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Dill Pickle Soup with Smoked Ham

Published: / Updated: / 69 Comments

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This dill pickle soup with smoked ham is a hearty, savory, creamy, and comforting dish. A big pot of it can be on your table in only 45 minutes!

white bowl with Polish dill pickle soup with smoked ham beside a cloth napkin

It's not very often that I get excited by soup, but here we are. I've wanted to make my own version of the classic Polish dish (zupa ogorkowa) for a while now. My mom makes pickle soup and so does our Polish friend, so it's something that I enjoy periodically.

I can't say I've ever had a pickle soup that didn't hit the spot, and this version definitely left me wanting more (my husband finished most of it). 😛

I get that dill pickle soup would sound very weird if you hadn't heard of it before. Obviously you won't like it if you don't like pickles.

If you do like pickles, give it a chance! I promise it's delicious.

The smoked ham adds a special little something extra to this creamy pickle soup and also makes it more filling. This is the perfect winter comfort food. Or anytime comfort food, really. I can do soup year-round.

bowl of Polish dill pickle, potato, carrot, and smoked ham soup with a spoon

This comforting dill pickle soup recipe isn't complicated, and the soup doesn't take ages to cook, which is nice for busy weeknights.

Obviously I don't mind spending time in the kitchen, but I think we can all appreciate quick meals that taste just as amazing the next day.

How to make pickle soup

  1. Sauté the onions and carrots in a large soup pot; add the pickles, potatoes, chicken broth, pickle juice, Worcestershire sauce, garlic, dill, and ham to the pot.
  2. Bring to a boil and then simmer the soup for 15-20 minutes or until the potatoes are cooked.
  3. Mix the flour into the sour cream until smooth, then add it to the soup. Cook for another 5 minutes.
  4. Serve with extra salt & pepper and more fresh dill if desired.

(Full ingredients and instructions are in the recipe card below)

More cozy soup recipes to try:

bowl of Polish dill pickle soup with smoked ham and a spoon

So. Dill pickle soup - yay or nay?

Will you be making this easy pickle soup recipe?

Let me know if you have any questions in the comments below!

Polish dill pickle soup with smoked ham is a hearty, savory, creamy, and comforting dish. A big pot of it can be on your table in only 45 minutes!

Polish Dill Pickle Soup with Smoked Ham

This dill pickle soup with smoked ham is a hearty, savory, creamy, and comforting dish. A big pot of it can be on your table in only 45 minutes!
4.85 from 13 votes
Print Recipe Pin Recipe Save
Prep Time 20 mins
Cook Time 25 mins
Total Time 45 mins
Course Soup
Cuisine Polish
Servings 6

Ingredients
 

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 medium onion chopped
  • 1 cup finely chopped dill pickles
  • 1 medium carrot peeled & grated
  • 3 large red potatoes (skins on) diced
  • 2.5 cups chicken broth
  • 1 cup pickle juice
  • 3 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
  • 3 cloves garlic minced
  • Handful fresh dill chopped
  • 3/4 pound piece smoked ham diced
  • 1/2 cup sour cream
  • 1 tablespoon flour
  • Salt & pepper to taste

Instructions
 

  • Add the olive oil to a large pot on medium-high heat. Add the onion and carrot once the oil is hot. Sauté for 5 minutes.
  • Add the remaining ingredients except for the sour cream and flour. Bring to a boil then reduce the heat to medium-low. Simmer for 15-20 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender.
  • Mix the flour into the sour cream until you have a smooth mixture. Stir it into the soup and cook the soup for another 5 minutes. Season with salt & pepper to taste. Garnish with extra fresh dill if desired.

Notes

  • This soup can turn out a bit salty for some people (depending on the salt in the pickle juice) so I suggest using low-sodium chicken broth if that's a concern for you. 
  • If using dried dill, start with 1 teaspoon and work your way up from there if needed.
  • Serves 4-6.
Keyword dill pickle soup recipe
Author Natasha Bull
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  2. Erin L Strelkov says

    I'd love to try this soup but my son is gluten intolerant, so I can't use the flour. Is it possible to substitute corn starch?

