Hungarian Kohlrabi Soup with Csipetke
Servings: 6
There’s something I love about market season: suddenly the stands are overflowing with fresh, young vegetables, and I always come home with more than I planned. 😃 When I see beautiful young kohlrabi, one of the first things I think of is this soup.
Karalábéleves csipetkével, or Hungarian Kohlrabi Soup with homemade pinched noodles, is exactly the kind of Hungarian cooking I grew up with—simple ingredients, plenty of vegetables, lots of fresh parsley, and a little homemade something that makes the whole dish special.
It’s also surprisingly quick to make. Young kohlrabi cooks so fast that while the soup was simmering, I made my csipetke, and by the time I finished pinching those tiny noodles, the vegetables were practically ready.
Light, inexpensive, comforting and full of fresh seasonal flavor, this is one of those recipes that proves you don’t need complicated ingredients to put a delicious homemade meal on the table. And if you think you don’t like kohlrabi… let a Hungarian make you soup first. 🥣
Servings: 6
Ingredients:
3 young kohlrabi
3 carrots
2 parsley roots or parsnips
1 small piece celery root or celery leaves
1 onion
2 tbsp lard or oil
1 tbsp all-purpose flour
1 tsp Hungarian sweet paprika
1 fresh Hungarian or sweet pepper
1 tomato
1 bunch fresh parsley
Salt, to taste
Black pepper, to taste
1.5–2 L water
For the Csipetke:
1 egg
¾–1 cup all-purpose flour, as needed
Pinch of salt
Extra flour for dusting
Optional for Serving:
Sour cream
Fresh chopped parsley
Instructions:
Peel and chop the kohlrabi, carrots, parsley roots or parsnips. Finely chop the onion.
Heat the lard or oil in a large pot and sauté the onion until translucent.
Add the kohlrabi, carrots, root vegetables and some chopped parsley. Cook for a few minutes.
Sprinkle with flour and stir well.
Remove briefly from direct heat, add the paprika and stir quickly so it does not burn.
Pour in 1.5–2 litres of water. Add the pepper, tomato and celery leaves.
Season with salt and black pepper. Cover and simmer until the vegetables are almost tender.
For the csipetke, beat the egg with a pinch of salt, then gradually add enough flour to form a firm dough.
Dust with flour and pinch off very small pieces of dough.
Drop the csipetke directly into the simmering soup.
Cook for a few minutes, until the noodles float and are cooked through.
Finish with plenty of fresh parsley and serve hot, optionally with sour cream.
Recipe Notes:
Choose small, young kohlrabi for the best texture and flavor. Keep the csipetke very small because they expand while cooking. Oil can be used instead of lard.