Borscht I

SUBMITTED BY: DeeDee PHOTO BY: Anichka

"This is the best borscht I have ever eaten. Double the recipe, because it freezes well."

PREP TIME	25 Min
COOK TIME	1 Hr
READY IN	1 Hr 25 Min

SERVINGS & SCALING

Original recipe yield: 8 servings

USMETRIC

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INGREDIENTS

6 cups water
3/4 tablespoon salt
1/2 cup finely chopped carrots
1/4 cup chopped green bell pepper, divided
1/2 stalk celery, chopped
1 medium beet
1/2 cup canned peeled and diced tomatoes
3 potatoes, quartered
1/3 cup butter
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 1/2 cups canned tomatoes
3 cups finely shredded cabbage, divided
1/4 cup heavy cream
3/4 cup diced potatoes
1 tablespoon dried dill weed
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper to taste
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

READ REVIEWS (44)

DIRECTIONS

Place water, salt, carrots, 1/2 of the bell pepper, celery, beet, tomatoes, and quartered potatoes in a large stock pot over high heat. Bring to a boil.
Melt 1/3 cup butter in a separate skillet over medium heat. Saute onions in butter until tender, approximately 5 minutes. Stir in tomatoes, reduce heat to medium low, and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove 1/2 cup of sauce from skillet, and set aside. Stir half of the cabbage into the skillet with remaining sauce, and continue simmering 5 minutes more, or until tender.
Remove beet from boiling liquid and discard. Remove potatoes with a slotted spoon or tongs, and place in a bowl with remaining 1 tablespoon of butter and the cream. Mash together until smooth.
Return the 1/2 cup of reserved onion-tomato sauce to the stock pot. Stir in diced potatoes, and simmer until just tender but still firm, approximately 5 minutes. Increase heat to a low boil, and stir in remaining cabbage, tomato sauce, and mashed potatoes. Reduce heat and simmer a few minutes more. Stir in remaining bell pepper, season with black pepper, and serve.

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REVIEWS

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Reviewed on Dec. 4, 2005 by Anichka

Great recipe, but thicker than authentic borscht I've had in Ukraine and Russia. Things I did just a bit differently... I used two beets with the stock (peeled) and when I removed them, I diced one and a half and added it back into the stock. I added a little more dill than called for, and I wish I had some fresh dill for garnish. I added just a touch of white pepper, and I topped the soup with sour cream.

12 users found this review helpful

Reviewed on May 1, 2006 by YVIEJO

I've never had borscht before, so I don't know how authentic this recipe is. I just made this to use up some beets--which, frankly, I don't even like much. This recipe, though, is INCREDIBLY DELICIOUS (and really, the most remarkable shade of purple/magenta when you use red cabbage...can't beat that)! I even used extra beets (2 large & 3 small), then chopped them up and left them in, as people recommended (I figured it was too much work to puree or shred the beets)...and I psychotically love this soup. I think I could eat it every day. The dollop of sour cream was a great touch, too. I just had the last bowl...sniff...I think I need to get more beets and make this again. I'll try with much less butter next time, though...that was kind of an alarming amount for a vegetable soup.

11 users found this review helpful

Reviewed on Mar. 28, 2006 by Monzie

This recipe was a good starting point, but I had to make several major adjustments to achieve something that was suitably "borscht-like" for my tastes. I used two beets rather than one (and next time, I'd use three) and I did not discard them after boiling. I chopped one beet into small dice and pureed the other. I added both right before service. Without the addition of the puree, the soup would have been bright orange rather than the deep ruby color I expect from borscht. Other changes I made: Added a tablespoon of dried dill toward the end of cooking, omitted about half of the butter and all of the celery (is "half a stalk" reallly going to add any flavor or texture?), didn't reserve the 1/2 c of tomato sauce (this step seemed unnecessary since everything gets mixed together anyway), and I used only about half of the cabbage called for and still found it to be a very cabbage-y soup (3 cups would have been serious overkill). Be sure to taste the soup before serving. I found that it needed quite a bit more salt and pepper than called for. Garnished with sour cream, of course. I will make borscht again, but not according to this recipe.

11 users found this review helpful

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