Borscht à la Rushina

I adapted a traditional recipe to whatever I had in my kitchen: beets, red cabbage, green garlic in place of chives, yoghurt instead of sour cream, onions and wasabi paste instead of horseradish for the “to the nose” heat that counteracts the beet’s inherent sweetness. I also made it vegetarian. I loved the results so much that I will stick to it for future versions! After all, borscht is one of those recipes that has as many variations as cooks who make it. So, here is Borscht à la Rushina.  

Ingredients: 
3 tbsp olive oil
3 large onions, finely sliced
4 to 6 young beets (preferably 1.5 inches in diameter), peeled (be careful: they stain!) and cut into sticks
2 tbsp stock powder or cubes of stock
1 red cabbage, shredded
2 to 3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
6 cups water or stock
2 to 3 tbsp cider vinegar (or local malt vinegar)
Salt to taste
FOR GARNISH:
½ cup cream or hung yoghurt (if using yoghurt, do not add vinegar to the soup while cooking)
1 tbsp wasabi powder or paste (or two tbsp French mustard)
2 tbsp green garlic or spring onion
Preparation: 

In a medium bowl, mix the cream/yoghurt with the wasabi or mustard, green garlic or spring onion and season with salt and pepper. Set aside.

Choose young beets – golf ball to snooker ball size – these will be sweet and tender. (Older ones tend to acquire an earthy bitterness.) Most recipes tell you to cook beets whole to avoid staining, so you can preheat your oven to 180ºC, place whole beets in an oven-proof dish, drizzle with olive oil, cover, bake and then cut into sticks or – be like me and brave the staining, peel and cut into sticks or wedges.

Place a deep pan on a low flame. Add olive oil. When hot, pour in olive oil. Add onions and stir-fry until transparent. Add beets and stir well. Add the stock cubes or powder and stir-fry on a low flame until the edges of beets and onions begin to caramelize. Add the cabbage and salt to taste. Cook until cabbage releases juices and then add stock and simmer until all the vegetables are tender. (You can pressure cook for one whistle.) Add vinegar and adjust seasonings.

The borscht and cream can be refrigerated separately overnight. Bring the horseradish cream to room temperature and reheat the borscht before serving.

 

Servings: 
4 to 6

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