Dill Pickle Soup with Shredded Chicken- Zupa Ogórkowa

If you love pickles, and you love soup, this recipe is for you! This creamy soup is thick, tangy, and everything that is right in the world!

Dill Pickle Soup is the one soup that my family asks for again and again. A pickle lover’s dream, it is bursting with brined pickles, fresh dill, and chicken. Use the garden veggies that you have on hand to fill this soup with home grown goodness.

I’ve opted for chicken in exchange for starchy potatoes in this tasty soup. Naturally lower in carbohydrates and higher in protein than traditional dill pickle soup, this hearty soup is a healthier, more filling alternative.

Overhead shot of dill pickle soup in a white bowl. Pickles, carrots, and dill on a wooden cutting board. Red onion in the background.

Read on to find out what other substitutions can be made to make this delicious soup recipe allergy friendly and to suit your family’s needs.

What Inspired Dill Pickle Soup?

My husband has a strong polish heritage that he is very proud of. We like to keep traditions alive by making his Grandma Mary Anne’s special recipes. A recipe that is universally loved throughout his large family is her pickle recipe. “Babka’s Pickles” would win every award. They are an old fashioned fermented dill pickle that have the perfect tangy, fizzy, crunchy consistency and the pickle juice that accompany’s it is equally delicious. Because the pickles are fermented, they offer a variety of beneficial probiotics- especially great for gut health. Her coveted pickle recipe takes this soup to the next level! There is something so satisfying about using your own pickles. Not everyone has the ability to walk to the cold room and grab a jar of homemade pickles. I encourage you to find brined pickles to use in your recipe but if you can’t, regular dills will do the trick.

Dill pickles in a jar.

Key Ingredients

Chicken– I like to use chicken breasts and shred them but you can use any kind of chicken you would like.

Pickles– I use a home canned fermented pickle recipe but you can definitely use store bought dills. If this becomes a favourite, I urge you to try it with fermented pickles (in a brine)!

Cheese– Be creative! Use whatever cheese you have on hand, experiment with an old favourite, or play it safe with marble. Whatever you choose, don’t skip the cheese… trust me!

Dill– I like to use fresh dill- if you don’t have any on hand you can easily use dried. When my dill is in season, I harvest a ton from the garden, chop, and freeze for special recipes like this! It freezes beautifully.

The Process

  1. Start your chicken! I use my Instant Pot but you can cook your chicken in the oven or on your stovetop depending on your preferences.

2. While the chicken is cooking… peel and shred your carrots and dice your onion. Place them in a large pot with a heavy bottom along with 2 tbsp of butter. Sauté for around 5 minutes at medium-high heat or until the onions are starting to become translucent. Add diced dill pickles and continue to cook on low heat for about five more minutes.

3. In a large mixing bowl, whisk the all purpose flour and the sour cream, pour in pickle brine (pickle juice) and mix well. Once the sour cream mixture is relatively smooth, add the chicken broth.

4. Combine wet ingredients with onions and carrots. Lastly, put in the chicken, pepper, dill, and chives in your soup pot. If you like spice, you could also add a pinch of cayenne pepper.

5. Cook on medium-low for about 30 minutes. The soup should stay at a low boil.

Dill pickle soup in a pot topped twith chives, pepper, and dill.

6. Once cooking time is over, stir in the shredded cheese. Top with a bit of fresh dill and chives.

7. Enjoy this!

Batch + Storage

This polish pickle soup recipe yields about 8 cups.

The pickle flavour gets even better with time! Store leftover soup in an airtight container for up to 4 days in the fridge. If you find it too thick, simply add more dill pickle juice or broth. I don’t recommend freezing this soup because the pickles will become watery and weak and the dairy will separate and become grainy.

How to Enjoy Dill Pickle Soup- Zuppa Ogórkowa

Pour yourself a large bowl of soup with a dollop of sour cream and sprinkle the top with fresh herbs, cheese, and cracked black pepper! I love to eat this hearty dill pickle soup at lunch time with a slab of fresh whole grain sourdough.

Tips + Tricks

  • Double the vegetables (minus pickles) and chicken when prepping this soup and freeze them for your next batch!
  • I use my Kitchenaid Mixer with the dough hook attachment in order to shred my chicken. It works awesome for all meat. You haven’t tried it yet… what are you waiting for?!
  • If you don’t want to use the instant pot for your chicken, simply pop them into your oven at 350°F for 25-30 minutes or until the internal temp has reached 165°F.
  • Chop your vegetables so that they suit your tastes. Do you like them big and chunky? Coarsely dice. Do you like them fine and uniform? Dice and Shred. If you do choose to chop your veggies on the larger side, allow for a few extra minutes of sauté and cooking time.
  • If you find this soup too thick, simply add an extra cup or two of broth until it reaches your desired consistency.

Variations of Dill Pickle Soup + Dietary Adjustments

There are so many variations of dill pickle soup- make it just right for you and your crew!

