Soup
Ukrainian borscht
- Preparation time
- 1 h 40
- Servings
- serves 6
Ingredients
- Braising beef — to buy500 g
- Feuille de laurier — to buy2 leaves
- Beetroot — to buy3
- White cabbage — to buy1/4
- Potato — to buy3
- Carrot — to buy2
- Onion — to buy1
- Garlic — to buy3 cloves
- Tomato paste — to buy2 tbsp
- Vinegar — to buy1 tbsp
- Cream — to buy100 ml
- Dill — to buy1 bunch
- Salt — to buy1 tsp
- Pepper — to buy1 pinch
- Neutral oil — to buy2 tbsp
Preparation
Cook the beef in a large pot with 2.5 litres of water and the bay leaves, bring to a boil, skim, then simmer covered for 1 hour over low heat until the meat is tender. Remove it, cut into pieces and set aside with the stock.
Meanwhile, peel and grate the beet and carrot separately.
Heat the oil in a pan, cook the sliced onion for 3 minutes, add the grated carrot then the grated beet and tomato paste, cook for 8-10 minutes, stirring.
Add the vinegar to the beets as soon as they're in the pan: this splash of acidity locks in their bright red colour and keeps them from turning brown when cooked further with the rest.
In the strained stock, add the diced potatoes, bring to a boil and cook for 10 minutes, then add the sliced cabbage and cook another 10 minutes.
Add the beet-carrot-onion mixture, the crushed garlic and the reserved meat, simmer for another 10 minutes, adjust salt and pepper.
Serve piping hot, with a spoonful of sour cream and chopped dill on each bowl: in Ukraine, borscht is even better reheated the next day.