Real Russian Borscht Recipes

Steps:

• In a heavy stockpot, heat oil over high heat. Add the stew meat and sear until nicely browned. Remove from pot and set aside; immediately add the pork sausage, and stir, breaking it up into pieces while it browns. When sausage has browned nicely, return the stew meat to the pot, as well as the tomatoes, garlic, onion and beets. Add the beef stock, bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cover and simmer for 2 hours. After 2 hours, add the carrots and potatoes. Simmer, covered, for 1 more hour, then add the cabbage, 1/2 cup of the dill, and the red wine vinegar (and taste for salt and pepper addition at this time). Cover and simmer for 15 more minutes. To serve, ladle soup into a bowl and garnish with a dollop of sour cream and fresh dill.

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.

Steps:

• Place the first six ingredients in a large soup kettle or Dutch oven; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 1-1/2 hours or until beef is tender. Meanwhile, in a skillet, saute beets in 1 tablespoon oil for 3 minutes. stir in vinegar; set aside. Remove beef with a slotted spoon; cool. Remove meat from the bones; discard bones. Cut meat into chunks; set aside. strain broth, discarding peppercorns and bay leaves. Skim fat. Add enough water to broth to measure 6 cups; return to kettle. Add potatoes, carrots, cabbage, parsley and beets. Bring to a boil., In a skillet, saute onion in remaining oil for 5-7 minutes or until tender. Sprinkle with flour; stir until blended. Whisk into soup. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 30 minutes or until vegetables are tender. add tomatoes. process soup in small batches in a blender or food processor; pour into a large saucepan. Add beef; heat through. Garnish with sour cream.

Steps:

• To a large pot (I use 8qts), add the meat and enough water to fill up the pot to halfway.
• Remove all froth that comes up from the meat.
• Continue to boil on med-high until no more froth comes up.
• Reduce heat to low and add consomme mix, whole onion, dill, beats, cabbage, and tomato sauce.
• Fill with water, cover partially with lid, and let cook for 90min.
• After that hour and a half of cooking, make sure meat is soft - then add the carrots, and squeeze all the juice you can possible juice from the lemons into the soup.
• You can add the rice and/or potatoes at this point, if you like.
• Cook, partially covered, for another 30-45 minutes, until making sure the potatoes and carrots are tender, and the rice (if you put any in) is ready.
• The soup is great on day 1, but tastes much better on days 2-3.
• Enjoy the soup while it's very hot.

Steps:

• Place all ingredients in a large pot with sufficient water to cover them. Add a pinch of salt, and cook on low heat for 4 hours. Skim off fat from the top and discard. Remove approximately 1 cup of meat to use later as garnish for top of dish.
• Place beets in enough water to cover them and slowly simmer for 40 minutes, (do not boil.) Add remaining beet broth ingredients. Simmer on lowest heat for 3 to 4 hours. Peel beets. Strain the broth from the beets and keep them separately.
• Fry the bacon in a large pot in 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil until crispy. Discard bacon; only the fat is needed. To the bacon fat, add 2 tablespoons butter and the onion, carrot, cabbage and garlic. Cook on medium-low heat until the vegetables are soft. Add tarragon and dill. Add equal parts of meat bouillon and beet broth. Add cooked beets. Simmer for 15 minutes. Garnish with shredded meat, sour cream and dill.

Steps:

• Cook meat for 2 hours in *water* or until meat is very tender -reserve liquid (*add water if needed along the way)
• Get meat out of pot and shred-set aside.
• Sauté onion, carrots in small skillet-set aside with meat.
• Boil beets in meat broth/water until soft.
• Take beets out and shred.
• Cut up raw potatoes and raw cabbage.
• Put all-(the sautéed mixture--beets, meat, raw ingredients)--together in broth/water.
• Boil until potatoes are done (about 30 minutes).
• Add spices according to taste.
• SERVE WITH SOUR CREAM!

Steps:

• In a large saucepan, combine the beets, carrots, onion and broth; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 30 minutes. , Add tomatoes and cabbage; cover and simmer for 30 minutes or until cabbage is tender. Stir in salt, dill and pepper. Top each serving with sour cream if desired.

Steps:

• Add beets into a Dutch oven or large saucepan. Fill with water and add vinegar. Cook over medium heat until tender, this may take an hour or so. Check for doneness by poking a toothpick or fork into a beet. Remove beets and reserve juice. Peel and dice beets when they have cooled.
• For cooking the rest of the soup you may choose which method of cooking (baking, or slow cooking) that works best for you. Add remaining ingredients (EXCEPT beets, beet leaves, and cream) into a roaster pan to bake in oven, or large crock pot to slow cook.
• Simmer in a 250 degrees oven for 6-8 hours or low in a crock pot for 8-12 hours or until vegetables are tender.
• If the broth looks fatty, strain broth from vegetables, let cool, and skim off fat. Sometimes I may cook the vegetables the day before so that all the fat will separate and flavors blend.
• Add broth, vegetables, beets, and reserved beet juice into a large Dutch oven or stockpot. Bring to a boil.
• Add beet leaves, cook 5 minutes.
• Add cream, turn heat off. Salt and pepper to taste. Enjoy!