Soups
milk-based soup with groats, dough, potatoes, or vegetables
home kitchen tradition
Milk, groats, potatoes, flour dumplings, zacirka, butter, children's and everyday table
Milk soup, Milk and groats soup
The field of milk soups
Pieniška sriuba is not one exact recipe. It includes many home versions: with groats, potatoes, pasta, zacirka, flour dumplings, or vegetables.
The shared feature is milk, which makes the dish gentle, filling, and suitable for children or a light supper. According to the Universal Lithuanian Encyclopedia, supper across Lithuania most often included precisely a milk soup of flour or potato dumplings and groats, while in the Klaipėda region a milk dumpling soup was also eaten for breakfast.
Why milk is added later
Groats and potatoes soften more slowly in milk, and milk burns easily. It is practical to start them in water and add the milk when the base is almost cooked.
This is a simple but important home-kitchen skill that separates a gentle soup from a scorched pot.
Sweeter or saltier?
In some homes, milk soup is lightly sweetened, especially when made with rice or pasta. Elsewhere it is savory, with potatoes and butter.
Both directions are matters of home taste. In the tradition, products and simplicity matter more than one mandatory flavor.
Serving
Pieniška sriuba is eaten hot, often right after cooking. As it stands, it thickens because the groats absorb liquid.
If soup remains for the next day, add milk or water when reheating and stir over low heat.
Recipe
How to cook pieniška sriuba
Pieniška sriuba works best when the groats or potatoes are first partly cooked in water and the milk is added later. This helps the soup scorch less.
Ingredients
- 700 ml milk
- 500 ml water
- 3 medium potatoes
- 80 g rice, barley groats, or small pasta
- 30 g butter
- 0.5 tsp salt
- A pinch of sugar if a gentler flavor is desired
Method
- Cut the potatoes into cubes. Rinse the groats.
- Bring the water to a boil, add the potatoes and groats, and cook until almost tender.
- Pour in the milk, reduce the heat, and cook while stirring until everything is soft.
- Season with salt, add butter, and let stand for a few minutes.
Notes
Milk soups dislike high heat because milk rises quickly and scorches.
If using already cooked groats, the soup is ready faster.
