Real Ukrainian borscht: recipe, cooking features and reviews

2024 Author: Isabella Gilson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:14

It is difficult to find a dish that is more associated with Slavic culture than borscht. This hard-to-pronounce word for a foreigner is known and does not require translation in most countries. People hear the word "borscht" and immediately imagine distant Russia. True, in Russia itself the phrase "Ukrainian borscht" is more often used, and, if we follow historical objectivity, this is more true.

History

Borsch is a close relative of another legendary Slavic soup, cabbage soup. However, cabbage soup was eaten mainly in the northern and central regions of Russia, where cabbage grew in abundance, and beets were reluctant to take root in a cool climate. On the other hand, beetroot, the Ukrainian name for beets, gave excellent harvests on the Ukrainian black soil. It was the Ukrainians who began to use it in borscht, and then the soup spread throughout Russia, Poland, the B altic states, Romania.

There is no exact information when the original recipe for the classic Ukrainian borscht was invented. The first mention of soup dates back to the sixteenth century, it is described in the famous Domostroy. In Poland, a variation of the soup called borszczak appeared only ineighteenth century.

Etymology

Scientists argue not only about the dating of the first recipes of Ukrainian borscht, but also about the origin of the name. Two versions are the most plausible and popular.

• The word "borscht" appeared on the basis of two independent Old Slavonic words: "bur" or "bar" (red, brown) and "shch" (acid). So they began to call red from beets and sour soup from fresh or sauerkraut.
• The name of the dish was given by the hogweed plant, its leaves were used by the Slavs for food, stews were cooked from them, which became the forerunners of Ukrainian borscht recipes.

Varieties

There are more than a hundred official varieties of borscht, as a rule, they are given names from the area where they were invented. The differences relate to a set of products, methods of heat treatment of beets, combinations of meat types. Moreover, among the Slavs, the ability to cook good borscht is an indispensable attribute of a real housewife. Often, family recipes for the most delicious Ukrainian borscht are passed down from mother to daughter through several generations. The hostesses have their own cooking secrets and original ingredients, so each borscht is unique.

To streamline this variety, it's easier to divide all borscht into two types:

• hot borscht, usually cooked in meat broth, served hot;
• cold borscht, they are boiled in the hot season on water, kvass or kefir, usually without meat, served cold.

Ukrainian borscht

DistinctiveThe features of real Ukrainian borscht are richness, density, fat content, the obligatory use of lard at different stages of cooking and, of course, classic donuts and dumplings. Moreover, in Ukraine there is no single recipe for this soup, there are many regional variations that have their own peculiarities.

In Kiev borscht, the influence of Belarusian and Russian cuisines is strong, the soup, as a rule, is boiled on beef broth, slightly sour with kvass. The broth for Lviv borscht is boiled from the bones, and then sausages or sausages are added to it. The recipe for delicious Ukrainian borscht in Odessa style uses noodles, fish, and is served without sour cream. The nuance of Volyn borscht is pre-boiled and chopped beets, which are added to the broth. In the Chernihiv version of the soup, zucchini and sour apple slices are used. And in the recipe for Ukrainian Poltava borscht, it is indicated that the soup should be cooked in goose or duck broth.

Reviews and Benefits

Why is Ukrainian borscht so popular? Feedback from people on culinary forums and websites helps answer this question. The advantages of borscht include:

• great taste;
• ease of preparation and availability of products;
• general low cost of the dish;
• benefit, because there are a lot of vitamins and nutrients in borscht that fill the body with energy;
• variety of recipes;
• satisfying soup.

