Solyanka

Ingredients for 25 servings:

• ½ kg Bockwurst
• ½ kg hunting sausage or beer ham
• 0.3 kg smoked pork
• 0.2 kg raw ham
• 0.4 kg roast, leftovers or homemade
• 0.1 kg fat (roasting fat)
• ½ kg onion(s)
• 0.2 kg tomato paste, concentrated
• 5 liters of meat broth
• 1.2 kg gherkins with stock, chopped
• 3 bell peppers, colored, cut into strips
• 500 ml tomato ketchup, spicy e.g. from Werder
• 0.3 kg capers with stock, chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped
• 15 grains of allspice
• 8 bay leaves
• 1 pinch(s) marjoram, shredded
• some thyme, fresh
• 1 pinch(s) lovage, dried
• 30 g sweet paprika powder
• 15 g salt
• lemon juice
• 3 pinches of lemon pepper, ground
• 1 pinch(s) of sugar, as needed
• Worcestershire sauce, a few splashes
• 3 lemons, sliced
• 0.4 kg sour cream
• 1 bunch of parsley
• 1 bunch of chives
• 1 chili pepper(s), depending on the desired spiciness
• 25 slices of toast

Instructions

Working time approx. 2 hours; Rest period approx. 1 day; Cooking/baking time approx. 1 hour; Total time approx. 1 day 3 hours

after Günter Timmermann

After the oven has been preheated to 220°C, heat the drippings on a deep baking sheet. Lightly fry the sliced ​​Jagdwurst and Bockwurst sausages. Then add the sliced ​​onions and tomato paste, turning frequently, and simmer for 10 minutes. Gradually add the roasting strips and the sliced ​​smoked pork and ham. Let the mixture simmer for another 5 minutes. Transfer the already deliciously fragrant mixture to a large saucepan and top up with the broth. Only now add the next ingredients: the sliced ​​gherkins including the broth, the red, yellow, and green bell pepper strips, tomato ketchup, chopped capers including the broth, and chopped garlic. Add a spice sieve filled with bay leaves, allspice, marjoram, lovage, thyme, salt, and paprika to the soup for seasoning. Cover the pot. Simmer the soup gently for 20 minutes, then season to taste with lemon juice, lemon pepper, a few dashes of Worcestershire sauce, and sugar. Serve the solyanka in a soup bowl or deep plate, topped with a lemon wedge, a small dollop of sour cream, and garnished with a sprig of parsley. Serve with a slice of fresh toast sprinkled with finely chopped chives and finely chopped red chili. Tip: Cook the solyanka a day in advance so the soup develops its full flavor and tastes heartier. This recipe serves 25 people and is intended as part of a buffet. It shows how to make a larger batch of solyanka using simple household appliances, as this soup only develops its full flavor in larger portions. If you have any solyanka leftovers, it’s perfect for freezing. The number of portions can easily be adjusted to your needs using the portion calculator.