Ukrainian Beetroot Borshch Food

UKRAINIAN MEATLESS BEET SOUP (BORSHCH)

Steps:

• Gather the ingredients.
• Cook 3 red beets in boiling water just until the skins slip off easily. Place in cold water and, when cool enough to handle, peel. Cut beets into thin strips and set aside.
• Meanwhile, in a heatproof bowl, pour enough boiling water to cover over 1/2 cup dried mushrooms and let soak for 1 hour. Carefully remove from soaking liquid so as not to disturb the grit at the bottom of the bowl, and chop. Strain soaking liquid and reserve.
• In a soup pot, sauté 1 large diced onion in 2 tablespoons oil until translucent. Add 2 cloves minced garlic and sauté 1 minute longer. Add 1 large peeled and diced carrot, 1 large peeled and diced potato (if using), 1/2 peeled and julienned parsley root , 1 diced celery rib, 3 black peppercorns, chopped drained mushrooms, strained mushroom soaking liquid, peeled beets and 8 cups water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until vegetables are al dente . Add 1/2 head shredded cabbage and cook until tender.
• Add 2 tablespoons beet kvas or white vinegar or lemon juice to give the soup its characteristic sour taste, 2 tablespoons tomato paste, 1 tablespoon chopped dill, 1/2 cup cooked white beans (if using), and salt and pepper to taste. Cook 5 minutes longer and serve hot with sour cream and dill garnish.
• Enjoy!

UKRAINIAN RED BORSCHT SOUP

Steps:

• Crumble the sausage (if using) into a skillet over medium-high heat. Cook and stir until no longer pink. Remove from the heat and set aside.
• Fill a large pot halfway with water(about 2 quarts), and bring to a boil. Add the sausage, and cover the pot. Return to a boil. Add the beets, and cook until they have lost their color. Add the carrots and potatoes, and cook until tender, about 15 minutes. Add the cabbage, and the can of diced tomatoes.
• Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, and cook until tender. Stir in the tomato paste and water until well blended. Transfer to the pot. Add the raw garlic to the soup, cover and turn off the heat. Let stand for 5 minutes. Taste, and season with salt, pepper and sugar.
• Ladle into serving bowls, and garnish with sour cream, if desired, and fresh parsley.

UKRAINIAN BEETROOT BORSHCH

Steps:

• Gather the ingredients.
• In a stockpot over medium heat, combine beef and water.
• Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer gently for about 30 minutes. Continue to skim top surface to remove any impurities.
• Add onion, carrot, and celery. Tie stock sachet to pot handle and drop into pot.
• Simmer, covered, for 1 hour or until meat falls off the bone, adding water as needed to cover.
• Transfer beef to a bowl and pull meat off bones. Chop into bite-sized pieces and set aside.
• Strain stock into a clean stockpot, pressing on vegetables to obtain maximum flavor. Discard vegetables.
• Gather the ingredients.
• Add beets and carrots to the beef stock and cook, covered, until tender, about 45 minutes.
• Remove vegetables from broth, allow to cool until easy to handle, and then coarsely shred. Set aside.
• Add cabbage, potatoes, and onions to broth. Bring back to a boil and then simmer 20 minutes, covered, or until tender.
• Add shredded beets and carrots, tomato paste, sugar, and salt and pepper to taste. If serving with caraway dumplings, drop batter into soup at this point-they need a total of 10 minutes of cooking.
• Gather the ingredients.
• In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, and caraway seeds.
• In a separate bowl, whisk together milk, beaten egg, and pepper to taste. Add to flour mixture and blend with a fork until a stiff, sticky batter forms.
• Using a tablespoon or a small cookie scoop, transfer batter to simmering soup, not boiling. Cover and let steam for 5 minutes. Turn dumplings over and steam another 5 minutes, covered.
• Add reserved meat to soup and heat through, or around 5 minutes.
• Serve borshch in warmed bowls with a dollop of sour cream, fresh dill, and a lemon wedge, if desired.

UKRAINIAN BORSCHT

Steps:

• Cook beets, carrots and onion in the 3 cans beef broth for 20 minutes.
• Add cabbage and butter, and cook uncovered for about 20 minutes.
• Season to taste.
• Stir in lemon juice.
• Now let it sit (but you don't have to), for an hour or so. Reheat or leave at temperature and serve with sour cream.
• This is better the next day!

VESELKA'S FAMOUS BORSCHT

Steps:

