Borsch is classic Ukranian soup which my family enjoys. It is perfect for a cold weather day, especially great for surviving this year’s deadly polar vortex in the U.S. It uses a lot of vegetables and it’s wonderfully satisfying. Every time I make Borsch I think of my father who used to take the family to Troika, a Russian restaurant in Singapore, when I was a child. In Hong Kong, it is a staple winter soup and it is called 羅宋湯 (“lor sung tong”) in Cantonese. In the Chinese version, there are no beets and sour cream is omitted. For a vegatarian option, this soup can be made without any meat. This is a really easy recipe – no skills required!
1/2 can sliced beets
2 carrots
1 onion
1 potato
1/2 head of cabbage
3 Tbsp tomato paste
2 tomatoes
180 g beef stew meat or oxtail
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt
pepper
chopped dill
sour cream
Method:
- Peel carrots and potato. wash then cut into chunks.
- Wash the cabbage, tomatoes and onion, then cut into chunks.
- Cut the beef stew meat into bite-sized pieces.
- Put all the ingredients into a huge soup pot. Add 10-12 cups of water and boil on high for 20 mins, then simmer for another 40 mins.
- Add sugar (if it’s too sour), salt and pepper to taste.
- Serve hot with dill and a dollop of sour cream
