Transylvanian Bacon Green Beans Soup

This Transylvanian Bacon Green Beans Soup is a delicious one that can be made any time of the year. The best part of it is that it has bacon also.

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I am sure, many of you heard about Transylvania before. Dracula? Vlad the Impaler? Anyway, Transylvania is a region in the middle of Romania for the ones who don’t know where that is.

It is a beautiful place, surrounded by the Carpathian Mountains, with beautiful people who know and are proud of their cuisine.

It is a region than in the past was populated by Romanians, Germans and Hungarians, but the majority of Germans migrated back to Germany during the communism times and after. Very few still live in Romania today.

However, the cuisine of Transylvania is a blend of these three different communities and it could be defined by the taste of smoked, salty, spicy and sour sweet. 

You will see lots of soups, cheese, smoked pork, schnitzels, apple strudels, and cabbage, just to mention few of them.

Maybe it is not the healthiest diet, but definitely it is one of the tastiest. This soup is very authentic and delicious. I encourage you to try it and let me know if you liked it.

This Transylvanian bacon green beans soup is a delicious one that can be made any time of the year. The best part of it is that it has bacon also.

There are not too many soups in Transylvania that would not have some sort of pork meat and many times smoked meats are the choice.

What kind of green beans can I use for this soup?

From the beginning I want to make sure that this is clear. It doesn’t matter what kind of green beans you use.

There are many types out there: String Beans, Haricots Verts(French green beans), long beans, purple beans, Romano beans(Italian variety which is flat), or wax beans, any of them can be used for this soup.

The Romanian people who are lucky enough to have a garden, especially in the villages, grow a variety of beans that are consumed all year round in different forms. 

In the summer, they use them fresh, and they can any leftover beans for the winter. I live in Minnesota, therefore our growing season here is very short.

If I get lucky to find green beans at the Farmer Market during the summer, I use them, but for the rest of the year I rely on frozen green beans.

How To Make Transylvanian Bacon Green Beans Soup:

 Step 1.

When you make this soup, start by chopping the bacon and the vegetables, just to get them ready. This will help you enjoy the soup a little bit faster.

Cook the bacon first.

Note: There is no problem if you do not want to use bacon. Ham is acceptable also, but in general any kind of smoked meat would be awesome to use.

Also, if you want to make this soup vegetarian, go ahead and use a little bit of olive oil instead and skip the bacon/meat entirely.

Step 2.

Note: If you noticed that the bacon released a lot of grease, remove some of it and leave in the pot about 1-2 tablespoons of it.

When the bacon is browned, add  flour and paprika and a little bit of water to dissolve the flour and create a roux.

Add more water and let simmer for 5 minutes. 

Step 3.

I hope you have the vegetables chopped, as we will add them now to the soup.

 Add the onions, carrots and celery first and let them cook half way.

Step 4.

Get the green beans ready. Clean up the ends, wash the beans well and drain. Chop them bite size.

Set them aside.

Step 5.

When the vegetables are half way cooked, add the green beans and continue to simmer the soup until the green beans are tender.

Step 6.

Add the garlic and taste for salt and pepper. Add also some thyme, crushed tomatoes or tomato paste.(whatever you have available)

Step 7.

Simmer for 5 more minutes, then add a little bit of vinegar and sprinkle chopped parsley on top. Serve with a dollop of sour cream, for a more traditional taste.

Enjoy!

Love green beans? Here you have some more suggestions for recipes with green beans:

Garlic Green Beans Salad

Chickpeas Green Beans With Pork And Spanish Chorizo

Green bean and potato salad

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Yield: 8 servings

Transylvanian Bacon Green Beans Soup

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This Transylvanian Bacon Green Beans Soup is a delicious one that can be made any time of the year. The best part of it is that it has bacon also.

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 50 minutes

Total Time 1 hour 5 minutes

Ingredients

• 2 pounds green beans
• 1 chopped red onion
• 1 pound bacon
• 1 tablespoon all purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon paprika
• 2 stalks of celery chopped
• 2 chopped carrots
• 4-5 garlic cloves
• 1 bunch fresh italian parsley
• 1 teaspoon thyme
• 4-5 tablespoons tomato sauce or 2 medium chopped tomatoes
• 2-3 tablespoons vinegar or to your taste
• 8 cups water
• sour cream for serving

Instructions

1. Chop the bacon, place it in a soup pot on medium heat and brown it.
2. Add the chopped onions and cook until translucent.
3. Add the flour and paprika and mix well, while adding cold water to dissolve the flour. Make sure you get rid of the lumps.
4. Add more water and let it simmer for a while.
5. Chop celery and carrots and add them to the soup.
6. When the vegetables are halfway cooked(10-15 mins), add the cleaned and trimmed green beans.
7. Simmer the soup until the beans are tender.(another 10 mins)
8. Add chopped garlic and taste for salt and pepper.
9. Add thyme.
10. Add crushed tomatoes or tomato sauce and simmer the soup for another 5 mins.
11. Add vinegar little by little to make the soup a little bit sour.
12. When everything is cooked, sprinkle chopped parsley over the soup.
13. Serve hot with a dollop of sour cream on top.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

8

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 345Total Fat: 21gSaturated Fat: 7gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 13gCholesterol: 57mgSodium: 1166mgCarbohydrates: 18gFiber: 6gSugar: 8gProtein: 23g

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