Step-by-Step Guide to Making Traditional Borscht
- 1/2 cup chopped onion
- 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 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
- Carbohydrate 7.98017406387833 g
- Cholesterol 25.4301041990695 mg
- Fat 9.2092782407379 g
- Fiber 1.43196876094884 g
- Protein 1.28964114628192 g
- Saturated Fat 5.74339698645445 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (280g)
- Sodium 200.234406329166 mg
- Sugar 6.54820530292949 g
- Trans Fat 0.664275104975184 g
- Calories 115 calories
Step-by-step
- 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.
Building the Foundation
Why start the whole beet in the initial boiling liquid if it gets discarded later? Boiling the whole root extracts earthy flavors and natural color into the broth before the solids break down past recovery. Keep the heat at a rolling boil during this initial 30-minute phase to properly soften the quartered potatoes and carrots alongside the aromatics.
The Skillet Sauce Technique
Sweating onions in butter over medium heat for roughly 5 minutes translucentizes the allium without browning its natural sugars, preventing acrid notes in the soup. Simmering the added tomatoes with those onions for 15 minutes concentrates the acidity, creating a thick base that balances the heavy cream added later.
Staggering the Textures
Adding cabbage in two separate stages prevents the leaves from turning to mush. Stir half the shredded cabbage into the simmering skillet sauce for 5 minutes of breakdown, while holding the remaining half for the final minutes of pot simmering to maintain a slight crisp bite. Mash the boiled potatoes separately with butter and heavy cream before reincorporating them; this technique introduces starch gradually rather than dumping raw chunks into the broth.
