A tasty, hearty and simple vegetarian soup that’s easy-to-make and healthy too. This recipe for Ukrainian dumpling soup is a vegetarian version of a chicken dumpling soup classic. Tempeh and miso replace the chicken meat and broth and the rest is just as it should be.
As the war in Ukraine carries on, it’s hard not to have this abominable atrocity constantly in our thoughts. Rather than wringing my hands and giving the odd donation, I thought it was time to show a little solidarity and support, however tiny, to Ukraine and its very brave people.
Cook For Ukraine
To this end I’ve created a vegetarian version of a classic Ukrainian chicken dumpling soup. And I’m posting it here to highlight the #CookForUkraine initiative. This is a campaign based around the need for – and appreciation of – wholesome food that unites all cultures and nations.
It’s also a chance to try some different recipes and learn about Ukraine’s rich culture and food heritage. Ukraine is the bread basket of the world, after all. Many of the grains we consume here in the UK, including wheat, come from Ukraine. So does sunflower oil.
Clarkenwell Boy joined forces with chefs Olia Hurcules, Alissa Timoshkina and Zuza Zac, amongst others and launched the campaign at the end of last month.
#CookForUkraine: How To Get Involved
Want to get involved? You can do one, or more of the following:
- Get cooking and share your pictures, recipes or stories on social media to spread the word. Use the hashtag #CookForUkraine. You’ll find some recipes on the website.
- Host a supper club or bake sale and send proceeds to the #CookForUkraine Just Giving page.
- Dine out at participating restaurants. Or, if you’re a food venue you can add a voluntary donation to the bill and also provide a Ukrainian recipe or two on your menus. Email cookforukraine@gmail.com for help with setting up.
- Donate on the #CookForUkraine Just Giving page.
If you’d like to donate or get involved in raising money for the displaced children and families of Ukraine head over to the Cook For Ukraine Just Giving page. You can find more about the campaign there too.
All proceeds and donations go to Unicef UK’s Ukraine appeal. They are working around the clock to save and support support Ukrainian children and their families.
Ukrainian Dumpling Soup
Ukrainian dumpling soup is traditionally made with chicken. That’s obviously not going to happen here. But I wanted to make it as close to the original as I could. That’s where tempeh and white miso come in.
Tempeh has both a meaty texture and flavour. It also resembles the colour of cooked chicken. White miso is the key here, it provides the umami flavour and nutritious notes of chicken broth. Although you could use a darker miso, white has a lighter, less dominating flavour and it makes a good substitute for chicken stock.
I must have done a good job, because non-vegetarian CT tells me my Ukrainian dumpling soup tastes pretty much like chicken soup. He knows about these things and he really likes it.
The soup itself is quite a simple one. The holy trinity of onion, celery and carrots are in every version I looked at. Parsley or dill and a bay leaf seem de rigueur too. Potatoes are more variable, some recipes contain them and others don’t. I’ve included a potato in mine.
I didn’t have any dill, so I’ve used parsley. But I reckon dill, or a mixture of both, would make this already tasty soup even better.
To represent two of the main Ukrainian food exports, I’ve used wheat for the dumplings and sunflower oil to fry the vegetables in.
This Ukrainian dumpling soup is both filling and comforting. It’s perfect for a cold, wet or gloomy day in autumn or winter. This recipe feeds two as a hearty main or four as a lighter lunch.
Ukrainian Dumplings
Dumplings in soups and stews are irresistible. Ukrainian dumpling soup is often called galushki soup. Turns out, galushki is the Ukrainian for dumpling.
Just like British dumplings, Ukrainian ones are lumps of unstuffed dough. Interestingly, the dumplings are made with egg, which makes them quite different to our British ones.
They’re made with just three ingredients: flour, egg and salt. The egg expands the dumplings and causes them to rise a bit. But they’re quite dense and chewy compared to the British dumplings I normally make with baking powder.
Egg Dumplings Top Tips
I always use wholemeal flour for my dumplings. They’re normally fluffy and tender. If you’ve not made wholemeal egg dumplings before, please don’t blame the wholemeal flour. Just add half a teaspoon of baking powder.
