Polish Christmas mushroom soup features wild mushrooms cooked in a vegetable broth with a touch of cream. It is traditionally served on Christmas Eve, often with pasta called 'łazanki'. Simple to make, with an intense, delicious mushroom flavour!
See also wild mushroom sauce!
Polish Christmas mushroom soup ('zupa grzybowa', pron. 'gzhi-BO-vah') is a traditional Christmas Eve dish especially popular in central and northern parts of Poland (other regions tend to favour Polish barszcz for Christmas). The name 'grzybowa' comes from 'grzyby' (pl.) which means 'wild/forest mushrooms' in Polish.
Polish grzybowa soup is made by cooking dried wild (forest) mushrooms and a vegetable broth then putting it together for a delicious dish with an intense mushroom flavour. It is different from ordinary mushroom soup (Polish zupa pieczarkowa), which tends to contain chopped vegetables and is made using a different method.
Polish Christmas Eve (Wigilia) mushroom soup is strictly vegetarian, light, made with a handful of ingredients and often served with square shaped łazanki pasta (also paired with cabbage in traditional Polish cooking).
Scroll down for serving suggestions and variations.
Polish Christmas mushroom soup ingredients and substitutions
- Wild mushrooms: see details below.
- Vegetables: to make the broth I used onion, carrot, celery root/celeriac (typical ingredients used in the majority of Polish soups). You can also use parsley root, if you can get it (make sure it's not parsnip).
- Vegetable stock: adds richness and intensity of flavour. I like to use a combination of stock and vegetables for more flavour, but you can just use good quality, aromatic vegetable stock, instead.
- Bay leaf and allspice berries.
- Butter: use plant-based butter, instead, if required.
- Pasta: if you can’t get the łazanki pasta use another small pasta variety such as small pasta shells, pipettes, mini farfalle etc.
- Soy sauce: adds more depth of flavour and intensifies the mushroom flavour (not traditional, but it really works!).
- Flour: thickens the soup.
- Cream: use a combination of light/table/single cream and sour cream. You can change the proportions to suit your taste. Use coconut milk for a vegan option.
- Salt and pepper: add to taste.
What wild mushrooms to use
Traditional Christmas mushroom soup in Poland is usually made with borowiki mushrooms (porcini), but can also contain podgrzybki ('boletes' in English). Most of the time these will be dried, though some people use a combination of dried and frozen forest mushrooms.
It's absolutely fine to just use dried porcini mushrooms to make this soup. I recommend buying them in a Polish store if possible (they tend to be cheaper there). Alternatively use a selection of different dried wild mushroom varieties.
How to prepare dried mushrooms for soup
Usually dried wild mushrooms need to be cleaned and rehydrated before using. However, in this Polish Christmas mushroom soup recipe the mushrooms rehydrate as they cook so there is no need to rehydrate them beforehand (cooking mushrooms helps to release more flavour than rehydrating, i.e., soaking in water alone).
I recommend cleaning the mushrooms by gently rubbing with your fingertips to remove any grit. See Instructions below for details.
Step-by-step recipe instructions
1. Cook vegetable stock: To the pot add the onion, carrot, celeriac, bay leaf, allspice berries and vegetable stock. Cover and bring to the boil then turn the heat down and simmer for 40 minutes. Remove from the heat and using a spotted spoon lift the vegetables out of the pot.
TIP: You can use ready-cooked vegetable stock and omit this step.
2. Prepare mushrooms: In the meantime prepare the mushrooms. Soak the mushrooms in cold water for 2 minutes then rub them gently with your fingertips to remove any grit. Rinse the mushrooms thoroughly.
3. Boil mushrooms: Place in a pot and add 1.5 cups (360 ml) of fresh water. Cover and bring to the boil then lower the heat and simmer for 40 minutes. Remove from the heat and pour the entire mixture through a fine-mesh sieve squeezing the moisture out of the mushrooms (but making sure you reserve the liquid).
TIP: In the meantime boil the pasta (according to the packet instructions).
4. Sautee mushrooms: Finely chop the mushrooms. In a pan melt the butter, add the mushrooms, season with salt and pepper and sautee for about 8 minutes stirring often. Remove from the heat and set aside.
5. Add mushrooms: Using a fine-mesh sieve pour the liquid from cooking the wild mushrooms into the vegetable stock. Add the sauteed mushrooms, bring the soup to the boil then lower the heat and simmer, covered, for about 6 minutes.
6. Thicken soup: Whisk together the flour, cream, sour cream and 1 tablespoon of cold water until smooth. Stir in 2-3 tablespoons of the hot mushroom broth then pour the entire mixture into the pot and stir with a whisk until thoroughly incorporated. Simmer for 2 more minutes.
7. Serve: Remove from the heat, add the soy sauce, fresh parsley and adjust the seasoning as needed. Serve with Polish łazanki pasta.
How to serve Polish Christmas Eve mushroom soup
This soup is traditionally served with pasta, but can also be enjoyed without the pasta or with potatoes, instead (see also creamy mushroom potato soup). It's delicious with garlic bread or a slice of fresh, crusty bread.
