Ukrainian Borshch

From Elena Filatova, Kyiv, Ukraine

Sent to me in her hand script and in Russian

Translation and advice by George Kalbouss PhD and

 Marianna Klochko PhD

 March 2007

(With apologies to Elena Filatova, this is presented in my style and all errors in understanding are mine. If I didn’t mess this up I promise it is genuinely authentic and genuinely excellent. The comments in parentheses are mine. This quickly became a family favorite!  D)

Ingredients:

200 grams meat (about a half a pound more or less) pork (smoked pork is best) and beef cut into cubes (Size as you like – I did approximately ½ inch or a touch less.)

1 – 2 beets, fine julienne  (If fresh beets aren’t available I use canned first time, reserve the juice in the can; it goes in as well. Some recipes describe the beet preparation as grated.)

1 carrot, diced

1 onion, chopped, (medium size onion if that looks about right to you)

3 – 4 potatoes cut into cubes, (I cut approximately ½ inch cubes. I’ve seen a similar recipe call for 1” cubes, matter of cooking time for me.)

2 – 3 Tbls tomato paste (Marianna would use tomatoes, if using tomatoes, slice or chop, use canned if necessary, which I have used for borshch.)

200 grams cabbage shredded and coarse chopped (about a half a pound more or less)

salt to taste (Ukrainian recipes don’t go overboard with salt.)

2 – 3 bay leafs (depends on size I guess)

Parsley root, 2 pieces as Elena said. (My Russian Lit. Professor Dr. George Kalbouss said if we can’t find parsley root, some celery root is good, failing that just coarse chunk some celery.)

1/4 cup (uncooked) beans (Marianna uses white beans, so did I. Heaven forbid canned beans.)

“sharp” pepper (paprika)  to taste (I used three teaspoons paprika).

1 – 2 cloves garlic, minced

(Sour cream and chopped fresh dill)

(oil and or butter for sauté I used 1 Tbls butter and 1Tbls olive oil. I just add this to her written recipe so I won’t forget you know.)

(And, I think I missed something – have some sugar, and vinegar or lemon juice available.)

Instructions and Hints:

Soak beans over night and cook, done but not mushy – drain and be sure to reserve the cooking water. It’s handy to cook the beans the day before and save them in the refrig.

Cut meat into cubes and simmer in minimum water, remove meat and reserve broth. (I did this the evening before so I could easily skim off the fat next day. (Here is where you use the parsley root, or substitute.) Cut the root in half lengthwise and cook it with the meat and then discard.  (If not a root do the same with celery cut into chunks.)

In pot sauté diced carrots, onions and the grated or julienne beets (if the beets are not precooked) for about ten minutes or until soft and then stir in tomato paste. (If using fresh or canned tomatoes instead of tomato paste go ahead and sauté them also.)

Into the reserved meat broth add cabbage and diced potatoes. If cabbage is hard cook it for about ten minutes before adding potatoes; if it is fresh and soft add it right before adding potatoes and cook all until fork tender.

Add the cooked meat.

Add sautéed onion, carrot, beets and tomato paste (or tomato) mixture.

Add bay leaf, paprika, minced garlic, cooked beans, and salt & pepper to taste.

(For additional liquid, the reserved beet juice is added first – it gives the borshch its characteristic and desired color. Then I add the reserved broth from cooking the beans. If you still lack for broth the cooking police are no longer active in Ukraine so have a good low sodium canned beef broth on hand. The babas would just add some more water I’m sure.)

Turn the heat down – everything has been cooked and you don’t want to over cook the beets – they will lose their color!

(Here is where the sugar and vinegar or lemon juice come in. The soup should have a mellow slightly tart taste which comes from a balance of the sugar and the acid. Be careful, taste first! Then add a teaspoon of sugar if needed (the beet juice if used might be sweet enough) then add a teaspoon of vinegar or lemon juice, blend in well and taste. Adjust to a smooth slightly tart taste that pleases you. Remember you can always add but it’s hard to subtract.)

Let the borshch steep over very low to no heat to incorporate the flavors for maybe a half hour before serving. (Taste again – any adjustments needed? A touch of salt or pepper? Maybe a touch of vinegar or lemon juice?)

Top each bowl of borshch with a dollop of sour cream and chopped fresh dill sprinkled on if possible. Dill is a very common herb in Ukrainian cuisine – if you aren’t accustomed to it you might want to approach it slowly. Sour cream is definitely a plus. However it must be eaten correctly! Properly, one takes a nip of the sour cream into one’s spoon then fills the spoon with soup, or the other way around would work I guess. Just don’t mix the sour cream into the soup like I did the first time.

