Borscht

This is the borscht I brought to the Gastronati's Former USSR dinner. The recipe is courtesy of my Russian friend from French class. It turned out chunky and wonderful and people loved it - thanks Vlada!

I have heard of blended versions, but I chopped my ingredients into relatively large pieces, which gave the soup a great texture.

Borscht
serves six

1 lb beef (I used stewing beef cubes)
about 10 cups water
2 carrots, chopped into a large dice
1 large onion, quartered
1 small onion, chopped
10 small beets (or four large)
1 potato, chopped in large cubes
1 small green cabbage head, thinly sliced
1 Tbsp red wine vinegar
fresh dillweed
sour cream

In a large stock pot, cook the meat and onion quarters for 2 hours in about six cups of water until very tender. I started with six cups of water, but added about four more during the course of the recipe.

Take the meat out and set aside. It will be very tender. Shred the cubes a bit with your fingers when cooler. Discard the onion quarters, but reserve the cooking liquid.

Sauté the chopped onion and carrots in a skillet. Set them aside with the meat.

Add the beets to the reserved cooking liquid and simmer until soft, about 15 to 20 minutes for small beets. Take them out and quarter when cooled off. If your beets are small, leave the skin on. If they are large, remove the skin before chopping them.

Cut up the raw potatoes and raw cabbage. Put all the ingredients - the sautéed mixture, meat, beets and raw ingredients - back into the pot with the broth. Boil until the potatoes are done, about 30 minutes. Add the red wine vinegar.

Serve with a dollop of sour cream and a sprinkling of fresh dill!