I had two goes at making the dumplings. I tried to make the first ones, that you can see in some of my images, dry enough to shape into rounds. That was a big mistake. They ended up being quite tough.
The key with egg dumplings, I found, is to make the dough quite sticky so that you’re unable to roll it with your hands. Just dollop spoonfuls of the dough into the broth and you’ll have a better textured dumpling.
Cook them on a slight simmer for at least fifteen minutes, though more is less when it comes to dumplings.
Ukrainian Dumpling Soup: Step-by-Step
This Ukrainian dumpling soup is a simple one to make. Hands on time is relatively light. It’s the cooking that takes a while. I’ve given the minimum timings here, but it’s hard to overcook this type of soup, so if you can add an extra ten to fifteen minutes to the cooking time, so much the better.
Step 1. Fry Onions
First off, dice the onion. In a large lidded saucepan, heat the oil over a low to moderate heat. Add the onions, then fry until translucent. This usually takes about three minutes.
Step 2. Remaining Vegetables
Whilst the onions are frying, scrub and chop the veg. Slice the celery stick and cut the carrot and potato into smallish chunks.
Add the carrots, celery and salt to the pan. Stir and fry for a minute, then add the potato and stir again. Allow to cook for a further minute.
Top Tip
There’s no need to peel anything, even less so if the vegetables are organic. Much of the nutrition lies in the skin. Just top and tail the carrot and trim the ends of the celery, if needed.
Step 3. Add Tempeh
Cut the tempeh into chunks, roughly twice the size of the veg pieces. Add them to the pan, give a good stir and allow them to fry for a further five minutes. Give an occasional stir.
Step 4. Create Broth
Add the bayleaf to the pan and pour in the water. Clamp the lid on the pan and bring to the boil. As soon as the water is boiling add the parsley. Place the lid back on and allow to simmer for ten minutes.
Whilst the soup is simmering, spoon the miso paste into a small mixing bowl. Take a little water out of the pan and mix it with the miso to form a runny liquid.
Pour the liquid into the pan, making sure you scrape all of the miso out of the bowl. Add a few grinds of black pepper and give everything a good stir. Taste the broth for flavour. If you feel it needs more seasoning, add a little more salt, miso or pepper now.
Step 5. Make Dumplings
Meanwhile in a small mixing bowl, stir the flour and salt together. Make a well in the centre, then break in the egg.
Stir with a flat bladed knife, from the inside out, until the mixture forms a sticky ball.
If the mixture is too dry, add a drop of water. The dough should be too sticky to handle.
Carefully drop teaspoonfuls of the dough into the broth. Clamp the lid back on the pan and simmer gently for fifteen to twenty minutes.
Step 6. Serve Soup
Ladle the soup into bowls, ensuring everyone gets a fair share of the dumplings. Garnish with some fresh chopped parsley and serve.
Vegan Ukrainian Dumpling Soup
It’s only the dumplings that aren’t vegan in this Ukrainian dumpling soup recipe. So, make the soup exactly as given in the recipe card below. It’s only the dumpling ingredients you need to change. And that’s actually just a couple of fairly simple swaps.
All you need to do is substitute the egg for one tablespoon of sunflower oil and two tablespoons of water. You’ll also need to add half a teaspoon of baking powder to the flour.
Other Eastern European Recipes You Might Like
Keep in Touch
Thanks for visiting Tin and Thyme. If you make this vegetarian Ukrainian dumpling soup, I’d love to hear about it in the comments below. And do please rate the recipe. Have you any top tips? Do share photos on social media too and use the hashtag #tinandthyme, so I can spot them.
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If you’d like more soup recipes, follow the link and you’ll find I have quite a lot of them. All delicious and nutritious, of course.
Choclette x
Ukrainian Dumpling Soup. PIN IT.
