After several requests for my borscht recipe, here it is. Ukrainian Borscht… everyone knows what it is and many people around the world have fallen in love with this iconic beet soup.
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I love the deep ruby color of this borsch! It’s so healthy and nutritious; packed with beans (protein), beets (iron), carrots (carotene), potatoes (vit C, potassium, Vit B6), oftentimes cabbage is added (vit K, vit C, fiber, etc…). It feels so good serving this to my family.
Our Family’s Borscht Recipe (Beet Soup)
This is our family’s version of classic borsch and it’s one of the two soups my children absolutely love (Mom’s Meatball Soup being the second). Borscht is definitely on the regular rotation at our house!
This version keeps better because it is a meatless version but doesn’t lack in flavor because it uses good quality chicken broth.
Ingredients for Classic Ukrainian Borsch:
It’s best to have all of the ingredients prepped and ready to go which makes this soup super easy and care free. Start by peeling, grating, chopping, slicing and dicing all of the vegetables for borscht.
Once your potatoes are peeled and sliced, transfer them to a bowl of cold water to keep them from discoloring until ready for use.
Note on Using Cabbage:
We used to add cabbage but our children prefer it without so for years now we’ve been making it just like this without cabbage. If you prefer cabbage, add 1/4 to 1/2 small head of cabbage, thinly shredded, adding it when the potatoes are halfway cooked.
How to Peel and Cut Beets:
- Use gloves when handling beets or your fingertips will stain red for a couple of days.
- To peel beets, use a simple potato peeler like this one.
- You can slice the beets into matchsticks but it is way way easier to grate and children don’t mind the texture of grated beets. We love our food processor for this task as it grates more coarsely than on a hand grater so the beets still have some texture. It also keeps the counter and your hands clean (beat juice can be a pain to get out of clothing and porous surfaces).
How to Remove Beet Stains:
When you eat borscht often, you learn quickly to pace a napkin in your lap and bibs on children. If you do get beet juice on your clothes, address the stain right away.
- Use a paper-towel to blot off any excess juice.
- Run cold water over the opposite/under side of the fabric to push the stain out.
- If the stain persists, apply a stain removing agent (I have found that dish soap works well in a pinch) and launder clothing as usual.
Watch Natasha Make Classic Borscht:
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Classic Borscht Recipe (Beet Soup)
Ingredients
For Borscht:
- 3 medium beets, peeled and grated
- 4 Tbsp olive oil, divided
- 8 cups chicken broth , + 2 cups water
- 3 medium yukon potatoes, peeled and sliced into bite-sized pieces
- 2 carrots, peeled and thinly sliced
For Zazharka (Mirepoix):
- 2 celery ribs, trimmed and finely chopped
- 1 small red bell pepper, finely chopped, optional
- 1 medium onion, finely chopped
- 4 Tbsp ketchup or 3 Tbsp tomato sauce
Additional Flavorings:
- 1 can white cannelini beans with their juice
- 2 bay leaves
- 2-3 Tbsp white vinegar, or to taste
- 1 tsp sea salt, or to taste
- 1/4 tsp black pepper, freshly ground
- 1 large garlic clove, pressed
- 3 Tbsp chopped dill
Instructions
- Peel, grate and/or slice all vegetables (keeping sliced potatoes in cold water to prevent browning until ready to use then drain).
- Heat a large soup pot (5 1/2 Qt or larger) over medium/high heat and add 2 Tbsp olive oil. Add grated beets and sauté 10 minutes, stirring occasionally until beets are softened.
- Add 8 cups broth and 2 cups water. Add sliced potatoes and sliced carrots then cook for 10-15 minutes or until easily pierced with a fork.
- While potatoes are cooking, place a large skillet over medium/high heat and add 2 Tbsp oil. Add chopped onion, celery and bell pepper. Saute stirring occasionally until softened and lightly golden (7-8 minutes). Add 4 Tbsp Ketchup and stir fry 30 seconds then transfer to the soup pot to continue cooking with the potatoes.
