Hungarian Sour Cherry Soup – Meggyleves 🇭🇺

Hungarian Sour Cherry Soup, known as Meggyleves, is one of Hungary’s most distinctive traditional summer dishes. This beautiful chilled soup combines tart sour cherries with a lightly sweet, creamy broth and warm spices such as cinnamon and cloves.

Served cold and often topped with a spoonful of whipped cream or sour cream, Meggyleves is refreshing, silky, and wonderfully fruity. The vibrant pink color makes it especially attractive for summer meals and family gatherings.

🇭🇺 What Is Meggyleves?

Meggyleves literally means sour cherry soup in Hungarian.

Unlike most soups served as a starter, this traditional Hungarian dish is often enjoyed cold as a refreshing first course or light dessert.

The classic recipe combines sour cherries with:

• Sugar
• Cinnamon
• Cloves
• Sour cream
• Flour or cornstarch
• Water
• Lemon
• Vanilla

The result is a creamy, sweet-tart soup with a gorgeous ruby-pink color.

🍒 Ingredients

For the Soup

• 4 cups (600 g) pitted sour cherries, fresh or canned
• 4 cups (1 liter) water
• ½–¾ cup (100–150 g) granulated sugar, to taste
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 3–4 whole cloves
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• ½ cup (120 g) sour cream
• 1½ tablespoons all-purpose flour or cornstarch
• Pinch of salt

For Serving

• Whipped cream or sour cream
• Fresh cherries, optional
• Mint leaves, optional
• A little lemon zest