This German kohlrabi soup is one of those recipes I make without thinking too much about it. Kohlrabi, a couple of potatoes, some stock, and a bit of cream cheese - that's all it takes. And it tastes amazing!
Kohlrabi is extremely common in Germany, and a kohlrabi soup with potatoes like this is a regular part of home cooking here. It's simple, filling, and easy to adapt depending on what you have in the fridge. Kohlrabi and potatoes are my favorite base because they make a smooth, creamy soup without needing cream.
Try another German soup like the Savoy Cabbage Soup, or make the Creamy Cauliflower and Almond Soup, or the Broccoli Soup with Coconut Milk.
Ingredients: 11 | Prep Time: 15 minutes | Cook Time: 30 minutes | Servings: 4 | Difficulty: Easy
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Recipe ingredients
If you're not familiar with kohlrabi, you'll find tips on buying, peeling, and cooking it further down in the post.
- Vegetables: Kohlrabi, floury or all-purpose potatoes, and onion.
- Cream cheese: Makes the soup creamy without heavy cream.
- Stock: Vegetable or chicken stock
- Spices: Fine sea salt, black pepper, nutmeg, chili flakes, parsley, nigella seeds (optional)
- Other ingredients: Olive oil, sugar, lemon juice
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
How to make German kohlrabi soup?
Step #1: Peel the kohlrabi (See the section below for details). Finely chop the leaves if using them for the soup.
Step #2: Cut the kohlrabi and potatoes into regular cubes.
Step #3: Cook the onions for 2-3 minutes until translucent.
Step #4: Add the chopped vegetables and cook for about 4 minutes.
Step #5: Add stock and simmer for 20 minutes or until the vegetables are tender. Add the leaves for the last 4-5 minutes if using.
Step #6: Add cream cheese and blend. Adjust the taste.
What is kohlrabi?
Kohlrabi is one of the most popular vegetables in Germany, but it's still relatively unknown in many other countries. It's widely available here all year round and often used in everyday cooking.
Although I've lived in several countries and traveled quite a bit, I've rarely seen it elsewhere, which is a pity - it's a very tasty and healthy vegetable. It's also easy to grow. I'm not much of a gardener, but even I managed to harvest kohlrabi from my own garden.
- Species: Kohlrabi, also known as German cabbage, belongs to the same family as cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, kale, and Brussels sprouts. The name comes from the German Kohl (cabbage) and Rรผbe or Rabi (turnip).
- Looks: It can be pale green, white, or purple. The green variety is the most common; the purple one looks beautiful but tastes the same.
- Texture: Crisp, similar to a radish.
- Taste: Mild and slightly sweet, somewhere between radish and broccoli stem.
How to buy kohlrabi?
- Choose small to medium bulbs; they usually have a better flavor.
- The leaves should look fresh and green, not wilted or yellow.
- The skin should be firm, without soft spots or mold.
How to peel kohlrabi?
The peel is the only inedible part of the plant because it stays tough even after cooking.
- Remove the tender stems and leaves. You can use them in salads, soups, or stewed like other greens.
- Slice off the top and bottom of the bulb, including the slightly woodier part at the base.
- Peel the rest with a knife or vegetable peeler, like you would peel an apple. Cut it as needed - slices, cubes, strips, or chunks.
How to cook kohlrabi?
Raw:
- We eat kohlrabi raw very often. I peel and slice it and eat it with bread and cheese, similar to how you'd eat radishes or bell peppers.
- It's also great grated in salads, mixed with carrots, or combined with red cabbage - a simple and very healthy salad.
Cooked:
- My first choice for cooked kohlrabi is almost always soup, either a creamy vegetable soup like this one or a clear soup with cubed kohlrabi, dumplings or noodles, and finely shredded leaves.
- Another very common German dish is Kohlrabi-Gemรผse, where the bulbs are cut into chunks or strips, cooked in vegetable broth until tender but still slightly crisp, then finished in a simple white or Bรฉchamel sauce with salt, pepper, and nutmeg.
If you buy more kohlrabi, try these Stuffed Kohlrabi, too; they are so good! Or make Kohlrabi Fries.
Recipe FAQs
You can use heavy cream instead.
Yes. Leave out the cream cheese and use a plant-based cream, such as soy or oat cream. I haven't tested vegan cream cheese, so I can't say how well that works.
How to store kohlrabi soup?
Refrigerate in an airtight container for 3-4 days and reheat on the stovetop or in the microwave before serving.
The kohlrabi soup is not very suitable for freezing because it contains potatoes. Frozen and defrosted potato dishes have a weird texture.
How to serve the soup?
The German kohlrabi soup can be served immediately, or it can be reheated. Serve with crusty sourdough bread for a light and healthy lunch or dinner.
Try it with this super-easy Spelt Bread or with Flaxseed Bread.
Featured comments
Kayla: I am so glad I found this recipe! I am from Germany and started cooking more German meals. I have an abundance of Kohlrabi this year and this recipe is perfect.
Fass: This soup is just wonderful. I added goat's cheese instead of cream cheese and this was fantastic. I also added a handful of walnuts which blended right in.
