Czechs are reputed mushroom lovers. In contrast to other countries, they are allowed to take as many mushrooms from the forest as they find. Indeed, mushroom meals have been really traditional in this country, as is forest fruit picking – most of the Czechs remember from their childhood trips to the forest to pick mushrooms as well as raspberries or blueberries. Thanks to this habit Czechs usually have no problems identifying at least the most common species of edible mushrooms, to say nothing about using them in a variety of delicious meals.
Kulajda, thick soup, is prepared according to various recipes all over the country, from Šumava region (Bohemian Forest) to Krkonoše region (Giant Mountains), central Moravia or the Jeseníky Mountains, where potatoes tend to be cooked separately, with the soup poured over them on the plates. Not only every region, but also every family has its own recipe, some prefer the soup creamy and sweet-tasting, others really acid. Why don’t you also try some recipe? September is an ideal time for it, marking the peak of mushroom season!
This soup tastes great not only in the summer when prepared out of fresh mushrooms, but also in winter times with dried mushrooms.
Procedure
Soak dried mushrooms for at least one hour, ideally overnight.
Mix butter and flour to prepare roux, mix evenly while pouring water.
Clean the potatoes and cut them in cubes, add them to the soup, together with mushrooms (and with the water in which they were soaked). Sprinkle with salt, pepper and cook until mushrooms and potatoes get tender, about 15‑20 minutes.
In the meantime, prepare poached eggs. Bring salty and mildly acid water nearly to boil, whirl and by means of a ladle put in one beaten egg, cook for about 4‑5 minutes, take out and repeat with another egg. Put one egg in each serving.
When the soup is nearly ready, pour in cream (if you use sour cream it is not necessary to add so much vinegar), season with vinegar, add butter and chopped dill.