Our Recipe Testers Couldn't Get Enough of this Dill Pickle Soup
If you can't get enough dill pickles, you must make this soup. It's a creamy blend of pickles (of course!), potatoes, sour cream, and broth. Here we'll walk you through how to make dill pickle soup, including our favorite toppings.
What Is Dill Pickle Soup?
There are many variations of dill pickle soup. Zupa ogórkowa, or Polish dill pickle soup, is made with sour salted Polish-style pickles and can include meat, eggs, vegetables, and potatoes. This variation is made with dill pickles, potatoes, and sour cream. If you use vegetable broth, the soup is vegetarian.
What Does Dill Pickle Soup Taste Like?
If you're imagining digging into a bowl of sour pickle juice, fear not! Dill pickle soup is the perfect balance of tangy pickle flavor, soft potato, and creamy broth. Our recipe tasters described it as "the perfect hint of pickle flavor," and highly recommended topping each bowl with plenty of fresh dill, black pepper, and more chopped pickles.
Dill Pickle Soup Ingredients
Here's a quick look at what you'll need to make our dill pickle soup recipe.
- Butter: Sauteing the vegetables in the butter helps add richness to the finished soup.
- Veggies: You'll need onions, celery, and carrots. This trio is called mirepoix and is used as a flavor base in classic French cooking. Here, it's essential to achieving the perfect balance of flavors in the finished dish.
- Pickles: You'll need both chopped dill pickles and dill pickle brine for the soup. Finely chop the pickles and save a few for garnishing the soup. We don't recommend using pickle relish here.
- Broth: Choose either vegetable or chicken broth for this recipe. Our Test Kitchen recommends using reduced sodium options.
- Potatoes: We found that Yukon gold potatoes were our favorite here. They become almost buttery when cooked in the broth. If you can't find them, russet potatoes work well too.
- Sour Cream: A cup of sour cream helps thicken the soup and add creaminess. It also helps echo the tang of the pickles.
- Flour: A little all-purpose flour thickens things up.
- Seasonings: Add fresh dill for brightness and season to taste with salt and pepper. Go light on the salt at first, the pickles and broth are salty on their own.
Ingredients
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2 tablespoons salted butter
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1 medium onion, finely chopped
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1 medium carrot, peeled and coarsely shredded
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1 stalk celery, finely chopped
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1 cup finely chopped dill pickles, plus slices for garnish
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1 (32 ounce) carton vegetable broth or reduced sodium chicken broth
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1 pound Yukon Gold or russet potatoes, peeled and chopped (1/2-inch pieces)
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1/2 cup dill pickle brine
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1 cup sour cream
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2 tablespoons all purpose flour
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2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill, plus more for garnish
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1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper, plus more for garnish
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Salt to taste
Directions
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In a 5 to 6-qt Dutch oven melt butter over medium heat. Add onion, carrot and celery. Cook and stir 5 minutes or until tender. Add pickles and cook 2 minutes more.
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Add broth, potatoes, and brine. Bring to boiling. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, 15 to 20 minutes or until potatoes are tender.
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In a medium bowl whisk together sour cream and flour. Gradually add about 1 cup of soup to the sour cream mixture, whisking to combine. Add all the sour cream mixture back to the soup. Return to a simmer, stirring occasionally until thickened, 3 to 4 minutes. Season with dill, pepper and salt if desired. Garnish servings with pickle slices, dill, and pepper.