarbohydrateAbout 31 g
ProteinAbout 17 g
FatAbout 18 g
FibreAbout 3 g
SodiumAbout 1,250 mg

Allergens and food safety

Serving, storage and make-ahead: Serve hot as a substantial soup course. Keep any extra hard-boiled eggs refrigerated separately if they are not being served immediately. Divide leftover soup into shallow covered containers and refrigerate within 2 hours, or within 1 hour if the surrounding temperature is above 32.2 °C / 90 °F. Use within 3–4 days.

Serving, storage and make-ahead: Reheat only the amount needed until steaming hot throughout and at least 74 °C / 165 °F in the centre; bring soup to a rolling boil when reheating. The soup can be frozen in shallow portions, though the potatoes may soften after thawing. Thaw in the refrigerator and reheat thoroughly. Keep boiled eggs separate and do not freeze them in the soup.

This recipe contains rye, a gluten-containing cereal, and egg. Check the stock and sausage labels for additional allergens and cross-contact information. Keep raw sausage separate from ready-to-eat food; wash hands, utensils and surfaces after handling it. Cook the thickest sausage to at least 71 °C / 160 °F, checked with a food thermometer. Cook eggs until both yolk and white are firm. Refrigerate leftover soup within 2 hours, or within 1 hour above 32.2 °C / 90 °F, in shallow containers. Use within 3–4 days and reheat to 74 °C / 165 °F.

To remember

The result: a tangy rye soup with tender potatoes, fresh white sausage and marjoram, finished with hard-boiled egg.
The key technique: simmer the sausage gently, then add the fermented rye zakwas after the potatoes are tender.