Horseradish soup recipe

Mark Hix
·2 min read
Horseradish soup from Poland recipe - Matt Austin
Horseradish soup from Poland recipe - Matt Austin

I first had this soup in Poland and remember it as the best thing I ate there. We grow lots of horseradish in the UK but don’t seem to make much use of it, save as a sauce for roast beef or grated into a Bloody Mary. You can serve this just as it is, which is how I had it originally, or flake in some smoked mackerel or other smoked fish. I rather like the purity of it as is.

Timings

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 40 minutes

Serves

4-6

Ingredients

  • 1 onion, roughly chopped

  • 1 medium leek, roughly chopped and washed

  • 50g butter

  • 1 tbsp plain flour

  • 1.5 litres hot vegetable stock

  • 100g or more of freshly grated horseradish, or a couple of tbsp of good horseradish sauce

  • 1-2 tbsp double cream, as you like

  • drizzle of rapeseed oil, to serve

  • finely sliced spring onion, to serve

Method

1. Gently cook the onion and leek in the butter for 5 minutes until soft but without colouring, stirring every so often.

2. Stir in the flour and cook on a low heat for 30 seconds then gradually add the vegetable stock, stirring all the while. Bring to the boil, season, then simmer for 30 minutes.

3. Add about 60-80g of the horseradish and simmer for 5 minutes, then blend in a liquidiser until smooth and strain through a fine-meshed sieve.

4. Check for the strength of horseradish and add more if necessary and re-season. You can leave any extra horseradish you have added unblended for a bit of texture.

5. Stir in the cream, bring back to the boil and serve with a drizzle of rapeseed oil and some sliced spring onion.