Jókai Bableves: Hearty Hungarian Bean Soup

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• Authentic Hungarian comfort: smoky ham and kolbász layered with sweet paprika.
• Hearty yet balanced: creamy sour cream finish and tender csipetke noodles.
• Make-ahead friendly: flavors deepen overnight and freezes well before the dairy is added.
• Flexible: choose celeriac or celery, canned beans for speed, and adjust heat with hot paprika.

Grocery List

• Produce: 1 large onion, 3 garlic cloves, 2 carrots, 1 parsnip, 1 small celeriac (or 2 celery ribs), flat-leaf parsley
• Dairy: Sour cream, 1 large egg
• Pantry: Dried white beans, Hungarian sweet paprika, optional hot paprika, caraway seeds, bay leaves, all-purpose flour, vinegar (optional), lard or neutral oil, salt, black pepper, smoked ham hock, Hungarian kolbász sausage

Full Ingredients

Beans & Pork Base

• 400 g dried white beans (2 cups; Great Northern/cannellini), sorted and rinsed
• 1 smoked ham hock or pork knuckle (about 900 g / 2 lb)
• 2 L water or low-sodium chicken stock (8 cups), plus extra as needed
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tsp whole caraway seeds, lightly crushed
• Freshly ground black pepper; salt to taste (add late, hock is salty)

Aromatics, Sausage & Paprika

• 2 tbsp pork lard or neutral oil (30 ml)
• 1 large yellow onion (about 200 g), finely chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 250 g Hungarian kolbász (9 oz), sliced into 5 mm coins
• 1.5 tbsp sweet Hungarian paprika (about 13 g)
• Optional: 1/4–1/2 tsp hot Hungarian paprika, to taste

Root Vegetables

• 2 medium carrots (about 250 g), peeled and diced 1 cm
• 1 parsnip (about 150 g), peeled and diced 1 cm
• 1 small celeriac (about 250 g), peeled and diced 1 cm (or 2 celery ribs, diced)

Csipetke (Pinched Noodles)

• 1 large egg
• 95 g all-purpose flour (3/4 cup), plus a little for dusting
• Pinch of salt

Finish & To Serve

• 180 ml full-fat sour cream (3/4 cup)
• 2 tbsp all-purpose flour (16 g)
• 1 tbsp apple cider or white wine vinegar (optional, for brightness)
• 2 tbsp chopped flat-leaf parsley
• Extra sour cream for dolloping

Step-by-Step Instructions

Step 1: Soak the beans

Cover the dried beans with plenty of cold water by at least 5 cm/2 inches and soak 8–12 hours. Drain and rinse. For a quick soak, boil beans in water for 2 minutes, cover, rest 1 hour; drain and rinse.

Step 2: Start the smoky bean base

In a large heavy pot, combine soaked beans, smoked ham hock, bay leaves, caraway, and 2 L (8 cups) water or low-sodium stock. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, skim foam, then reduce heat to maintain a gentle simmer around 85–90°C / 185–194°F. Simmer uncovered 45 minutes, adding hot water as needed to keep beans submerged. Do not salt yet.

Step 3: Brown kolbász and build the paprika base

While the pot simmers, heat lard or oil in a skillet over medium heat. Brown the sliced kolbász 3–4 minutes; remove to a plate. In the rendered fat, cook onion with a pinch of salt until translucent, 6–8 minutes. Add garlic and cook 30 seconds. Take the pan off heat and stir in sweet paprika (and hot paprika if using) to bloom without burning, 10–15 seconds. Scrape the onion–paprika mixture into the soup; reserve kolbász for later.

Step 4: Add root vegetables and finish cooking the beans

Add diced carrots, parsnip, and celeriac to the soup. Continue to simmer gently 25–30 minutes, until vegetables are tender and beans are creamy through. Lift out the ham hock, cool slightly, then pull off and dice the meat; discard skin, bone, and bay leaves. Return meat to the pot. Add the browned kolbász. Taste the broth; add pepper and salt only if needed.

Step 5: Make the csipetke dough

In a small bowl, whisk the egg with a pinch of salt. Mix in the flour with a fork until a stiff, slightly tacky dough forms. Knead briefly in the bowl (30–60 seconds). Rest 10–15 minutes while the soup simmers. If very sticky, dust with a little extra flour.

Step 6: Pinch in the csipetke

Keep the soup at a steady simmer. With floured fingers, pinch pea-sized bits from the dough directly into the pot, keeping pieces small so they cook evenly. Simmer 5–6 minutes, stirring occasionally so they do not stick, until the csipetke are tender.

Step 7: Temper the sour cream finish

In a bowl, whisk sour cream with 2 tbsp flour until smooth. Ladle in 1–2 cups of hot broth in small additions, whisking constantly to temper. Stir the tempered mixture back into the pot. Bring just to a bare simmer (do not boil) for 2–3 minutes to thicken and cook off raw flour taste. Add vinegar, if using, to brighten.

Step 8: Final seasoning and serve

Adjust salt and pepper to taste. The soup should be a deep paprika-red with tender beans, noodles, kolbász, and juicy ham. Ladle into warm bowls and finish with a generous spoon of sour cream and chopped parsley. Serve with crusty bread.

Pro Tips

• Bloom paprika off heat to avoid bitterness—10 seconds on residual heat is perfect.
• Keep the simmer gentle; a rolling boil can split beans and toughen meat.
• Salt late. Smoked hocks and kolbász are salty; season only after they’ve flavored the broth.
• Pinch csipetke small. Pea-sized pieces cook evenly and stay pleasantly chewy.
• For the creamiest finish, always temper the sour cream with hot broth before adding to the pot.

Variations

• Weeknight shortcut: Use 2 cans white beans (rinsed) and 300 g diced smoked ham; simmer 25–30 minutes total.
• Spicy: Add 1 tsp hot Hungarian paprika or sliced Hungarian wax pepper with the aromatics.
• Pressure cooker: Cook beans, hock, bay, and caraway with 8 cups liquid at High Pressure 30 minutes; natural release 15 minutes. Proceed with Steps 3–8 on sauté mode.

Storage & Make-Ahead

Refrigerate cooled soup up to 4 days; flavors improve by day 2. Reheat gently until steaming; avoid boiling after the sour cream is in. For freezing, freeze the soup before adding the sour-cream-and-flour finish; thaw, reheat, then add the tempered sour cream just before serving. Csipetke freezes well in the soup, but stays firmer if added fresh when reheating.

Nutrition (per serving)

Approximate: 610 calories; 33 g protein; 53 g carbohydrates; 31 g fat; 9–11 g fiber; 1,100–1,400 mg sodium (varies with ham and sausage). Calculated without extra bread.