By Nik, founder of 東歐嚴選｜kefir.link and former chef · Updated 2 November 2026
On a hot afternoon, this pale green soup comes straight from the blender to the fridge, with no stove involved. Cucumber gives it a fresh, cooling taste, dill and mint scent it, and a small piece of ripe avocado makes it silky without cream. Plain milk kefir brings both the creaminess and a clean tang, so it needs only a squeeze of lemon and no vinegar.
Cousins on Europe's summer tables
In Bulgaria, summer brings tarator, a cold soup of yogurt and cucumber with garlic, dill and walnuts. It comes in a glass or a bowl, as a starter or beside fried peppers in tomato sauce, and Bulgarian cooks now make a modern avocado version too. Russians make okroshka, finely chopped cucumber, radish, potato, egg and green onion with kefir poured over, mostly from late May to September. This blended soup is a newer, no-cook relative of both, closer still to a green cucumber gazpacho made with yogurt and avocado.
Getting the texture just right
Kefir makes the soup creamy, while the avocado adds body, so a small amount goes a long way. Too much kefir makes a thinner soup, and so do large, seedy cucumbers, so scoop out big seeds before blending. If the soup turns out too thick, a splash of water loosens it. Choose an avocado that gives slightly under a gentle press, because many varieties grown in Taiwan stay green when ripe.
Chilling lets the flavours come together, but cold also dulls taste, so season again just before serving. The soup settles as it stands, so give it a stir before you ladle it out.
When dill is hard to find
Fresh dill grown in Taiwan is mostly an autumn-to-spring herb, with almost none in summer, and it is hard to find in ordinary supermarkets. Specialist herb growers sell it fresh when it is in season. When there is no dill, add a few more mint leaves, or use parsley or chives; the soup will taste a little different. Skip dill seed, which tastes hot and is meant for pickles and stews, and avoid fennel, whose anise flavour is too strong. Finish each bowl with finely diced cucumber, a few herb sprigs, a thread of olive oil and cracked pepper.
Chilled avocado cucumber kefir soup
Ingredients
- 550 g cucumber Weigh after peeling; cut into chunks. Set aside 40 g, finely diced, for the garnish.
- 500 g plain milk kefir Unsweetened; one bottle.
- 75 g ripe avocado Weigh the flesh without the skin or stone.
- 2 tbsp fresh dill Chopped, about 4 g.
- 10 fresh mint leaves About 3 g.
- 30 g scallions Finely chopped.
- 1 clove garlic Peeled.
- 30 ml lemon juice
- 15 ml olive oil Keep 1 tsp for drizzling over the bowls.
- ½ tsp salt Add to taste.
- black pepper To taste.
You will need
- Blender
- Knife and chopping board
- Vegetable peeler
- Kitchen scale and measuring jug
- Covered container
Instructions
- Rinse the cucumber, avocado, scallions and herbs under running water before cutting.
- Peel the cucumber, scoop out any large seeds, weigh the required amount and cut it into chunks.
- Prepare the avocado by removing the skin and stone, weighing the flesh and cutting it into chunks.
- Chop the peeled garlic and scallions.
- Load the blender with the kefir first, followed by the cucumber, avocado, dill, mint, scallions, garlic, lemon juice, olive oil and salt.
- Blend until smooth, with no vegetable chunks remaining.
- Season with black pepper, tasting as you go.
- Refrigerate the soup in a covered container for at least 30 minutes, until cold.
- Stir the cold soup, taste and adjust the salt and lemon, then divide among four bowls. Top each with diced cucumber, a few herb sprigs, a few drops of olive oil and cracked pepper.
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