Seasonal Pantry: You can’t beat borscht in the winter
For weeks, I have been thinking about borscht, specifically about why I typically do not care for it. A friend suggested we have it for Christmas Eve dinner and I bravely declined, explaining that I honestly just don’t like it, except for my own golden beet borscht, which is not traditional.
I finally realized that so many of the versions I’ve had are too sweet and thus, to my palate, rather cloying. I also find dill overwhelming. As it turns out, I’m not alone in my preference for non-sweet or only mildly-sweet borscht. It’s simple to achieve this: just don’t add the sugar that many traditional recipes call for. A generous dose of fresh garlic and plenty of fresh lemon juice make a delicious counterpoint to the natural sweetness of the vegetables, which falls into the background and lets other flavors take center stage.
If you, too, find dill overwhelming, you can omit it or use fennel fronds, which are milder, instead.
Although borscht is a soup, it is a full meal, not a first course. It will keep for several days, properly refrigerated, and improves in flavor for the first two or three days.
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To make this soup, you may want to start a day before serving it. First, make sure you have good homemade beef stock on hand, as it is the foundation of flavor. You can prep everything the day before if you like.
Many recipes for Ukrainian borscht call for a fair amount of sugar, though there are versions that are more tart than sweet, as this one is. Parsnips, carrots, beets and turnips all have a lot of natural sugar so if you prefer a sweet borscht, try making it without sugar. Taste it before adding the lemon juice and add a bit if you need to punch of the sweetness to suit your preferences.
The addition of beet greens is my own little flourish; I hate to waste them, and I think they work beautifully in this soup.
An Almost Ukrainian Borscht
Makes 8 to 12 servings
5 tablespoons lard or bacon fat, plus more as needed
3 pounds beef short ribs
- Kosher salt
1 rack pork ribs, cut in thirds
2 quarts homemade beef stock
1 whole yellow onion
1 carrot, trimmed
1 celery stalk, with leaves
3 Italian parsley sprigs
6 whole cloves
8 allspice berries
1 teaspoon black peppercorns
4 large beets, greens separated
3 tablespoons butter
2 yellow onions, trimmed and cut into small dice
2 medium parsnips, peeled and cut into ½-inch dice
2 medium carrots, peeled and cut into ½-inch dice
1 small celery root, peeled and cut into ½-inch dice
4 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into ½-inch dice
1 bunch small turnips, quartered
6 cups thinly sliced cabbage
2 tablespoons double-concentrated tomato paste
- Black pepper in a mill
- Juice of 2 lemons
10 garlic cloves, trimmed, peeled, crushed and minced
2 cups whole milk yogurt or cultured sour cream
3 tablespoons chopped fresh dill or fennel fronds
4 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley
- Rye bread or other sturdy hearth bread, hot
Put 3 tablespoons of the lard or bacon fat into a large soup pot set over medium-low heat, add the short ribs, season them with salt and brown all over. Add the pork and brown the fatty side. Add the beef stock and a quart of water, along with the whole onion, carrot, celery, parsley sprigs, cloves and allspice berries. Increase the heat to medium and slowly bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer very gently until the meat is falling off the bone, about 1 ½ to 2 hours.
Meanwhile, put the beets in an oven-proof container, set in a 375 degree oven and cook until tender when pierced with a fork or bamboo skewer; time will vary from 40 to ?60 minutes, depending on the size of the beets. Remove from the oven and let cool until easy to handle. Peel the beets and grate them on the large blade of a box grater. Set aside.
While the beets cook, put the remaining lard or bacon fat into a sauté pan set over medium-low heat. Working quickly, cut the beet greens into ½-inch wide crosswise slices and sauté in the fat until wilted and tender, about 5 minutes. Use tongs to transfer the greens to a plate or bowl and set them aside.
Return the pan to the heat, add the diced onions and sauté gently, adding more fat as needed, until soft and fragrant, about ?12 minutes. Season with salt and set aside.
When the meat is very tender, use tongs to transfer it to a large platter or bowl to cool. Remove any bones that have separated from the meat and discard them, along with the whole onion, carrot, celery and parsley sprigs. Strain the stock into a large container, discard the spices and rinse the pot.
Set the rinsed pot over medium heat, add the butter and when it is melted, add the parsnips, carrots, celery root, potatoes and turnips and sauté, turning frequently, for 5 minutes, until the vegetables begin to take on just a bit of color. Season with salt and add the strained stock. Cook gently, until the vegetables are just tender, about 10 to 12 minutes.
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