Shucks, as you see this is vegetable/beef/pork soup – some say it should be very full, like the spoon should stand up in the pot. I made this one fairly full and thick because I like it. Now, if you have made a gourmet meat broth just to die for then I would show it off. (I have a recipe for that if you like – killer bullion for borshch.)

I don’t like beets you exclaim – what if I leave them out? Well, I have seen (on line) soup recipes called borshch that don’t use beets. They were under Polish recipes. Search barszcz which also means parsnip in Polish. In Ukraine  beets and cabbage are not optional, potatoes are, or so I have read. The Ukrainian word for beet is pronounced burjak, same in Poland where I have read that beets are optional. Who knows, everybody in Eastern Europe wants to claim it. It probably did originate in Ukraine before the written word.

Good Appetito from Elena Filatova, Kid of Speed, elenafilatova.com, Kiev, Ukraine

About the above mentioned people:

Elena Vladimirovna Filatova, aka Kid of Speed lives in Kyiv, Ukraine, the capitol. Vladimirovna is her patronymic which comes from her father’s name, Vladimir plus ovna which means daughter of. It is called a batkovi (batko means father) and is standard usage in Ukraine and Russia. Russian is a common first language in that part of Ukraine so it is natural that she would write the recipe in Russian. You really should go to elenafilatova.com. If the trip isn’t worth taking I refund your ticket!

Marianna Klochko was born and raised a bit further east in the city of Kharkiv and comes to us through Cornell where she earned her PhD in sociology, using English, her third or fourth language. Russian is also her first language, followed by Ukrainian. She and Elena are about the same age – early thirties. Marianna showed a film clip from Elena’s web site in her Sociology 101 class. That’s how I came to ask Elena for one of her favorite genuine Ukrainian recipes. Various recipes can be found also by a web  search – Russian borshch, Ukrainian borshch, Polish borshch, etc. Search Mariana Klochko as well.

George Kalbouss’ parents managed to leave Russia as soon as they could after the communists took over. He is fluent in the language, literature, history, culture, travel in Russia and cooking borshch. As he said, use what you have! He sometimes even adds some corn. Borshch did start as a poor person’s soup don’t you know. He said in Moscow they will include sliced hot dogs and they give an excellent taste. Search George Kalbouss, PhD, Professor Emeritus, OSU. When he was a young child growing up in New York he met immigrant Countess Aleksandra Lovovna Tolstoy (Aleksandra Tolstaya), the third daughter of Leo Tolstoy. Have you read War and Peace? So have I and now I am only three touches from the author! With my touch to you, you are only four touches removed from Leo Tolstoy himself; from him to his daughter to Dr. Kalbouss to me to you.

More Hints:

By the way, if you want to oven roast fresh beets do so (leave the skins on); then rub the skins off, slice and dice to taste and at the end add to the pot just so, they don’t need any more cooking – just steeping. You can still add some juice from canned beets and then adjust with sugar and vinegar or lemon juice. Or make your own beet broth called kvas which is lightly fermented beet and water mixture using some rye bread which you can start a few weeks ahead….. but I digress with this wonderful National Soup of Ukrainian

Former U.S. Congressman Bob Schaffer (R-Colorado), and 2002 co-chairman of the Ukrainian caucus, comments: "Ukrainian Borshch: Add a teaspoon of liquid smoke (or more depending on taste). In the old country, Ukrainians smoked their meat to preserve it. Smoked meat was typically used in the soup, or used to produce the beef stock. The smokey taste has been lost in most modern recipes due to the advent of easier preservation methods. Once you try this, you'll never make borshch again without using liquid smoke or smoked meat. You'll enjoy borshch just the way your great grandparents did." This is a nice idea, just be very easy when adding at the end – a few drops at a time, measured away from the pot! A little can go a long way.

I read one recipe that clearly states “God forbid grating beets”. The next recipe said to do so, you get the picture. There are as many versions as there are cooks. Elena’s version is extra good and something one can modify – after making it to her recipe one time.

Russians claim they were first with borshch, and that it comes from their word for cow parsnip. Ukrainians claim they are first. According to foodtimeline.com they are probably right.

If I haven’t confused this simple and delicious soup recipe and rich heritage here is one last try. You can find borsht (Yiddish) in the Ashkenazi Jewish cuisine tradition as well.

If you can’t tell, I’m very proud of this one. Thank you Elena Vladimirovna.

David Cottrell, Your Editor