Borscht is a popular Ukrainian soup that I grew up eating. It seems that every family has adapted their own favorite recipes of this soup. I have the classic Borscht soup (with meat) recipe posted earlier but this vegetable version is a new recipe I got from my friend Lidiya. This is our new favorite recipe for this soup just because it’s so much lighter tasting with no meat and the veggies are finely chopped not shredded so they provide so much more flavor! I made a pig pot of this soup to last us a few days and it was so delicious and perfect healthy comfort food for this cold weather. Feel free to adapt this recipe to your preferences and add or omit anything you like. I enjoy hearing your feedback and ideas!
Vegetarian Ukrainian Borscht Soup {Yields big pot serves 12-14}:
Ingredients:
- 3-4 Beets
- 4 Potatoes
- 1 Red Bell Pepper
- 2-3 Carrots
- 1 Onion
- 1/2 Head of Cabbage
- 2 Bay Leaves
- 3 Garlic Cloves
- Dill 1/2 bunch
- 1 teaspoon Mrs.Dash Seasoning
- Salt/Pepper to taste
- 2 teaspoons Dry Parsley
- 2 Tablespoons Lemon Juice
- 5 Tablespoons Ketchup
- 2 Tablespoons Oil (For Saute)
- 11 Cups Water
- 6 cups Chicken Broth or Beef Broth (Reduced Sodium) or 2 TBS Better then Bullion paste (Chicken or Beef paste. I use both but preffer Beef paste) with 6 additional Cups water *That’s what I used
- Sour Cream (to top each individual bowl) *Optional but recommended
- Bread, especially Rye bread *Optional but recommended
Directions:
1) Do all the prep work first. Peel and cut the carrots thin. Peel and cut the beets into thin matchstick size. Cut the bell pepper into thin matchstick size. Finely dice the onion. Cut the cabbage into thin strips. Peel and cut the potatoes into cubes. Set all cut veggies aside. I put everything in one plate/container except the potatoes ( I set those aside in a bowl of water until ready to drain and use).
2) Boil the water in a big pot on High heat, and add the bullion paste (or broth). Then add the diced potatoes, turn heat down to Medium (5) and cook 15 to 20 minutes until potatoes are tender. *Meanwhile start step 3.
3) In a large frying pan, heat 2 TBS oil. Add all the cut veggies except the cabbage. The carrots, onion, beets, red bell pepper. Mix and cook on Med-High heat (8) mixing, until veggies are cooked through and soft. Then add 5 TBS of ketchup. Mix and let it simmer for a few minutes.
4) Add the cooked veggies to the pot of soup. Mix well. Add the cut cabbage. Add 2 bay leaves, lemon juice, dry parsley, Mrs.Dash Spice, 1 teaspoon salt, sprinkle pepper. In 5 minutes add the finely chopped dill and garlic through garlic press. Turn heat off and cover the soup, for about 10 minutes and let the flavors blend. Enjoy!
Borscht is great with a dollop of sour cream and that’s how most Ukrainians eat it… Oh and a side of Rye bread! Another interesting thing about Borscht is it tastes better on the 2nd or even 3rd day because all the flavors blend together well! For leftover Borscht, I just heat up as much as needed in a small pot on medium heat.
