Jewish Soups To Warm You Up

Image by thinkstock

By Devra Ferst January 7, 2014

Image by thinkstock

When you turn on the weather and hear phrases like “dangerous deep freeze” and “the coldest day on record” there’s really only one thing to do — drag your biggest, heaviest soup pot out of the cupboard, fill it with your favorite meats and veggies and start simmering something, warm, fragrant and delicious.

While we all enjoy a big bowl of matzo ball soup, the Jewish love affair with the ladle isn’t limited to sinkers and floaters. Below are our favorite non-traditional Jewish soups. Tell us about yours in the comments!

Einat Admony’s Tangy Chamusta Soup: Kurdish Jews weather the season with bowls of tangy chicken broth with semolina and beef dumplings, ribbons of Swiss chard and enough lemon juice to fight off any oncoming cold.

Mile End Deli’s Vegetarian Borscht: Noah and Rae Bernamoff’s take on this classic peasant soup swaps a traditional beef base for a rich ruby-red beet stock. Mix in kale, cabbage and tomatoes for a hearty soup that won’t break your New Year’s resolutions.

“Jerusalem’s” Cannellini Bean and Lamb Soup: In Israel, Yemini Jews are famous for their soups like this one which is loaded up with beans, stewing meat and 20 cloves of garlic. Chefs Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi warm up their dreary London nights with it.

Kutcher’s Tribeca Matzo Ball Soup: We wouldn’t leave you without a classic and this version is as good as it gets.

A message from our Publisher & CEO Rachel Fishman Feddersen

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.

The coming year promises to be filled with more complex and historic developments. We are entering an era where independent, fact-based Jewish journalism will be more important than ever. We need to be ready for whatever 2025 will bring, and with your help, we can be.

We’ve set a goal to raise $260,000 by December 31. That’s an ambitious goal, but one that will give us the resources we need to invest in the high quality news, opinion, analysis and cultural coverage that isn’t available anywhere else.

If you feel inspired to make an impact, now is the time to give something back. Join us as a member at your most generous level.

— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO