Zagorje Potato Soup
Zagorje potato soup has many variations as each household adds something to make it special and uniquely theirs. Although boletus mushrooms are sometimes added to this soup, we made it without them since we couldn’t find any in local stores here in Toronto.
Main ingredients are potatoes and sour cream, so the fact that we didn’t have mushrooms didn’t affect the taste of this invigorating soup in a significant way.
Photo by Zvonimir Fras
Fun Fact
It is believed that this soup helps with hangover so it makes for a great dinner idea when you have friends over 😉
We started with a recipe from Croatian chef Mladen Marušić and adjusted the measures (his recipe is made to serve 10 people) and ingredients based on those we had available.
If you use dried mushrooms, soak them previously in hot water until soften.
If you use fresh mushrooms, clean, wash, and slice them finely.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons of vegetable, canola or sunflower oil for frying
- 2 tablespoons of vegetable, canola or sunflower oil for “zaprška” (browned flour)
- 50 g pancetta
- 1 large onion
- 6 medium potatoes
- 1 red bell pepper
- 100 ml white wine
- 1 large tomato
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 1 teaspoon ground red paprika
- 150 ml sour cream
- 60 ml vinegar
- 1 l stock or clear soup
- 2-3 bay leaves
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Finely chopped parsley leaves for garnish
Pre-Preparation
- Chop the onion finely.
- Cut pancetta to strips.
- Peal the potatoes and cut them into small cubes.
- Cut the red pepper into pea-sized cubes.
- Blanche the tomato in hot water for 60 seconds and peel of the skin. Chop it finely.
Photo by Zvonimir Fras
Preparation
On a medium to high temperature in a large saucepan on oil fry the onion and pancetta until soft and translucent.
Add potatoes and fry them for a couple of minutes.
Add the red pepper and fry for another couple of minutes.
Season all the ingredients with salt and pepper and after they are combined in flavor add stock or soup.
To the soup add blanched tomato,white wine, bay leaf, and if necessary more salt and pepper. Allow the soup to cook until all the ingredients soften.
To make “zaprška” (browned flour), in a separate small saucepan heat up 2 tablespoons of oil. Add as much flour as oil can absorb to the hot oil. Fry the flour briefly until it becomes reddish but not burned, then add the ground red paprika and immediately take the frying pan off the heat.
Add this mixture to the soup while constantly stirring. Allow the soup to simmer.
In a separate bowl mix sour cream with a couple of spoonfuls of hot soup to avoid lumps. Add all the sour cream to the soup and remove it from the heat.
Sprinkle with chopped parsley for garnish.
Photo by Zvonimir Fras
Jasmina and Zvonimir are a Croatian couple, currently living in Canada, who promote Croatian gastronomy and culture through food and photos.
Read more (plus a few surprises) on their website and connect with them on social media.
https://www.instagram.com/jasminabrozovic/
https://www.instagram.com/zvonimirfras/
