Ciorba is a traditional Eastern European soup, common in Romania, made with a souring agent that gives the final dish a fantastic, intense complexity. Vinegar and lemon juice are common additions for achieving that certain twang, but this ciorba uses another Eastern bloc ingredient, sauerkraut juice, to impart the sour note. (Consider the following recipe an excuse to also make reuben sandwiches, choucroute, or even sauerkraut salad with the pickled cabbage left over after being divested of its brine.) I've fancied this ciorba up a little with the addition of reconstituted dried mushrooms and caraway seeds, but there's no mistaking the dish itself. This is ciorba as it's meant to be: simple but bold.

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