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Prep time
45 minutes
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Cook time
45 minutes
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Serves
8 to 10
Author Notes
I spent a few privileged summers at my grandparents’ grand and beautiful house in Deal, New Jersey before I was old enough to go away to sleepover camp. The mornings were busy with tennis lessons and backboard practice, the afternoons filled with swim lessons in a saltwater pool and jumping waves in the ocean. We oiled our bodies with “suntan lotion,” not sunscreen, and I invariably spent evenings nursing impressive sunburns. The house wasn’t air conditioned—no one’s house was—so, while we kids refreshed ourselves with popsicles and lemonade, the adults often enjoyed tall glasses of ice-cold borscht into which they stirred dollops of sour cream.
I had developed a rather sophisticated palate for my age (think eight or nine years old), so I was smitten with borscht from the start, not just because of its taste, but because of its gorgeous ruby color that turned magenta with the addition of sour cream. My grandmother didn’t make that borscht from scratch; it came straight out of a bottle, either Gold’s or Manischewitz. Here’s my recipe for a humble but fabulous soup that can be enjoyed hot in winter or cold in summer. —Margot Mustich
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Ingredients
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3 tablespoons
olive oil
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2
large onions
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2
medium Yukon Gold potatoes
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3
medium red beets
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2
large carrots
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2
ribs celery
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½
medium head of green cabbage
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1 tablespoon
tomato paste
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2 ½ quarts
beef broth
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1
handful of fresh dill
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3
cloves garlic, peeled and minced
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2 tablespoons
distilled white vinegar
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salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
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sour cream for garnish
Directions
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Prep all the vegetables before beginning to cook. Start by peeling and coarsely chopping the onions. Set aside. Peel the potatoes, cut them into slices about ⅛-inch thick, and then cut those slices into bite-size pieces. Drop the cut potatoes into a bowl of cold water and reserve. Peel the beets and either grate them coarsely in a food processor or cut them into thin strips (julienne). Wash the carrots well, then cut them into slices the same thickness as the potatoes. Finely dice the celery. Remove the core from the cabbage and cut into ¼-inch wide strips.
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Heat a large soup pot over medium heat. Add the olive oil. When the oil is hot, but not smoking, add the onions and sauté until they become translucent. Add the carrots and celery and sauté until they have lost their crunch, 5 to 10 minutes.
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Turn up the heat to medium-high. Add the tomato paste. Stir continuously until the vegetables are evenly coated with the tomato paste and the paste is no longer raw.
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Add the beef broth. Bring the soup to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for about 10 minutes, skimming off any scum that collects on the surface as it simmers. Add the potatoes, beets, and cabbage. Bring the pot to the boil once more. Reduce the heat and simmer until the potatoes and cabbage are soft, 20 to 25 minutes more.
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Separate the delicate dill fronds from the tough stems, and discard the stems. Wash the dill in several rinses of cold water. Pat dry with a paper towel. Set aside a few sprigs for garnish. Chop the rest of the dill roughly.
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Stir the chopped dill and garlic into the soup. Add one tablespoon of the vinegar and salt and pepper to taste. If you like, add another tablespoon of vinegar. Add more salt and pepper to taste.
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To serve hot, ladle into heated soup bowls and garnish with sour cream and sprigs of dill.
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To enjoy cold, allow the soup to cool down completely. Then transfer to an airtight container and chill in the refrigerator overnight. Taste the cold soup and adjust the seasoning if necessary. Ladle into chilled bowls and garnish with sour cream and dill.
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