    Reply

  3. Danielle says

    Everything turned out great EXCEPT the flour and sour cream mixture made the soup have giant lumps and I whisked it for 10 mins and that did the bare minimum. Will make a rue in the beginning and not the end next time.

    Reply

  4. Theresa says

    We grate the pickled gherkins on the coarse blade which gives a good distribution & nice texture. Can also add chopped polish sausage if no ham as always have cubed frozen kielbasa for soups!

    Reply

  6. Michele Feldman says

    5 stars
    I'm very impressed with this recipe! It was delicious just as written, not too salty and very easy to pull together. I used low sodium chicken broth. Thank you!

    Reply

  7. Kristina says

    5 stars
    This soup was a surprise...mostly because I made it thinking my dill-hating husband would have nothing to do with it. Well, he (and I) loved it...and he ate most of the leftovers. I followed the recipe pretty closely and will definitely make this again soon. Thank you!

    Reply

  8. Vonne says

    5 stars
    A couple of variations, but not enough to greatly alter the recipe. I had a little more ham, so in addition to the chicken stock, I added 3 c of water with ham based mixed in. I have navy beans so I used them instead of potatoes. Had fresh dill from garden as called for - I just folded what I cut and put in soup to pull out after the flavors are out. My crew loves dill pickle soup. Oh yes, and I also still had the ham bone, so it’s in the mix to pull out when the soup is done.

    This one is a winner.

    Reply

  9. Robin says

    5 stars
    My first thought when I saw this recipe was “no way!” I like all the ingredients though so I decided to give it a try and I’m not sorry I did! This soup was remarkably delicious. The pickles and pickle juice are tempered by the broth, smoky ham and sour cream so it doesn’t scream pickles when you taste it. Overall it was just a big bowl of comfort! My husband and I love soup all year round and this one is definitely going into my soup rotation!

    Reply

  11. Mary says

    This looks good and I like to make it. I have some ham bone stock. How do you think that would work in place of the chicken stock? Thanks!

    Reply

    • Natasha says

      I think that would work just fine. I'd probably be careful about adding extra salt until you taste it, though. Let me know how it goes!

      Reply

  12. Lynda M Appel says

    5 stars
    Hi Natasha,
    Due to the Stay at Home order, trying to cook from my freezer and pantry. I had Honey Baked Ham left over from New Years and pickles and potatoes. Just made this soup. OMG! So so yummy! Thanks for this great recipe. Stay safe and healthy.
    Lynda

    Reply

  13. Jenn says

    5 stars
    We love your recipe. I used this recipe in a soup cook-off last year at my work, and it won first place! I use homemade bone broth, and I don't add salt, so it seems to do the trick to regulate the salt. Thanks for sharing!

    Reply

  14. Lori says

    5 stars
    Had tried pickle soup a couple years ago in a restaurant and enjoyed it. Made this as an experiment. Had some homemade pickles that ended up being much too salty to eat from the jar. So the options were, soup or pig food. Soup WINS!

    Reply

  15. Annie says

    I have a quart of buttermilk that needs to be used up. Do you think I could substitute it for the sour cream and just add a bit more flour to thicken? Or would that alter the flavor too much?

    Reply

    • Natasha says

      Hi Annie! I don't cook with buttermilk too often, so I can't say for sure, but it seems pretty ingenious to me, so I'd give it a go! 🙂

      Reply

  17. Cindy Beals says

    A dear family friend made a potato casserole with dill pickles and spicy breakfast sausage. We could never find the recipe, so when I stumbled upon your dill pickle soup recipe it sounded like a soup version of her potatoes. I substituted sausage for the smoked ham and was so excited when I had a spoonful of the soup! It was amazing and tasted just like Elna's potatoes. Thanks for sharing the recipe!

