This Polish Kielbasa Soup recipe is filled with savory sausage, hearty potatoes, and healthy vegetables. It’s a warm and comforting soup that’s perfect for a cold winter day.
January is the perfect month for healthy soups. It’s still cold outside and most of us are in need of a good restart after all of those holiday treats.
Some of my go-to soup recipes this time of year include this Hearty Lentil Soup with Sausage and Kale or this Tomato Bisque Soup.
Kielbasa Soup is another simple recipe that’s packed with flavor and refreshingly healthy. This brothy sausage soup is made with plenty of vegetables and potatoes, kielbasa sausage for protein, and cannellini beans for extra measure.
Finish it off with fresh spinach and a bit of hot sauce for a colorful soup with a little kick!
Table of Contents
Ingredients needed
This soup is made extra flavorful because of the aromatic veggies (that onion, fennel, and garlic go a long way!) and the seasonings. If you are running low on anything, check out the recipe variations below for substitution options.
- Kielbasa Sausage – Kielbasa sausage simply refers to Polish sausage. There are many varieties of kielbasa, but recipes calling for kielbasa are typically referring to smoked pork or beef sausage, often sold in a U-shaped casing. Kielbasa has a mild, smoky flavor profile, but is not spicy.
- Butter + Olive Oil
- Onion + Garlic
- Fennel – if you don’t like fennel, you can also use celery.
- Russet Potatoes
- Carrots
- Cannellini Beans – aka great northern beans. Kidney beans and black beans also work.
- Smoked Paprika
- Bone Broth – or chicken broth
- Baby Spinach – you can also use kale, arugula or watercress
- Salt and Pepper
- Hot Sauce
- Fresh Parsley
How to make it
- Cook the sausage: Add sausage to a large stockpot or dutch oven and cook over medium-heat for 5-6 minutes, stirring and flipping occasionally, until the sausage is lightly browned. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the sausage to a separate plate, and set aside.
- Cook the aromatic veggies: Heat the butter and olive oil in the pan over medium high heat. Once melted, add the onions and fennel and saute about 5 minutes, until beginning to soften. Add the garlic and saute 30 seconds longer, until fragrant.
- Add the veggies, seasonings, and sausage: Add the potatoes, carrots, beans, paprika, Italian seasoning, broth, water and cooked sausage. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for 15-20 minutes, until the potatoes are tender and can be pierced easily with a fork.
- Optional: If you would like a thicker soup, use a potato masher to mash up some of the potatoes and beans.
- Add spinach: Stir in the spinach and season with hot sauce, salt and pepper, to taste. Enjoy!
Recipe variations
- Sausage: You can use beef or pork kielbasa, or try turkey kielbasa for a lighter soup.
- Potatoes: I use peeled russet potatoes, but you can leave the skin on if you prefer. Just give them a good scrubbing before chopping. You could also use Yukon gold or red skin potatoes, but you may need to adjust the cooking time slightly.
- Beans: Cannellini beans are great, but you can also use Great Northern, navy, or calypso beans.
- Seasonings: Smoked paprika has the absolute best flavor. You can use regular paprika if needed, but I promise you it isn’t the same.
- Spinach: If you don’t love spinach, you can just leave it out. But I promise it tastes amazing in this soup! You can also swap in some kale, baby kale, or arugula.
- Creamy: Try my Creamy Bean Soup with Sausage for an ultra comforting, creamy version of this soup.
How to make ahead & store
To Store: Store in a tightly covered container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
To Reheat: Gently reheat on the stove over medium-low heat until hot. You can also microwave the leftovers.
To Freeze: Store in a tightly sealed container in the freezer for up to 3 months. Allow to thaw overnight in the refrigerator before reheating.
What to serve with it
This kielbasa potato soup is hearty and filling all on its own, but you can also serve a few simple sides to make it a full meal. A crusty slice of bread, green salad, or side of veggies would be delicious pairings. Here are some recipe ideas to get you started:
- Bread: Easy Guinness Bread or Crostini
- Salads: Arugula Salad or Healthy Wedge Salad
- Veggies: Air Fryer Zucchini Fries or Green Bean Fries
- More → 30+ EASY sides for soup!
Wine pairings
- A dry white wine like a German Riesling or Chardonnay would pair well with the flavors in this sausage.
- For a red wine, a Cabernet Sauvignon would be a good option.
More soup recipes
- More → 35+ EASY soup recipes
Did you try this polish sausage soup recipe?
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PS – Be sure to check out these 30+ Kielbasa Recipes too!
Full Recipe
Polish Kielbasa Soup
Equipment
Ingredients
- 14 ounces kielbasa sausage (cut into bite sized pieces)
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ medium onion (minced)
- 1 bulb fennel (thinly sliced (or 1 stalk celery, diced))
- 3 cloves garlic (minced)
- 3 russet potatoes (peeled (optional) and diced)
- 2 medium carrots (peeled and diced)
- 1 15-ounce can cannellini beans (drained and rinsed)
- 1 ½ teaspoons smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon italian seasoning
- 4 cups bone broth or chicken stock
- 2 cups water
- 2 cups loosely packed baby spinach
- Salt and pepper (to taste)
- Hot sauce (to taste)
- Fresh chopped parsley (to garnish (optional))
Instructions
- Add sausage to a large stockpot and cook over medium-heat for 5-6 minutes, stirring and flipping occasionally, until the sausage is lightly browned. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the sausage to a separate plate, and set aside.
- Heat the butter and olive oil in the pan over medium high heat. Once melted, add the onions and fennel and saute about 5 minutes, until beginning to soften. Add the garlic and saute 30 seconds longer, until fragrant.
- Add the potatoes, carrots, beans, paprika, italian seasoning, broth, water and cooked sausage. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for 15-20 minutes, until the potatoes are tender and can be pierced easily with a fork.
- If you would like a thicker soup, use a potato masher to mash up some of the potatoes and beans.
- Stir in the spinach and season with hot sauce, salt and pepper, to taste. Enjoy!
Notes
To Reheat: Gently reheat on the stove over medium-low heat until hot. You can also microwave the leftovers.
To Freeze: Store in a tightly sealed container in the freezer for up to 3 months. Allow to thaw overnight in the refrigerator before reheating.
Nutrition
This post was originally published in 2021. It was updated in 2023 to add new information. The keilbasa soup with potatoes recipe remains the same. Enjoy!
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