Now that I make my own sauerkraut regularly, I love finding ways to work it into my meals. Polish cuisine seemed like a good place to go, but I wanted to go beyond the usual Polish sausages and sauerkraut. This keto-friendly Polish sauerkraut soup recipe gives you a bone broth based soup (thanks to the use of ribs), a variety of healthy root veggies (focusing on lower carb ones), along with the probiotic benefits of sauerkraut. The sauerkraut is added in at the end so as not to completely destroy all the micro-organisms that give all the health benefits by cooking them all day in a slow cooker.

Keto Polish Sauerkraut Soup Recipe

Ingredients:

  • 1½ lbs pork ribs
  • 2 tablespoons avocado oil
  • 2 leeks, chopped (*May sub with 1 medium yellow onion, chopped.)
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 tablespoon dried marjoram
  • ½ teaspoon caraway seeds
  • 1 medium carrot, chopped
  • 1 medium celery root (around 320g), peeled and chopped
  • 2 small rutabaga (around 240g), peeled and chopped
  • ½ cup white mushrooms, sliced
  • 4 bay leaves
  • 6 [whole allspice berries]
  • 4 cups water
  • 2 cups homemade sauerkraut, rough chopped
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
  • 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped

Directions:

  1. Divide the ribs into smaller pieces, ideally of such a size that they fit easily in the soup plate. Season them with salt and pepper and put them back in the fridge for at least 2-3 hours (or overnight).

  2. Heat avocado oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the ribs and fry them on each side until they start to turn golden. Remove from pot and add to a plate.

  3. Fry the leeks (or onion) in the fat that remained from the ribs. At the end of frying, stir in the garlic, marjoram and caraway seeds, stir frying for 1-2 minutes or until fragrant.

  4. Add the leek mixture, the ribs, along with the bay leaves, allspice berries and water to a slow cooker. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours.

  5. Change the heat setting to "warm" and stir in the sauerkraut. Replace the lid and allow to sit for a further 20 minutes to heat the sauerkraut through and release its flavour. Season with salt and pepper to taste. If you want your soup to have more of a sour ‘kick’, add some sauerkraut juice. Garnish with chopped parsley.

Did you make this keto Polish sauerkraut soup recipe? If so, please let me know how it turned out in the comments. Or if you share pics of your creations on Instagram, please tag me so I can see them. Enjoy! :)