How to adjust the consistency
This traditional mushroom grzybowa soup is creamy though not very thick, but you can adjust this according to your preference. For a thicker consistency use an additional tablespoon of both flour and cold water (good idea especially if you don't want to serve this soup with pasta).
Top tips
- Rinse the wild mushrooms thoroughly to get rid of any grit before making the soup (see Instructions).
- You can boil the mushrooms in advance and once cooled refrigerate overnight (along with the mushroom water) until you are ready to make the soup.
- To save time boil the pasta while the mushrooms and vegetable broth are simmering away.
- Add the pasta to individual portions just before serving.
- Be generous with the seasoning, especially the pepper.
- Polish wild mushroom soup is best served hot.
Storing and freezing
Polish Christmas mushroom soup can be refrigerated for up to 3 days. It is important to refrigerate it without the pasta (which would absorb the liquid and become soggy). Cover the pasta and refrigerate separately. Reheat the soup and pasta separately and combine before serving.
Freeze this soup also without the pasta. Defrost in the fridge overnight, then cook the łazanki and add into the soup just before serving.
More Polish recipes with wild mushrooms to try next
- Sauerkraut with Mushrooms (Kapusta z Grzybami)
- Porcini Mushroom Dumplings (Uszka)
- Authentic Polish Bigos Stew
- Polish Sauerkraut Pierogi (Kapusta) Dumplings
See also these other traditional Polish recipes!
Recipe
Traditional Polish Christmas Mushroom Soup (Zupa Grzybowa)
Equipment
- Fine mesh sieve
- Frying pan
- 3 pots 1 larger, 2 smaller
Ingredients
- 1.41 ounces (40 g) dried wild mushrooms such as porcini or a selection, see *Notes
- 1 onion peeled
- 1 medium carrot peeled
- 2.12 ounces (60 g) celery root peeled
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 allspice berries
- 2 teaspoons butter
- 6 cups (1,420 ml) vegetable stock
- 1½ cups (360 ml) water for cooking the mushrooms
- 1 cup (100 g) Polish łazanki pasta quadretti pasta, see **Notes
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose/plain flour
- 3 tablespoons light cream table/single cream
- 2 tablespoons sour cream
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 3 tablespoons fresh parsley finely chopped
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Cook vegetable stock: To the pot add the onion, carrot, celeriac, bay leaf, allspice berries and vegetable stock. Cover and bring to the boil then turn the heat down and simmer for 40 minutes. Remove from the heat and using a spotted spoon lift the vegetables out of the pot.TIP: You can use ready-cooked vegetable stock and omit this step.
- Prepare dried mushrooms: In the meantime prepare the mushrooms. Soak the mushrooms in cold water for 2 minutes then rub them gently with your fingertips to remove any grit. Rinse the mushrooms thoroughly.
- Boil mushrooms: Place in a pot and add 1.5 cups (360 ml) of fresh water. Cover and bring to the boil then lower the heat and simmer for 40 minutes. Remove from the heat and pour the entire mixture through a fine-mesh sieve squeezing the moisture out of the mushrooms (but making sure you reserve the liquid).TIP: In the meantime boil the pasta (according to the packet instructions).
- Sautee mushrooms: Finely chop the mushrooms. In a pan melt the butter, add the mushrooms, season with salt and pepper and sautee for about 8 minutes stirring often. Remove from the heat and set aside.
- Add mushrooms: Using a fine-mesh sieve pour the liquid from cooking the wild mushrooms into the vegetable stock. Add the sauteed mushrooms, bring the soup to the boil then lower the heat and simmer, covered, for about 6 minutes.
- Thicken soup: Whisk together the flour, cream, sour cream and 1 tablespoon of cold water until smooth. Stir in 2-3 tablespoons of the hot mushroom broth then pour the entire mixture into the pot and stir with a whisk until thoroughly incorporated. Simmer for 2 more minutes.
- Serve: Remove from the heat, add the soy sauce, fresh parsley and adjust the seasoning as needed. Serve with Polish łazanki pasta.
Notes
- *The most affordable dried wild mushrooms I’ve ever come across tend to be sold in Polish stores.
- Rinse the mushrooms thoroughly to get rid of any grit before making the soup (see Instructions).
- You can boil the mushrooms in advance and once cooled refrigerate overnight (along with the mushroom water) until you are ready to make the soup.
- Boil the pasta while the mushrooms and vegetable broth are bubbling away.
- Be generous with the seasoning, especially the pepper.
- **If you can’t get the łazanki pasta use another small pasta variety such as small shells, pipettes, mini farfalle etc. You may need to use more than the recommended amount.
- Best served immediately. Refrigerate the soup and pasta separately for up to 3 days.
- Freeze the soup without the pasta for up to 3 months.
Nutrition
*Nutritional information is automatically generated and should be considered as an estimate.
**A note about baking: If using a fan-assisted oven refer to your appliance's instructions and adjust the temperature accordingly.
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If you make this Polish wild mushroom soup recipe I'd love to know how it turned out for you. Let me know in the comments below, thanks!
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Annette says
Hi! Can you just use vegetable broth instead of making my own broth?
Monika says
Yes, you can. I like to add vegetables for more flavour, but this is down to personal preference.