Main ingredients

There are a lot of food combinations in borscht. But there is a set of basicingredients that are in almost any step-by-step recipe for Ukrainian borscht:

• Meat. For borscht, if it is not a cold option, they use high-quality pork, beef, turkey, chicken, geese and duck meat, lamb, even fish. An important recommendation when choosing meat is that it should be fatter, it can be a shank, ribs, any meat on the bones, from which a rich broth is obtained. In addition to meat, lard is always present in Ukrainian borscht.
• Water. Its quality determines the taste of the soup. Tap water, with its chlorinated taste, can put an end to borscht, even if its other components are of high quality. It is better to use spring or well water, if there is none, then bottled or filtered.
• Vegetables. Beetroot is the main vegetable component of borscht, it is it that gives the soup a rich color and recognizable taste. In addition to beets, vegetable fried carrots, onions and tomatoes or tomato paste are added to borscht. Potatoes and sauerkraut or fresh cabbage are laid raw.
• Greens and spices. Greens greatly enriches the taste and appearance of borscht, chopped bunches of bright green parsley and dill wonderfully harmonize with the burgundy-red color of the soup. Also, peas of allspice and black pepper, crushed garlic with lard and bay leaf are added to the borscht.

Salo

It needs to be discussed separately. Salo is used in almost all Ukrainian varieties of soup. According to many chefs, real Ukrainian borscht is inconceivable without bacon. Beets and dressing are fried on it, andthe resulting cracklings, sprinkled with s alt and herbs, are served at the table. Salo ground with herbs and garlic is added at the end of cooking borscht, thereby giving the soup flavor and fat content. Ruddy donuts are smeared with fat melted from lard. Moreover, it is not at all necessary to use a fresh product, on the contrary, sophisticated and zealous Ukrainian housewives often cook borsch on old yellowish bacon, believing that its unusual aroma gives a truly Ukrainian spirit.

Pampushki

Fragrant donuts smelling of garlic and fresh pastries create an excellent duet with borscht, which can serve as a symbol of culinary harmony. They are easy to bake and the results are amazing. As a rule, donuts are made from simple yeast dough, kneading it with dry yeast, water, flour, s alt, vegetable oil, and sugar. Baked donuts are smeared with melted bacon and garlic and served with borscht.

Dumplings

Recipes of Ukrainian borscht with dumplings are especially popular. They cannot be called an attribute of only Ukrainian cuisine; dumplings are widely used in Caucasian, Polish, Slovak, Hungarian, and Russian cuisines. Dumplings are made from dough kneaded with eggs, water, s alt and flour, sometimes boiled potatoes are added to the dough. They are put into borscht about half an hour before its preparation, so that the dough has time to cook. Dumplings give the soup originality, satiety, beauty.

Dishes

Ukrainian borscht recipes do not require any specialutensils. Soup can be cooked in a cast-iron cauldron, a metal saucepan, a cast-iron pot or a ceramic pot for the oven, even in a large goose casserole. On the fire, on the stove, in the oven, in the slow cooker. Of course, the taste of the dish varies from the dishes and the type of heating. Borscht cooked on a fire has smoky notes in taste. And soup from a slow cooker or oven is more rich because of the long uniform languishing than soup cooked on a conventional stove. But it is much more important to follow the basic principles of cooking borscht, which are generally the same for all versions of this soup.

Basic principles and features of cooking

There is a well-established algorithm for cooking borsch, having mastered it, you can cook soup according to any recipe. You just need to consistently perform step by step, remembering that each of them affects the final result.

• Bouillon. A thick, rich broth is the foundation of any borscht. Washed meat or bones are placed in cold high-quality water. The water is brought to a boil, at this point the foam from the coagulated meat protein must be carefully caught from the broth. Some do it easier, they just pour out all the water, wash the meat and cook the broth with new water. Together with meat, carrots, onions, parsley root and parsnip are put into the water. Bone broth is cooked for four to six hours, meat broth for two to three hours.
• Beets. In recipes for real Ukrainian borscht, beets are often cooked separately from other vegetables. It is sautéed in oil or lard, pre-baked in the oven, boiled or even put raw in soup. But more often all the same, beets are sautéed in lard. Moreover, in order for it to retain its color, it is lightly sprinkled with table vinegar.
• Roasting. Grated or chopped carrots and chopped onions are also fried in lard or butter, then chopped tomatoes or tomato paste are added, which gives the soup a sour taste and a richer color. In some recipes for Ukrainian borscht, roasted bell pepper is present.
• Vegetables. In the finished broth, about thirty to forty minutes before cooking borscht, put potatoes, cut into strips or cubes. Ten minutes later, chopped fresh or sauerkraut is added to the dishes. These ten minutes are necessary for the potatoes to boil, if they are thrown after the cabbage, then they harden from acid. Following the cabbage, after ten to fifteen minutes, beets and vegetable fry are laid.
• Spices, lard and garlic. Spices are put into the borscht five minutes before it is cooked. Lard grated with garlic and chopped greens - two minutes before turning off the fire. Soup should not be served right away, it should be wrapped in a towel or put in the oven for half an hour or an hour so that it sweats and reaches. And only after that carry it to the table.

