Beef borscht, Russian home style

Equipment

• 5 L / 5 qt pot
• skillet
• grater and ladle.

Before you begin

US cup = 240 ml; tablespoon = 15 ml; teaspoon = 5 ml. Use listed gram weights for consistency; weights are raw or dry unless described as cooked or drained.

• Use beef shin instead of chuck in the same boneless weight; simmer until fork-tender.

Make it work

• Acid is added to the beet pan, while potatoes soften first in the main pot.

Ingredients

• 600 g / 21.2 oz Boneless beef chuck, cut into 3 cm / 1 inch cubes
• 2200 ml / 74.4 US fl oz Water
• 350 g / 12.3 oz Beets, peeled and coarsely grated
• 250 g / 8.8 oz White cabbage, shredded
• 300 g / 10.6 oz Potatoes, peeled and diced
• 120 g / 4.2 oz Onion, finely diced
• 120 g / 4.2 oz Carrot, grated
• 30 ml / 1.0 US fl oz Sunflower oil
• 30 g / 1.1 oz Tomato paste
• 15 ml / 0.5 US fl oz Apple cider vinegar, 5% acidity
• 1 tsp / about 4.0 g Sugar
• 2 cloves (about 6 g / 0.2 oz) Garlic, minced
• 1 (about 0.2 g) Bay leaf
• 1 1/2 tsp, then to taste / about 9.0 g Fine salt
• 1/4 tsp / about 0.5 g Black pepper
• 10 g / 0.3 oz Fresh dill, chopped
• 90 g / 3.2 oz Sour cream, 20% fat, to serve

Step-by-step method

1. Start a gentle broth
   Put beef and water in a 5 L / 5 qt pot. Bring slowly to a simmer, skim foam, then add bay leaf and half the salt. Partly cover and cook 75-100 minutes until beef is nearly tender. Avoid a rolling boil.
2. Soften onion and carrot
   While beef cooks, heat half the oil in a skillet. Cook onion and carrot over medium heat 7-9 minutes. Transfer to a bowl. Prepare potatoes and cabbage, keeping potatoes in cold water until needed, then drain.
3. Cook the beets separately
   Heat remaining oil in the skillet. Add beet, tomato paste, vinegar, sugar and 120 ml / 4 US fl oz broth drawn from the soup. Cover and cook gently 15-20 minutes, stirring, until beet strands are nearly tender.
4. Add potatoes and cabbage
   When beef is nearly tender, add drained potatoes and simmer 10 minutes. Add cabbage and cooked onion-carrot mixture and cook 10-15 minutes more until potatoes and cabbage are tender. Top up only if excessively concentrated.
5. Finish without hard boiling
   Add cooked beet mixture and simmer gently 5 minutes. Stir in garlic, pepper, dill and remaining salt as needed. Taste for sweet-sour balance. The beef should separate easily under a fork; cook longer before this stage if still tough.
6. Rest and serve
   Remove bay leaf, cover and rest off the heat for 15 minutes. Ladle vegetables, broth and beef into bowls and add sour cream individually. To save leftovers, divide promptly into shallow containers rather than leaving the full pot to cool overnight.

Cook’s notes

Acid is added to the beet pan, while potatoes soften first in the main pot.

Storage & reheating

• Refrigerate within 2 hours (1 hour above 32 C / 90 F) in a shallow covered container at 4 C / 40 F or colder. Use within 3 days.

Allergens

milk. Check labels on packaged ingredients and any substitutes.

Approximate nutrition

Per serving: 350 kcal · Protein 23 g · Carbohydrates 23 g · Fat 19 g.

Approximate per serving of the complete recipe. Brands, substitutions, cooking losses and portion sizes affect the figures.