Polish Wigilia Plate: Beet Barszcz with Mushroom Pierogi

About This Recipe

Wigilia, Poland's Christmas Eve supper, is a meatless meal built around fish, mushrooms and grains rather than meat, historically tied to the Catholic fasting tradition observed before Christmas. Two of its most essential dishes are barszcz, a clear, deep ruby beet soup, and pierogi filled with sauerkraut and wild mushrooms, both of which appear on nearly every Polish Wigilia table. The technique that defines a good clear barszcz is a long, slow simmer of beets, dried mushrooms and aromatics, then straining the broth carefully to leave it perfectly clear rather than cloudy, finished with a splash of vinegar or lemon juice for the tang that balances the earthy sweetness of the beets. The pierogi filling is built on sautéed sauerkraut and reconstituted dried wild mushrooms, a combination with a much deeper, earthier flavor than fresh mushrooms alone provide. This is a genuinely traditional Polish holiday pairing, not an invented combination — clear beet barszcz served with small mushroom-filled dumplings, sometimes even floating together in the same bowl, is one of the most recognizable parts of a Polish Christmas Eve table.

Ingredients

Serves 6

• 800 graw beets(peeled and grated)
• 20 gdried porcini or wild mushrooms(divided)
• 2 litersvegetable stock or water
• 1bay leaf
• 4 clovesgarlic(smashed)
• 2 tbsplemon juice or vinegar(to taste)
• 1 tspfine sea salt(to taste)
• 300 gsauerkraut(drained and squeezed dry)
• 1onion(finely diced, divided)
• 2 cupsall-purpose flour
• 0.75 cupwarm water(approximate)

Instructions

1. 1

   Start the barszcz

   Combine grated beets, half the dried mushrooms, stock, bay leaf and garlic in a large pot. Bring to a boil, then simmer 45 minutes.

2. 2

   Strain the broth

   Strain the barszcz through a fine sieve or cheesecloth into a clean pot, pressing gently but not squeezing hard, to keep the broth clear.

   Avoid squeezing the solids too hard when straining — that's what makes barszcz cloudy instead of a clear ruby red.

3. 3

   Season the barszcz

   Season the strained broth with lemon juice or vinegar and salt to taste. Keep warm.

4. 4

   Make the pierogi filling

   Soak the remaining dried mushrooms in hot water for 20 minutes, then drain and chop finely. Sauté half the diced onion until soft, add the mushrooms and sauerkraut, and cook 8 minutes until well combined. Season with salt and pepper.

5. 5

   Make and fill the dough

   Mix flour with a pinch of salt and enough warm water to form a smooth dough. Roll thin, cut into rounds, and fill each with a spoonful of the mushroom-sauerkraut mixture. Fold and pinch closed.

6. 6

   Cook and serve

   Boil the pierogi in salted water for 3 to 4 minutes until they float. Ladle hot barszcz into bowls and add a few pierogi to each, or serve them on the side.

Variations

• •

  Uszka version: make the dumplings smaller, in the traditional uszka ('little ears') style, and serve them floating directly in the barszcz rather than on the side.

• •

  Fish addition: some households add poached fish to the barszcz for a heartier Wigilia course.

• •

  Simplified version: skip making pierogi from scratch and use good-quality store-bought mushroom pierogi if short on time.

Storage

Refrigerate barszcz and cooked pierogi separately for up to 4 days. Reheat the barszcz gently on the stove and boil the pierogi briefly in fresh water, or pan-fry them in butter for a different texture.

Frequently Asked Questions