Ukrainian Dumpling Soup – The Recipe
Ukrainian Dumpling Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp sunflower oil
- 1 onion diced
- 1 large carrot chopped into small chunks
- 1 celery stick sliced
- ½ tsp sea salt
- 1 potato chopped into small chunks
- 200 g tempeh chopped into chunks about twice the size of the veg
- 750 ml water
- 1 bay leaf
- small bunch of parsley or dill chopped
- freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tsp white miso paste
Dumplings
- 50 g wholemeal flour
- 1 pinch sea salt
- 1 egg
Instructions
- In a large lidded saucepan, fry the onions in the oil over a low to moderate heat until translucent. This usually takes about three minutes.1 tbsp sunflower oil, 1 onion
- Add the carrot, celery and salt then stir. Fry for a minute, then add the potato.1 large carrot, 1 celery stick, ½ tsp sea salt, 1 potato
- Fry for a further minute, then add the tempeh.200 g tempeh
- Continue to fry for a further five minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Add the water and bay leaf, clamp the lid on and bring to the boil.750 ml water, 1 bay leaf
- Add the parsley and pepper and turn the heat down to a simmer. Keep the lid on and cook for ten minutes.small bunch of parsley, freshly ground black pepper
- Meanwhile, take a spoonful or two of the hot stock out of the pan and mix it with the miso to form a runny paste. Stir this back into the pot whilst it’s simmering.2 tsp white miso paste
- Taste the stock to ensure it’s seasoned to your liking. If not add a little more salt.
- Give everything a good stir.
- Take teaspoonfuls of the dumpling dough (see below) and drop them gently into the soup. You can make four large dumplings or six smaller ones.
- Put the lid back on and continue to simmer for fifteen to twenty minutes.
- Ladle into bowls and scatter some fresh parsley over the top.
Dumplings
- In a small mixing bowl, stir the flour and salt together.50 g wholemeal flour, 1 pinch sea salt
- Make a well in the centre and break in the egg. Using a flat bladed knife, stir from the inside out until you have a sticky dough. If it looks dry, add a little water. The dryer the dough, the tougher dumplings.1 egg
Notes
Nutrition Estimate
Sharing
I’m sharing this recipe for Ukrainian dumpling soup with #CookBlogShare, which is hosted by Foodie Club this week.
Ana says
Such a wonderful Ukrainian soup! I love your veggie take on it.
Choclette says
Thank you. We found the tempeh in the dumpling soup works really well as a vegetarian substitute for chicken.
Janice says
Amazing soup and such a good cause to support.
Choclette says
Thanks Janice. There are so many good causes to support, but this one is very much to the fore at the moment.
Veronica says
Those dumplings look amazing. I’m going to try them out on hubby later this week – he loves soup and dumplings.
Choclette says
He’s not the only one. We both love soup and dumplings. You might want to add a bit of baking powder if you use the egg dumpling recipe. They’re a bit heavy without it.
Kate - Gluten Free Alchemist says
The situation in Ukraine is shocking and terrifying. My heart goes out to all those suffering.
Thank you for sharing this beautiful recipe. Both uniting and delicious. x
Choclette says
Yes it’s truly awful and really quite hard to get one’s head around. How terrible it must be to have your home and country destroyed. I find the soup really appealing as it’s the sort of thing generations of Ukrainians have cooked and enjoyed. Although maybe not with tempeh.
angiesrecipes says
Tempeh and miso sound like a really exciting and delicious combination! The soup looks wonderful.
Choclette says
Thanks Angie. Tempeh and miso are a really good combination and the soup is perfect comfort food.
Anaiah says
This is a healthy and delicious twist on Ukrainian dumpling soup. And such a great way to learn more of their culture and food! My heart hurts to see what is happening there. Thank you for sharing this recipe and ways to help the families in Ukraine!
Choclette says
It’s a terrible terrible situation Anaiah. It’s hard to know what to do. It’s always interesting though to learn a bit more about other cultures and their food.
Lesley says
What a deliciously hearty bowl of soup, you just know that’s going to be good for you. I love a vegetable broth and the addition of dumplings make this extra special.
Choclette says
Thank you Lesley. Carb nut that I am, I can’t resist dumplings.
Pauline McNee says
I really wonder what those Ukrainians left behind and still alive are eating. Your soup recipe is a wonderful idea and looks delicious. We love soup even though it is still warm here in the tropics. So important to keep supporting those poor people who essentially are just like us.
Choclette says
Exactly Pauline, awful things could happen to any of us at any time. And I too wonder what they’re eating. We actually like soup all year around too, but hearty ones like this are especially welcome in the colder months.