Shchavlevyi Sup – Ukrainian Sorrel Soup
There’s something about the first tender leaves of sorrel pushing up in spring that makes you crave a bowl of this bright, gently tangy soup. Sorrel soup is one of those humble, soul-warming dishes that tastes like the season itself: fresh, green, and just a little sour in the most pleasant way. The beauty of making it in a slow cooker is that you can let the machine do the work while the flavors quietly come together, leaving you with a pot of comfort that feels both light and satisfying.
In Ukrainian kitchens, sorrel soup (you may hear it called shchavlevyi sup or simply “green borscht”) has long been a beloved rite of spring. For generations, families would gather the wild sorrel growing along garden edges and meadows, turning that free, foraged green into a nourishing meal after the long winter. Traditionally it’s enriched with a chopped hard-boiled egg and a generous spoonful of sour cream stirred in at the table, a combination that softens the sorrel’s tartness into something creamy and rounded. It’s home cooking at its most resourceful and most comforting.
The trick to a great pot is treating your sorrel gently. Because the leaves wilt and lose their vivid color almost instantly in heat, you’ll add them right at the very end and let them steam for just a minute. This keeps that fresh, lemony brightness alive instead of cooking it into a dull khaki. When you build your sauté of onion, carrot, and tomato first, you create a savory backbone that balances the sorrel’s acidity beautifully.
Tips & Substitutions
- No sorrel? Stir in a few large handfuls of fresh spinach plus a generous squeeze of lemon juice to mimic that signature tang.
- Make it heartier: Swap the rice for pearl barley, or add a handful of cooked white beans for extra protein.
- Lighten it up: Skip the egg and sour cream for a vegan, fasting-friendly version that’s still full of flavor.
- No slow cooker: This works perfectly on the stovetop in a regular pot. Use the same order and timing for the ingredients.
- Young potatoes don’t need peeling. Just give them a good scrub and leave the thin skins on for a more rustic bowl.
Ladle the soup into deep bowls, scatter in the chopped egg, and finish with a swirl of sour cream and a sprinkle of fresh parsley. It’s wonderful with a slice of dark rye bread on the side. Leftovers keep beautifully in the fridge for up to three days, though the sorrel will mellow and darken a bit over time. Reheat gently on the stove and add the egg and sour cream fresh when you serve. Smachnoho, enjoy!
Part of Ukrainian cuisine — 301 more recipes in the section.
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Ingredients
Instructions
In salted boiling water, hard-boil the egg for 10 minutes, then set it aside to cool. You'll add it to the finished sorrel soup later.
Chop the onion and grate the carrot for the sauté. Cook them in oil using the "Stew" program, or fry them in a skillet.
Slice the tomatoes and add them to the vegetables. Let everything sauté for about 5 minutes, then you can switch from the "Stew" program to the "Soup" program.
Rinse, peel, and dice the potatoes (young potatoes can be left unpeeled). Add the potatoes and a bay leaf to the slow cooker pot with the sautéed vegetables.
Pour hot water over the vegetables so it covers them by about two or three finger-widths.
While the soup cooks, rinse the rice and add it to the slow cooker pot 15 minutes after the potatoes.
When the soup has finished cooking (this takes about half an hour), rinse the sorrel and parsley and chop them finely.
Add the greens to the slow cooker, stir, and close the lid for one more minute.
Peel the cooked egg and chop it into the bowl of soup. Add a spoonful of sour cream if you like. Enjoy!
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