Kulajda is a thick mushroom soup from South Bohemia. It is cooked with cream, potatoes and dill and served with a poached egg.

The recipe was shared by Forbes Česko in its cooking column, School of Cooking.

The soup can be made with fresh wild mushrooms or a handful of dried ones. Wine vinegar gives it a light sourness, and a little sugar adds a gentle sweetness.

What you need

For 4 servings:

  • fresh wild mushrooms — 2 generous handfuls, or dried — 1 handful;
  • butter — 4 tbsp;
  • plain flour — 2 tbsp;
  • stock — 1 l;
  • potatoes — 5 medium;
  • bay leaves — 2;
  • allspice — 4 berries;
  • whipping cream — 1 tub;
  • wine vinegar — to taste;
  • sugar — 1–2 tbsp;
  • fresh dill — a handful;
  • eggs — 4;
  • salt and pepper — to taste.

To serve:

  • fresh wild mushrooms or button mushrooms;
  • butter;
  • salt.

How to make it

1. Prepare the mushrooms. Dice the fresh mushrooms, fry them in 2 tbsp of butter and set aside. If using dried mushrooms, pour hot water over them and leave while you prepare the rest.

2. Toast the flour. Melt the remaining butter in a pot, add the flour and cook for about a minute, stirring, until it turns lightly golden.

3. Cook the soup. Stirring constantly, pour in the stock. Add the diced potatoes, the fried fresh mushrooms or drained dried ones, the bay leaves and allspice. Cook until the potatoes are soft.

4. Season. Remove the spices, pour in the cream and season with freshly ground pepper, a little vinegar, sugar and chopped dill.

5. Serve with an egg. Ladle the soup into bowls and place a poached egg in each. If you like, add a few more mushrooms fried in butter and salted.

For the poached eggs, add a little vinegar to the water: this helps the white keep its shape while the yolk stays runny.

As a reminder, in early October we made a Czech sauerkraut soup.

Nota bene

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