  • To make this recipe gluten free, use cornstarch and make a cornstarch slurry instead of using flour.
  • To make this recipe dairy free, use coconut milk and cream or your choice of dairy alternative and omit the shredded cheese. Use olive oil instead of butter when sautéing.
  • To make this recipe without chicken, consider adding three large potatoes finely diced and throw them in when you sauté your carrots and onions.
  • To lower the salt content, simply use salt free butter and low salt broth.
  • For a more smooth consistency, consider using an immersion blender to blend up the vegetables in this unique soup.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I freeze dill pickle soup? No- I do not suggest that you try to freeze this soup because it contains dairy products that tend to separate and become grainy when frozen. The pickles can easily become mushy as well. Freezing this soup would compromise the texture and consistency.

As stated above, I almost always prep double the amount of chicken and veggies (minus pickles) and simply freeze the extra for a quick soup next time.

Is pickle juice good for you?

Brined (fermented) pickle juice contains large amounts of lactobacillus bacteria and beneficial probiotics which help to maintain a healthy gut flora. If salt is a problem for you, you will have to only have small amounts at a time.

Slow Cooker Adjustments

This traditional polish dill pickle soup can easily be made in the slow cooker. Be sure to sauté onions your onions and carrots in a frying pan before starting. Instead of placing ingredients into your heavy bottomed pot, simply put them in the slow cooker and cook on low for 4 hours. Add cheese in just before serving and mix well.

Overhead shot of dill pickle soup.

Creamy Dill Pickle Soup with Shredded Chicken

Enjoy this hearty version of the traditional dill pickle soup- Zupa Ogórkowa
5 from 10 votes
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 1 hour
Course Main Course
Cuisine American, polish
Servings 8 Cups (approx.)
Calories 244 kcal

Equipment

  • Instant Pot (Optional)

Ingredients
  

  • 2 whole chicken breast
  • 2 tbsp butter
  • 1 cup shredded carrots About 2 medium
  • 1/2 cup diced onion About 1 medium
  • 2 cup dill pickles finely diced
  • 2 tbsp flour
  • 1/2 cup sour cream
  • 1 cup pickle brine or juice
  • 4 cup chicken broth or vegetable broth
  • 1/4 cup fresh dill 4 tsp dried
  • 1/4 tsp black pepper
  • 2 tbsp fresh chives 2 tsp dried

Instructions
 

Shredded Chicken (Optional)

  • Place chicken on the rack in your Instant Pot or pressure cooker along with 1 cup of water.
  • Set vent to "Sealing."
  • Set the timer for 7 minutes at high pressure. 7 minutes per pound of chicken- two chicken breasts are generally 1 lb.
  • Once the timer has gone off, allow five minutes untouched for natural pressure release. If you release the pressure too early it will pull the moisture out of your chicken and it will end up dry.
  • Slowly release the pressure by moving the vent to "Venting."
  • Place your cooked chicken into your mixer bowl with a dough hook attachment and turn it on until the chicken is shredded to your desired size. Alternately, you can use two forks to pull your chicken apart.

Soup

  • While the chicken is cooking…peel and shred your carrots and dice your onion. Place them in a heavy bottomed pot that is big enough for your soup along with the 2 tbsp of butter. Sauté for around 5 minutes or until the onions are starting to become translucent.
  • Dice your dill pickles and continue to cook on low for about five more minutes.
  • In a large mixing bowl, whisk the flour with sour cream, add pickle brine and mix well, pour in the broth last.
  • Put wet ingredients into to the pot with onions and carrots. Add in chicken, pepper, dill, and chives.
  • Cook on medium-low for about 30 minutes. The soup should stay at a low boil.
  • Once cooking time is over, stir in the shredded cheese. Top with a bit of fresh dill and chives.
  • Enjoy!

Notes

This dill pickle soup will yield approximately eight cups, 244kcal / cup.
Keyword dill pickles, fermented pickles, garden veggies, high protein, instant pot, low carb, shredded chicken, Zupa Ogórkowa

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15 Comments

  1. It’s been so cold here lately that all I want to do is eat soup! I was looking for interesting soup recipes to try something new and this amazing dill pickle soup came up.

    I made a batch for my family yesterday and they absolutely loved it!

    Thanks Kate for this fun and delicious recipe!

  2. 5 stars
    Been wanting to make this soup for a while. Tonight was the night! It turn out better than expected and the wife said it was the BEST SOUP SHE HAS EVER HAD! I’d like to think i had something to do with that but i doubt it haha

  3. 5 stars
    I had half a leftover chicken and instead of making my same old chicken noodle soup I tried this recipe.. so glad I did! It is delicious!!

  4. 5 stars
    This was super yummy. I loved that I could use leftover chicken that I had frozen to make it more filling for my gang of boys.

    1. Ava, I often chop and freeze any leftover meat from chicken, beef roasts, or ham to add to soups! Happy that you have found this shortcut as well. I hope your boys approved 🙂

  5. 5 stars
    Really good flavor. I used regular pickles but plan on trying out your brined pickle recipe this summer and making it with those.

  6. 5 stars
    This is the perfect use of last year’s pickles. Do you think I could also throw in some dehydrated pickles and carrots? I need to use some up.

    1. Absoultely! They may be slightly more chewy than fresh and they may soak up some extra liquid. Keep an eye out and add water or broth as needed 🙂
      Good Luck!

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