Polish Kielbasa Soup Recipe with Beans & Potatoes

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!

Overhead shot of bowl of kielbasa soup in white bowl.

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
  • Italian Seasoning 
  • Bone Broth – or chicken broth
  • Baby Spinach – you can also use kale, arugula or watercress
  • Salt and Pepper
  • Hot Sauce
  • Fresh Parsley
Bowl of kielbasa soup with a spoon and second bowl in background

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!
Full pot of Polish kielbasa soup with wooden stirring spoon

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.

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.

Kielbasa soup in white bowl.

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:

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.
Overhead of two bowls of kielbasa soup with spoons and fresh parsley garnish

More soup recipes

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PS – Be sure to check out these 30+ Kielbasa Recipes too!

Two bowls of kielbasa soup with spoons

Polish Kielbasa Soup

This easy 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. 
5 from 22 votes
Print Pin
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 35 minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes
Servings: 6

Ingredients

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!
Did you make this recipe?Mention @platingsandpairings or tag #platingsandpairings!

Nutrition

Calories: 426kcal | Carbohydrates: 33g | Protein: 17g | Fat: 25g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Cholesterol: 56mg | Sodium: 878mg | Potassium: 1082mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 4691IU | Vitamin C: 17mg | Calcium: 75mg | Iron: 3mg

This post was originally published in 2021. It was updated in 2023 to add new information. The polish sausage soup recipe remains the same. Enjoy!

11 thoughts on “Polish Kielbasa Soup Recipe with Beans & Potatoes”

  1. 5 stars
    I made this keto friendly by taking out beans and potatoes and adding green peppers and cauliflower. It was amazing! I paired out with grilled cauliflower steaks; oh so good!

    Reply
  2. Um this is BASICALLY CALDO GAILLEGO FROM SPAIN !🤣 the only difference is that in Spain they use spend your chorizo which is basically a hard sausage and they use turnip greens or collard greens instead of spinach kind of upset that Spain isn’t getting the credit for this one LOL

    Reply
    • Thanks Joe – I’ve never tried Caldo Gaillego, but I’ve been to Spain a couple of times. I’ll have to try it out next time we’re there. 🙂

      Reply
  3. 5 stars
    I have just tried your lentil soup with sausage and kale and even though I haven’t served it yet, I have tasted in the pot and it is delicious! Next week I am trying the Creamy Hungarian Mushroom soup…looking forward to it-yum!

    Reply
  4. 5 stars
    Very good. Had it for lunch and dinner yesterday with my teenager. Only thing we didn’t have was fennel. Will definitely make again.

    Reply
  5. 5 stars
    Made this soup for dinner didn’t have spinach so I went without it. This soup is very easy to make and tasted very good. I will cook again and use the spinach as per the recipe.

    Reply

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