Czech Caraway Soup Recipe - Cook Like Czechs (2024)

Published: Jun 16, 2021 · Modified: Dec 1, 2022 by Petra Kupská

Come back with me to the old Czech times, and let's cook caraway soup! Bohemian grannies used to cook this goodness often; the soup is quick, delicious, and smells of caraway seeds. It would be a pity to forget this lovely recipe!

➜ About This Recipe

Caraway soup was a staple of our Czech grandmothers' cuisine. You need caraway seeds, a spice that used to be widely grown in the gardens, to prepare it.

The soup is based on crushed caraway seeds and is thickened with a bit of flour. The fried onions add flavor, whisked egg gives a better texture, and potatoes make the soup rich.

The SECRET INGREDIENT: Do not confuse caraway with cumin! Although these seeds look similar, you can only achieve the authentic Czech flavor of the soup by using caraway.

Caraway soup is called kmínová polévka in Czech.

Tip: Try this delicious Sauerkraut soup, aka Zelňačka!

➜ Ingredients

• Onion; small
• Caraway seeds; roughly crushed, for example, in a mortar or briefly mixed in a clean coffee grinder
• Potatoes; small; any all-purpose yellow potatoes will work
• Vegetable oil; such as canola or sunflower oil, lard is a perfect choice too if you have it in the fridge
• All-purpose flour
• Egg
• Chicken (vegetable) broth; or water
• Pepper; ground
• Salt
• A sprig of parsley; for garnishing

✅You’ll find the exact amount of ingredients below in the recipe card, which you can also print out.

➜ Instructions with Photos

STEP 1: Peel and finely chop the onion. Peel the potatoes and dice them.

STEP 2: In a heavy-bottomed pot or dutch oven (my preferred option), heat the oil over medium temperature. Add the onion and stir until translucent.

STEP 3: Add the caraway seeds and stir for about 1 minute until the caraway aroma develops.

STEP 4: Pour in the flour and stir for about 1-2 minutes.

STEP 5: Remove the pot from the heat, add one scoop of chicken broth. Stir carefully with a whisk to prevent lumps. Add another ladle of broth, whisk. Now you can add the rest of the liquid. Flavor with salt and pepper, stir well.

STEP 6: Put the pot back on the stove, carefully add the diced potatoes. Raise the heat and bring the soup to a boil.

STEP 7: Reduce the heat to low, cover with a lid, and let the soup simmer for about 15 minutes, or until the potatoes are soft. Stir from time to time, as the flour tends to sink to the bottom of the pot, where it could start to burn.

STEP 8: Finally, remove the pot from the stove, crack one whole egg into the soup and whisk it in. Do not cook the soup any further.

STEP 9: Salt to taste if necessary, stir, and serve.

➜ Serving

Serve warm, garnish the soup in a bowl with a chopped sprig of parsley.

A slice of fresh rye bread or a sprinkling of bread croutons is a great accompaniment to this caraway soup.

➜ Cooking Tips

• Bohemian grannies did not fry the flour in the soup initially; they usually just stirred with a bit of water into the soup and cooked it briefly. However, if you sauté the flour at the beginning, the soup will gain much more flavor.
• Flour stirred in a bit of water, added to the soup to thicken it, is called "záklechtka" in the old Czech language.
• In Czech history, caraway was often used in folk medicine. However, it was known primarily for its digestive effects and is still a favorite spice of new mothers breastfeeding their babies.

More Czech soups

• Czech garlic soup – famous česnečka
• Bramborová polévka – mushroom potato soup
• Goulash soup – gulášová polévka, made with beef