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March 29, 2016

Beef Soup (Kharcho) Recipe

Name: Beef Soup (Kharcho)
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 150 min
Total time: 165 min
Ingredients: 3 lb beef stew meat; 3 tsp salt; 4 Tbsp light olive oil (or any cooking oil, divided); 1 medium onion (chopped); 2 celery ribs (finely chopped); 4 cups beef broth + 4 cup filtered water; 28 oz can diced tomatoes; 2 dry bay leaves; 1 tsp ground coriander seeds; 1 tsp smoked paprika; 2 garlic cloves (pressed); 1/2 cup uncooked white rice (I used Jasmine); 2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice (from 1 medium lemon); 1/4 cup fresh parsley (chopped, plus more to serve); 1/4 cup fresh dill (chopped, plus more to serve)

5 from 54 votes
212 comments

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Beef Soup Kharcho (pronounced harcho), is a hearty beef soup in tomato broth with a wonderful blend of spices and plenty of fresh herbs. The beef is fall-apart tender and just melts in your mouth – delicious! All it needs is a thick slice of fresh crusty bread.

This beef stew also reheats really well and I was pleasantly surprised that my 1-year old loved it! This recipe also made a soup Kharcho lover out of my husband.

Kharcho is Georgian in origin but has been adopted and well loved by Ukrainians for many years. This recipe was loosely adapted from The New Ukrainian Cookbook.

Ingredients for Beef and Tomato Soup (Kharcho):

3 lb beef stew meat
3 tsp salt (I used fine sea salt)
4 Tbsp light olive oil (or any cooking oil), divided
1 medium onion, chopped
2 celery ribs, finely chopped
4 cups beef broth + 4 cup filtered water
28 oz can diced tomatoes
2 dry bay leaves

1 tsp ground coriander seeds
1 tsp smoked paprika
2 garlic cloves, pressed
1/2 cup uncooked white rice (I used Jasmine)
2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice (from 1 medium lemon)
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped, plus more to serve
1/4 cup fresh dill, chopped, plus more to serve

How to Make Beef Soup (Kharcho):

1. Sprinkle meat with 3 tsp salt and stir. Heat a dutch oven or soup pot over medium/high heat and add 2 Tbsp oil. Once oil is hot, add beef in 2 batches, sautéing until browned on all sides (don’t worry about cooking it through). Remove from pot and set aside.

2. Add chopped onion and celery with more oil as needed. Saute 5 minutes until softened.

3. Add canned tomatoes with their juice, 4 cups broth, 4 cups water, 2 bay leaves and browned beef. Bring to a boil then reduce heat, cover and simmer 1 1/2 to 2 hours or until beef is tender.

4. Add 1/2 cup white rice, 2 Tbsp lemon juice, 2 pressed garlic cloves, 1 tsp coriander, 1 tsp paprika. Cover and simmer 20 minutes or until rice is tender.

5. Remove from heat and add 1/4 cup parsley and 1/4 cup dill then cover and let sit off heat another 10 minutes before serving. Season to taste with salt and pepper if needed and serve with more fresh herbs as desired.