Borscht

My fathers side of my family is Eastern European. They left Russia in the late 1800’s. They brought with them, their heritage, traditions, and obviously their cooking styles and recipes. Borscht is one of them. A delicious soup made with beets, vegetables and stock. Served with a dollop of sour cream, it’s hearty and healthy, and, for me has a history

The history

Borscht is and ancient sour soup. Despite an earliest reference in the 1500’s. It was alluded to as a dish that had been around a long time. Originally made with Hogweed or Cow Parsnip. The roots would be used for stewing meats and the upper parts would be fermented and used to make a soup, with a sour taste. There are a number of countries that consider themselves to be the root of Borscht. However I will just say it’s Eastern European. Over time, the recipe has changed and been adapted to different regions, but the sour taste still remains. That taste is usually created with fermented beet juice or pickled beets, added towards the end of the cooking process

Beets are good for you, they are a good source of folate (an essential B vitamin), and manganese (a mineral). Studies have also found that beets can help to reduce blood pressure. The other ingredient in Borscht make it a healthy soup. Carrots, celery, onions and ginger, which helps with digestion. I add ginger to give the soup some “bite”, I’m not a big fan of sour. However I wanted something of a taste to remain in the mouth after the spoonful of soup goes down, and I love ginger.

The soup

If you look at some of the soups I make, you’ll see I like my soups thick and hearty, which is what a soup should be. Start by taking the main ingredient and baking it. Clean the beets (please read my post on safe food prep), rub a little oil and salt on them, stick them in a 400 degree oven for an hour.

When they’re done, let them cool a bit, peel them and cut them up, set aside As with all soups, start with a Mirepoix. And, add, garlic and ginger to that, it will need a good 15 mins to soften and release its flavors. When they are done, add the chopped beets and a couple of peeled, chopped potatoes. Mix everything together well, add the stock, bring to a boil and let simmer for 45 mins to an hour, the flavors need to get to know each other.

I mentioned stock, but didn’t specify. Well, I want you to have options. I use chicken stock, but beef stock is and option. Vegetable stock is another option for those who follow a vegan or vegetarian diet. Now, I’m not going to lie and say the flavor won’t be affected, of course it will, it will taste how you want it to. Be aware that between baking the beets, cooking the soup and blending everything together, this dish takes a couple of hours, but it’s worth it.

Working in batches, blend the soup to create that silky smooth, hearty texture. The soup is hot, safety is very important. set up a safe work station.

A trivet for the pot, a blender (make sure yours can handle hot liquids, glass is best) and a bowl to pour the blended soup into, and a ladle to move everything with. Another thing to remember is beets stain anything red, just a point to note. When the soup is all blended, pour back into the pot, and put back onto the stove. The soup needs to rest from the blending process.

Also, now is a time for those final steps. Taste, does it need more salt or pepper? Texture, is it too thick? or thin? Allow to simmer for a bit on a low heat to thicken (I doubt this will be the issue, the potato is a thickener), add a 1/2 cup of stock to thin if desired, mix well.

Traditionally Borscht is served with a dollop of heavy cream. I use sour cream, but it is a matter of taste. Either way, it’s thick, hearty and has a history. Thank you and enjoy.