Feed

Borscht is very beautiful in itself, but still it deserves a special presentation. You can pour it into portioned plates, or you can put it on the table in a separate tureen, from which pour it into plates. Borsch is served with donuts and bread, bacon and leftover cracklings, each serving is flavored with sour cream and herbs. It must be remembered that borscht, like cabbage soup, tastes better the next day, after it is well infused. However, you should not store it for more than three days.

Classic Ukrainian borscht: step by step recipe

Ingredients:

• Beef on the bone - 500 grams.
• Beets - 1 large or 2 medium.
• Cabbage - 200 grams.
• Carrot - 1 medium.
• Onion - 2 medium heads.
• Potato - 3-4 medium tubers.
• Tomato paste or tomatoes - 2 tablespoons or 3 pieces.
• Garlic - 4 cloves.
• Lard - 100 grams.
• Fresh parsley and dill - 50 grams each.
• Water - 3.5 liters.
• S alt, spices, pepper - to taste.

Cooking:

1. Wash the meat thoroughly, before that, if necessary, slowly defrost to room temperature. Although it is preferable to cook borscht from fresh beef.
2. Pour water into a pot and cauldron, put one onion in it.
3. Bring the water to a boil quickly and carefully scoop out all the foam that forms when the meat protein is folded.
4. Simmer the broth over low heat for about two hours with the lid closed.
5. During this time, prepare the beets and vegetable fry. In one frying pan, in a small amount of oil, melt half the fat, put the resulting cracklings in a separate plate, pepper and s alt.
6. On the melted fat for about five minutes, stirring, sauté the grated or julienned beets.
7. In another pan, fry chopped onions and grated carrots for five minutes, then add chopped tomatoes or tomato paste, a ladle to the frybroth and simmer for three to five minutes. The roast is ready.
8. Remove the meat from the broth, separate it from the bones, cut into portions and return to the pan.
9. S alt the broth and put potatoes cut into rather large pieces into it. Boil ten minutes.
10. Then pour finely chopped white cabbage into the pan. Boil ten minutes.
11. Put roast and beets into the broth. Boil ten minutes.
12. Add chopped greens, bay leaf, black pepper and a dressing of grated lard, coarse s alt and crushed or chopped garlic. Boil for five minutes and then remove the borscht from the heat.
13. Let the soup brew for at least half an hour, longer is better. Serve with garlic donuts, sour cream, fresh herbs and cracklings.

Cold Ukrainian borscht: step by step recipe

Ingredients:

• Water - 1.5 liters.
• Beets - 1 large or 2 medium.
• Egg - 3 pieces.
• Potatoes - 3-4 tubers.
• Fresh cucumbers - 2-3 pieces.
• Chives and dill to taste.
• Vinegar, mustard, grated horseradish, sugar - 1 teaspoon each.
• S alt to taste.

Cooking:

1. Wash, peel, grate or cut the beets into thin strips, put in a pot of water.
2. Bring water to a boil, reduce heat, add s alt and vinegar, which helps the beets retain their color.
3. Boil the beets for about half an hour until cooked, then remove the pan from the heat, season with mustard, sugar, grated horseradish and leave to cool.
4. Coldpour the beetroot broth into portioned deep plates, add fresh cucumbers, boiled eggs and potatoes, chopped greens, cut into equal cubes.
5. Serve cold with sour cream.