• To make the "beet water," roughly chop 2 pounds of the beets (select the smaller ones), preferably in a food processor fitted with the metal blade. Place the chopped beets in a large stockpot. Add 10 cups of water and 1 tablespoon vinegar.
• Place the stockpot over high heat and bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low, and simmer for 2 hours. (If it seems like the liquid is evaporating too quickly, you may need to cover the pot partially with an offset lid.) The beets should be extremely soft and the liquid bright red.
• Strain the liquid, pressing the cooked beets against the side of the strainer to extract as much liquid as possible. Discard the pulp or reserve. Set aside the beet water. You should have just about 4 cups.
• Meanwhile, place the remaining 1 pound of whole beets in a separate large stockpot. Add water to cover and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, and simmer until the beets are tender-firm, about 40 minutes. When the beets are cooked, add 1 tablespoon white vinegar and set them aside to cool.
• When the whole cooked beets are cool enough to handle, peel them; the skins should slip off easily. Grate the peeled beets on the largest holes of a box grater or in a food processor fitted with the grating blade.
• To make the broth, place the pork butt in a large stockpot and add the beef stock. If necessary, add a little more stock or water to cover. Add the bay leaf, allspice berries, and peppercorns. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to low, and simmer until the meat is tender and beginning to fall apart, about 2 hours. Set the pork aside to cool. When the pork is cool enough to handle, remove it from the pot and cut the meat into ½-inch cubes. Strain the broth and discard the bay leaf, allspice berries, and peppercorns. Reserve the cubed meat and 4 cups of the broth.
• To cook the vegetables, place the carrots and celery in a large stockpot and pour the reserved meat broth over them. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer until the carrots and celery are just tender, about 8 minutes. Add the cabbage and potatoes and continue to cook until the potatoes and carrots are easily pierced with a pairing knife but keep their shape, 15 to 20 additional minutes. Add the lima beans and cook for 5 additional minutes, just to meld the flavors. Gradually add the remaining 7 tablespoons white vinegar, tasting between additions and stopping when the flavor is to your liking. Remove the soup from the heat and set aside.
• To compose the soup, in a large soup pot combine the "beet water" and meat broth with the vegetables. Add the cubed pork and the grated beets. Stir to combine and bring to a simmer over low heat. Season to taste with salt and serve immediately.

UKRAINIAN CLEAR BEET SOUP (BORSHCH)

Steps:

• FOR THE BEEF STOCK: Combine the beef brisket and 2 quarts of cold water in a heavy 4 to 5 quart enameled or stainless steel casserole. Bring to a boil over high heat, meanwhile skimming off the foam and scum as they rise to the surface. Add the bacon, onion, parsnip, carrot, garlic, parsley root, bay leaf, 1 teaspoon salt and a few grindings of pepper. Then reduce the heat to low and simmer partially covered for about 2 hours, or until the brisket is tender and shows no resistance when pierced deeply with the point of a small skewer or knife.
• With tongs or a slotted spoon, transfer the brisket to a plate and drape foil over it to keep it warm.
• Strain the contents of the casserole through a fine sieve into a deep bowl, pressing down hard on the bacon bits and vegetables with the back of a spoon to extract all their juices before discarding them. With a large spoon, skim off and discard as much of the surface fat as possible. Return the stock to the casserole.
• FOR THE BEET STOCK: In a 3 to 4 quart enameled or stainless steel saucepan, bring the grated beets and 5 cups of cold water to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to moderate and cook uncovered for 10 minutes. Then reduce the heat to low, stir in the vinegar and 1 teaspoon of the salt, and simmer, partially covered, for 30 minutes. Strain the stock through a fine sieve into a glass or ceramic bowl, pressing down hard on the beets with the back of a spoon to extract all their juice before discarding them.
• The beet and beef stocks may be set aside at this point if you wish to use the brisket to make meat stuffed buns (Ukrainian Filled Yeast Pyrizhky (Stuffed Buns with Variations) see recipe, usually accompanying the soup.
• Just before serving, combine the stocks, add the remaining 1/2 teaspoon of salt, the lemon juice and sugar, and bring to a boil over high heat. Taste for seasoning and serve at once from a heated tureen or individual soup plates. If you have not prepared the pyrizhky, the brisket may be sliced and served with the soup. Serves 8 to 10.

BORSCH (((AUTHENTIC UKRAINIAN CLASSIC BORSCH)))

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Place the diced bacon or panchetta in a Dutch oven or stockpot and cook, stirring, over medium-high heat, until the fat begins to render, about 3 minutes.
• Add the beef and continue to cook, stirring, until the beef is brown on all sides, about 6 minutes.
• Remove both meats from the pan with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels.
• Add the onions and carrot to the fat in the Dutch oven or stockpot and stir to coat.
• Cook until soft, about 4 minutes.
• Add the garlic, oregano, dill seeds and bay leaves and cook, stirring, for 1 minute.
• Add the red wine vinegar and stir to deglaze the pot.
• Return both meats to the pot and add the water, salt and pepper and bring to a boil.
• Reduce the heat and simmer, partially covered, until the beef is tender, about 2 hours.
• Meanwhile, place the beets on a baking sheet and brush with the oil.
• Roast until tender and can be pierced easily with a fork or knife, about 1 hour.
• Remove from the oven and set aside until cool enough to handle.
• When the beets are cool enough to handle, trim the stem and root ends and remove the skins.
• Coarsely grate or chop and set aside.
• When the meat is tender and falling apart, add the beets, potatoes, cabbage, parsley, tomato paste and celery salt or seeds and simmer over low heat for another 30 minutes.
• Season with additional red wine vinegar, salt, freshly ground black pepper and sugar to taste.
• Ladle borsch into bowls and garnish with a dollop of sour cream and a pinch of fresh dill.
• Also, serve with Russian black bread.