Recipe
🍽️ DINNER
Skābu Kāpostu Zupa
A hearty Latvian winter soup of sauerkraut and smoked pork thickened with barley, tangy and warming.
Latvian · easy · serves 6
prep 20 min · cook 90 min
~334 cal · 25g protein · 13g carbs · 20g fat · 3g fiber · 2g sugars · 7g sat fat (estimated, per serving)
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Skābu kāpostu zupa, "sour cabbage soup," is a Latvian winter staple built on cabbage and smoked pork. Sauerkraut is simmered in a rich pork-rib until soft and mellowed, deepened with fried bacon and onion, and thickened with a handful of barley groats that make it a full meal.
The Latgalian version in the east is famously "bare," heavy on sauerkraut and bacon, while others add carrot or a swirl of sour cream. Either way it is tangy, smoky and profoundly warming, traditionally served with dark rye bread.
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Make it yours
✓ Naturally dairy-, egg- and nut-free. No swaps needed.
Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.
🥕 Vegetarian
🌱 Vegan
🌾 Gluten-Free
🥛 Dairy-Free
🥜 Nut-Free
🥚 Egg-Free
🐖 Pork-Free
Dietary labels are a cooking guide, not allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish; we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, read the label on every product you use, and note that a kitchen can cross-contaminate in ways a recipe cannot control.
Ingredients
US
Metric
Serves 6
1 lb smoked pork ribs or smoked pork
1 lb sauerkraut, rinsed
5 oz smoked bacon, chopped
1/2 cup pearl barley
1 onion, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
2 bay leaves
8 cups water
to taste salt and pepper
a little fresh dill, to garnish
Instructions
1
Simmer the smoked pork ribs in the water with the bay leaves for about 40 minutes to make a rich stock.
2
Add the rinsed sauerkraut and the barley and cook until both are tender, about 30 minutes.
✎ Chef’s note
Rinse the sauerkraut first if it is very sharp, and reserve a little brine to adjust the tang at the end.
3
Fry the chopped bacon until the fat renders, add the onion and carrot and cook until softened, then stir into the soup.
4
Simmer everything together another 20 minutes so the flavours meld. Season with salt, pepper and a little reserved brine.
5
Serve hot, garnished with dill, with dark rye bread on the side.
Latvian home cooking.
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🌏 While it simmers, know your destination
📍
Riga. The Christmas table is supposed to carry at least twelve dishes, and folklore says you must finish your bowl of grey peas or spend the new year in tears, since the peas stand for prosperity. Beyond midwinter the table is rye bread, sour cream, dill, cold beet soup and smoked Baltic fish.
🗺️
Latvia. Grey peas with bacon are effectively compulsory at Christmas, and Latvijas lielie pelekie zirni, the big grey peas themselves, have held EU protected status since 2015. Folklore says the bowl must be finished, because any peas left behind become tears in the coming year, and the Christmas table is supposed to carry at least twelve dishes.
🌍
Europe. Europe has written a great deal of its food into law. A regulation of 1992 created the protected designation of origin and the protected geographical indication, tying a name to a place and a method, and an EU evaluation published in 2021 counted more than three thousand registered names across those schemes, from cheeses and hams down to particular shapes of bread.
The story behind this dish is up top, worth a read while the pot works.
More from Latvia
Grey Peas with BaconNutty grey peas simmered soft and tossed with crisp bacon and fried onion, Latvia's unofficial national dish.
Sklandrausis (Rye Carrot Tart)Little hand-raised rye pastry cases filled with potato and sweet spiced carrot purees, baked until set, an ancient Livonian specialty.
Frikadeļu ZupaA light, clear broth with tender meatballs and vegetables, a homey Latvian everyday soup.
Browse all Latvia recipes →
Good to know
Storing it: Soup keeps 3 to 4 days refrigerated and freezes well. Reheat gently and loosen with a little water or stock if needed.
Make it a Latvia meal
Rupjmaizes KārtojumsDessert
Frikadeļu ZupaLunch
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Cuisine
Diet
Frequently asked questions
What is Skābu Kāpostu Zupa?
A hearty Latvian winter soup of sauerkraut and smoked pork thickened with barley, tangy and warming.
Where does Skābu Kāpostu Zupa come from?
Skābu Kāpostu Zupa is a Latvian dish from Riga, Latvia.
Can Skābu Kāpostu Zupa be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?
This Skābu Kāpostu Zupa recipe includes substitution suggestions for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, egg-free, and pork-free versions, including several at once such as gluten-free and dairy-free together. Treat them as a starting guide rather than a guarantee, and see the allergen note below.
Is Skābu Kāpostu Zupa safe for people with food allergies?
Our dietary labels and substitutions are a cooking guide, not medical or allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish, but we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, always read the label on every product you use, and remember a home or commercial kitchen can cross-contaminate ingredients in ways a recipe cannot control.
How long does Skābu Kāpostu Zupa take to make?
About 110 minutes total (20 minutes prep, 90 minutes cooking), serving 6.
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