    Reply

  18. Bobbi | Bobbi's Kozy Kitchen says

    5 stars
    OK, can I just say that looks insanely good? I love everything about this soup 😋

    Reply

  19. judy Mullendore says

    I made this with Turkey bone broth and smoked turkey meat ( I work at a restaurant that specializes in everything Turkey) and our garlic dill pickles... It was a big hit .

    Reply

  20. Beth Ball says

    So. I have NEVER had Polish food until I made a best friend that is as Polish as Polish can be, living in Chicago. Everytime I go visit, he makes me all the Polish foods- and I come back craving his food lol! So went to Pinterest to get some recipes and found this.

    Made it.

    Ate it.

    Holy Yum.

    So then I shared it on my FB with all my very American, west coast friends and they all made it, and shared it. Repeat. You and your soup are near famous over here.

    So why am I telling you this long ol story? I am Director of Content for Twin Cities Kids Club (located in MN, 7000 FB followers). We are writing a blog about yummy soups, and would like to mention this. We will link back to this blog and your FB and Instagram- if you need anymore from us please don't hesitate to email me!

    And for real- Thank you for the deliciousness.

    Reply

    • Natasha says

      Polish food is delicious, isn't it?! So glad you liked this soup. And that you told all your friends haha. 🙂 Happy new year!!

      Reply

  21. K. Anderson says

    5 stars
    Excellent! Made this with half homemade dills/juice and half Bick's Garlic Dills/juice and simmered broth with ham bone.

    Reply

  22. Dani says

    5 stars
    Made this tonight in my instant pot. Turned out really yummy! I have a multi generation household and this soup is now a favorite of my 82 yr old mom and 3 yr old grandson. My grandson usually hates pickles won’t even eat them on hamburgers but really loved the soup asked for seconds! My mom who is a really picky eater said this was her new favorite! Thanks so much for the recipe!

    Reply

    • Natasha says

      Hmm... it's hard to say. It'll definitely be sweeter, but I don't see why it wouldn't work if you're ok with that. 🙂

      Reply

    • Monica M says

      4 stars
      This recipe is delicious! My daughter doesn't like pickles and she had three bowls. I am currently eating low-carb meals so we substituted radishes for the potatoes and no one knew it had radishes. Note: the radishes need a about 10 min. longer than potatoes

      Reply

  24. Joyanne says

    Making this tonight. My entire house loves pickles, so Im sure it will be a hit. I doubled the recipe tho as there are 7 of us!

    Reply

  25. Carol says

    This soup is delicious! I've made it at least 6 times in 4 months. Everyone makes a face when you say pickle soup... then they taste it and they love it. I've given out the recipe 4 times Thank you for sharing!.

    Reply

  27. Tracyanna says

    I made this soup yesterday and it turned out delicious. It was very good. However when I added all the ingredients, there was barely any liquid so I ended up adding a lot more chicken broth and the potatoes needed to simmer for a really long time. But it turned out great because the pickles softened which I liked. And even though I mixed the flour into the sour cream, I got worried because it was really hard to get it to completely melt in the soup. Almost thought I ruined it lol. But I am definitely making this again because it was such a unique and delicious flavor. Thank you.

    Reply

    • Natasha says

      Hi Tracyanna, so glad you enjoyed it! I'm thinking I possibly sliced my potatoes a bit smaller and used a smaller pot, which could account for the differences. Sometimes flour can be a bit stubborn! I'm so glad it all worked out, though. 🙂

      Reply

  28. Kim says

    I am excited to try this tonight. Do you by any chance have a recipe for meatloaf with dill gravy? I have been searching forever! There was a restaurant in Downers Grove, IL that used to serve it...soooo good!

    Reply

  29. Mary Ann | The Beach House Kitchen says

    I have never heard of this Polish soup Natasha, but I'm totally intrigued! Considering my love for pickles, I'll definitely need to try it!

    Reply