Polish Beet Soup Recipes

BOTWINKA (POLISH VEGETABLE SOUP WITH BEET GREENS)

Steps:

• Combine carrot, parsley root, celeriac, and leek in a large pot. Cover with water and bring to a boil. Add potatoes and stock cube. Add beet and beet leaves and cook until beet and beet greens are tender, about 25 minutes. Season with sugar, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Simmer until flavors are well combined, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat.
• Combine cream, flour, and 3 tablespoons of soup and mix until smooth. Add to pot and stir in well. Place pot back on stove and bring to a boil. Add dill and remove from heat.
• Divide hardboiled eggs among 3 bowls. Ladle soup on top of eggs and garnish with dill.

MY POLISH FAMILY'S RED BEET SOUP

Steps:

• Place beef short ribs, salt and pepper in a stock pot.
• Cover with water (at least 3 quarts) and bring to a boil.
• Let simmer until the meat falls off the bone.
• Skim off any "scum" and visible fat.
• Add cubed red beets, ensuring that there is enough liquid to cover them.
• Bring back to the boil.
• Simmer until red beets are tender.
• Take out about 3 cups of the soup mixture including red beets but excluding meat, and place in blender. Blend until mostly smooth.
• Add the blended mixture back to the pot.
• Add cubed potatoes and simmer until tender.
• Add half and half, and sour cream.
• Mix well.
• Be certain to not let the soup come to a boil once the dairy products have been added.
• Check for seasoning. Adjust with salt and pepper as necessary.
• Serve and enjoy.

BOBCHA'S POLISH BORSCHT

Steps:

• In a large pot combine the spare ribs, onion, bay leaf and peppercorns, vinegar and cover with water. Bring to a simmer and cook until the meat is tender, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours. In another pot, cover the scrubbed beets with water and bring to a boil. Simmer the beets for 45 To 1 hour or until the beets are tender. Drain and rinse the beets under cold water until they are cool. Peel and grate the beets.
• When the meat is tender, Remove the bones and strip off the meat in bite size pieces. Return the meat to the broth and stir in the grated beets. Season the soup with salt and pepper. In a large bowl stir together the sour cream, milk and flour. Add two cups of the hot stock to the sour cream mixture and stir to combine. Pour this mixture through a strainer into the soup. Heat the soup over medium heat at a gentle simmer, but do not allow it to boil. Boiling will cause the sour cream to curdle. Serve immediately with boiled potatoes and pumpernickel or rye bread

BARSZCZ (POLISH BEETROOT SOUP)

Steps:

• Heat stock in a large pan. Add the onion, bouquet garni, mushrooms and beetroot. Boil for an hour
• Strain the soup and stir the kwas into the clear soup. Add sugar to taste and reheat if necessary without boiling. Serve and enjoy.
• You can add vegetables to the soup which is normally served during the Christmas Eve meatless dinner. Vegetables used are celery, carrot and parsnip, which are roughly chopped.

BARSZCZ (CLASSIC POLISH BORSCHT)

Steps:

• In a large pot, combine the beets, bones, carrots, parsnip, onion, leek, celery, garlic and bay leaves, plus the mushrooms, peppercorns and marjoram, if using. Top with 14 cups water. (There should be enough water to cover all the ingredients.) Bring to a boil over high.
• Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until the vegetables are very tender, 2 to 2 1/2 hours. As it cooks, use a small ladle to periodically skim off and discard any foam, impurities and fat that have risen to the top of the pot.
• Transfer the 3 whole beets to a cutting board to cool. Strain the soup through a colander set over a large bowl. Remove the bones and press the solids to extract all the liquids, then strain the liquid through a fine-mesh sieve into a clean medium saucepan.
• Once they're cool enough to handle, chop the reserved whole beets into small 1/2-inch cubes. Stir the diced beets into the soup and season with salt and pepper.
• Heat soup over medium until warmed, then stir in lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste. Serve very hot in small bowls or even large teacups, which you can pick up and drink. If desired, serve with a spoonful of sour cream. Keep refrigerated for up to 5 days.