White Borscht with potatoes – the perfect comfort food
White Borscht is a traditional Eastern Europe soup. It is quick, inexpensive and comforting. I have been making it on regular basis for years and never thought it was “catchy” enough to put it onto a cooking blog. However, after reading this amazing article on The New York Times Magazine I got inspired to share with you how to cook the quickest White Borscht.
The sour base for White Borscht
In the New York Times article the author suggests using a piece of stale sourdough bread to make the sour base. I suppose it would probably work but to be honest I have never tried it myself. Instead I use a ready bottled white borscht (or żurek) which you can get in any Eastern Europe shop or large supermarkets. An average bottle will make two rounds of 4 servings. Also, you can keep it open for at least a week before using up.
The procedure
In a large cooking pan add the following ingredients:
- Sweet – 2 tablespoons of oil, 1 large onion chopped, fry until translucent; 3-4 large potatoes peeled and cubed, stir the ingredients,
- Pungent – 1 bay leaf, a large pinch of black pepper, a few allspice corns (optional),
- Salty – 1 flat tablespoon of sea salt, cold water to go about 1 centimetre above the vegetables.
Bring the pan to the boil and simmer for about 10-15 minutes until potatoes are soft and good to eat.
A tip
Do not add the sour base before potatoes are cooked. Otherwise, the acid will make it much longer for them to cook.
When the potatoes are soft continue:
- Sour – 1/2 bottle of the sour base (żurek), a pinch of fresh or dried dill,
- Bitter – a pinch of fresh or dried marjoram, a pinch of turmeric,
- Sweet – a splash of olive oil.
Again, bring the soup to the boil and simmer for 2-3 minutes until it thickens.
Serve with a hard-boiled egg and a slice of bread of your choice. The flavour should be distinctively sour from the soup base but also sweet from the vegetables.
Cook the quickest White Borscht with sausage, if you wish
For the non-vegetarian option feel free to add a few slices of smoked sausage. Add it together with the Bitter flavour, along with marjoram and turmeric. It will add more vibrance and smoky aroma.
To try other quick 5-element comfort foods go to Ratatuille – French Vegetable Goulash.
