Cabbage soup

Cabbage soup is a comforting dish cherished across many Eastern European cuisines, including Russian, Polish, Slovak, and Ukrainian. Each culture adds its own unique twist, making it a versatile favorite. In Russia, for instance, there's a national dish called "shchi" which closely resembles traditional cabbage soup.

In Sweden, cabbage soup offers a distinctive variation. Typically prepared with white cabbage and seasoned with allspice, it is sometimes served alongside meatballs, creating a hearty and flavorful dish.

The traditional Polish version, known as kapuśniak, often features sauerkraut simmered with pork, kiełbasa (a type of sausage), potatoes, and carrots. The soup gains extra depth from tomato paste and various spices. Some recipes also include a roux made of flour and butter to thicken the soup. It is typically served piping hot and garnished with sour cream, parsley, and dill for added flavor.

Cabbage soup even makes appearances in popular culture. It is featured in the French film "La Soupe aux choux" and there’s an amusing anecdote about Catherine the Great, the Russian tsarina of German descent. Known for her less-than-perfect Russian, one of her famous linguistic slip-ups involved misspelling the word for cabbage soup, "shchi."