German Kohlrabi Soup with Potatoes
Ingredients
- 1.5 lbs kohlrabi about 2-3, depending on size
- 1 lb potatoes floury or all-purpose potatoes
- 1 medium onion
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 3ยผ cups vegetable or chicken stock
- 3 heaped tablespoons cream cheese Philadelphia style
- 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice more or less to taste
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- a few gratings of nutmeg
- fine sea salt and ground black pepper
- small bunch of parsley
- a pinch of red chili flakes optional
- a pinch of nigella seeds optional
Instructions
- Clean kohlrabi: Remove the stems and the leaves of the kohlrabi. Keep the leaves separated as they will only be added to the soup towards the end of the cooking process.1.5 lbs kohlrabi
- Chop: Place the kohlrabi bulb on a cutting board and slice off the top and bottom, removing the small woody part at the bottom of the kohlrabi bulb. Peel the skin with a knife or vegetable peeler like you would peel an apple. Discard the skin. Cut the kohlrabi bulb and the stems into cubes.
- Chop vegetables: Peel and cube the potatoes as well. Finely chop the onion.1 lb potatoes + 1 medium onion
- Saute vegetables: Heat the oil in a soup pan and cook the onion for about 2-3 minutes or until translucent. Add the cubed vegetables and cook for about another 4 minutes, stirring a few times in between.1 tablespoon olive oil + onion + veggies
- Simmer: Add the vegetable or chicken stock, bring to a boil, turn down the heat and simmer the kohlrabi soup for about 20 minutes or until the vegetables are tender. Add the chopped kohlrabi leaves during the last 5 minutes of the cooking time.3ยผ cups vegetable or chicken stock
- Add the cream cheese to the soup and blend the soup with an immersion blender (Note 2). Reheat the soup gently without bringing it to a boil again.3 heaped tablespoons cream cheese
- Season: Add salt, pepper, sugar, nutmeg, and one tablespoon of lemon juice. Taste again and adjust the taste with more lemon juice and more spices.fine sea salt and ground black pepper + 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice + 1 teaspoon sugar + a few gratings of nutmeg
- Serve: Sprinkle with the chopped parsley and maybe some red chili flakes and nigella seeds.small bunch of parsley + a pinch of red chili flakes + a pinch of nigella seeds
Notes
- Vegan soup: Use vegetable stock and replace the cream cheese with vegan cream, like soy or oat cream.
- Don't over-blend the soup; it contains potatoes, and potatoes turn gluey if you blend them too much.
Kayla says
I am so glad I found this recipe! I am from Germany and started cooking more German meals. I have an abundance of Kohlrabi this year and this recipe is perfect. Have you tried freezing this/does it freeze well?
Adina says
Hi Kayla. I am glad you like the recipe, we love this soup. I've never had it in the freezer so I cannot say for sure. However, I avoid freezing potatoes, they have a strange consistency when thawed.
Rossella says
Hi! This recipe sounds lovely and I am just about to try it out. Cam I substitute cream cheese for something else or omit it? Would the consistency change a lot? Thank you.
Adina says
Hi Rossella. You could substitute it with heavy cream. If you leave out the dairy, the recipe will change completely. It will still be ok, but different.
Magenta says
@Adina, interesting that you find it so widely used in Germany. I come from London and have lived in many countries whilst living in Berlin in the 90โs I canโt say I ever saw it as there wasnโt a lot of options for fresh produce at all. Whereas in London it was widely available alongside many other winter vegetables.
I now live in Australia and have just bought a khol rabi to make a vegan soup.
Iโm glad you enjoy this nutritious vegetable all year long in Germany and the availability has become accessible.
Adina says
Hi Magenta. It is really everywhere now, always. Things have changed a lot since the 90s, I suppose, and in the last 10 years even more so. I can remember a time when sweet potatoes or pumpkin were almost impossible to find, now they are standard even in smaller shops.
fass says
@Adina, This soup is just wonderful. I added goat's cheese instead of cream cheese and this was fantastic. I also added a handful of walnuts which blended right in.
Adina says
Thank you for the feedback. Goat cheese and walnuts sound great, they make the soup perfect for a festive meal.
Kelly | Foodtasia says
Adina, can you believe I've never had kohlrabi? I've seen it in the store but never knew what to do with it. This soup looks delicious. I have to finally try it!
Ron says
We love Kohlrabi both raw in a salad or cooked in various dishes. Oh, BTW, no problem finding it here in Sweden, it's quite famous. With that said, I've not tried a kohlrabi and potato soup such as this, but I will soon. It sounds wonderful. What a great idea to add that pinch of nigella seeds.
Anca says
The soup looks delicious. I haven't had turnip soup before, it does sound lovely though.
Kathy @ Beyond the Chicken Coop says
My husband tried to grow kohlrabi one summer. We didn't have much luck. We did harvest a few small plants and sliced them up and ate them raw. I really didn't even know what to do with them. This soup looks like a perfect recipe! It looks perfectly creamy and delicious.
angiesrecipes says
I should use kohlrabi more often in my recipes too. A very healthy and delicious veggies. Your soup looks really creamy, healthy and comforting.