- When potatoes and carrots reach desired softness, add 1 can of beans with their juice, 2 bay leaves, 2-3 Tbsp white vinegar, 1 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp black pepper, 1 pressed garlic clove, and 3 Tbsp chopped dill. Simmer for an additional 2-3 minutes and add more salt and vinegar to taste.
Nutrition Per Serving
Filed Under
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So, which camp are you in? Do you love that dollop of sour cream at the end or the flavor that real mayo adds to borscht?
Natasha do you have a recommended time to pressure can this recipe?
Hi Carmen! I’m sorry, I have not tried that to be able to provide those instructions.
Hello! This recipe looks delicious. How many cups is one serving size?
Hi! Servings: 10 for this recipe.
My Ukrainian father made Wonderful Borscht, and it was all creamy – I don’t see any borscht recipes like this. any suggestions, besides adding sour cream at the end.
Hi there! You can try and stir in cream (heavy or light), or milk, toward the end of cooking to soften flavor, add richness.
Can you freeze this soup? I’m hoping to meal prep but I wanted to make sure first.
Hi Natalie, Yes, you can freeze it, just make sure to cool it completely before freezing and you may use an airtight containers or freezer bags.
If you want to freeze soup, leave out the potatoes. They become grainy mush.
I put my soup in jars,even pickle jars, when hot. Turn lids on tight, cool & refrigerator. I have had soup keep for months this way & no need to thaw first. Open the jar, bring to almost boiling point & enjoy.
This is my go to borscht recipe. Only thing I do different is roast the beets first.
The flavor was great but we made it with half the liquid and no beans we use an immersion blender to smooth it to make a creamier version awesome with the sour cream
Love this recipe,only make 1 small change!!I have a Ukranian friend who I give about 1/2 the soup to,he likes some chunks of beets in it.I put the unpeeled beets in the microwave for about 10 minutes,let them cool and the outsides are soft and easy to peel,then i shred the soft part and cube the hard interior part and add them to the soup with the potatoes etc.The shredded portion i add to the soup afew minutes before the mirepoix because it is partly cooked aready.Turns out great!!!
The taste is bringing back so many good memories from Ukraine. I use beets and ingredients grown locally in the harsh but fertile farmlands during midninght sun summers of Northern Norway. Adds the full taste of well farmed veggies. And there is some wariations too with how I make it, but I love this recipe as a gruond recipe. Always coming back to this recipe and then the art shapes it self from there. Oh, and one more thing. Made with the secret ingretient reciding within the heart of the cook the result never ever never fails. Wonderful! Thanks!
soup has no beet taste and watery. Dill ruins the taste
Hi Daniel, it was probably the beets used – I like to slice off a piece of the raw beet and taste it – if its bland, it will make the borscht more bland also so you’ll need to doctor it more with seasonings.
I have been wanting to make borscht and was happy to find this! I got the ratio of liquid too much, trying to cut the recipe in half. But it is delicious!
You changed the way you make this recipe!!! 🙁 I had to go off memory from 2 years ago hahaha
Agreed! She had 2 different recipes….. do you still have the other one?!
Next time I will add the bay leaves with the potatoes. Love it without the sour cream. Thank you!!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Nice healthy recipe. I added cabbage. I will definitely make again. Thanks for sharing Natasha.
Delicious! The nutrition label does not appear anymore though, the link doesn’t work. Can it be re-uploaded please? Thank you!
Hi Laurie, my apologies, this one did not have a nutrition label but I added one for you. If you click on it, it will work now. I hope you love the borscht!
Can’t wait to try this recipe. Every recipe of yours I’ve tried is ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️⭐️. We planted way too many beets this year
Thank you, Steph! I hope you love it.
Good recipe but why is does the URL say “Russian Borsch”?!
Also, why add bean juices?
Hi Aly, It was made a very long time ago. I’ve changed the title but the URL change has other implications.
I love this soup, I used make it for the Dr I worked for when I was younger, she came from Russia and missed it. Was after the War 💕🇦🇺
Hi.This is the first video I’ve watched of you. I’ve been wanting to try something new and different. This seems to fit the bill nicely! Question: Will the flavor be altered if I mince the garlic rather than using a press?
Hi Terri! That would be fine too. Pressing the garlic releases more flavor and it just melts into the soup. I hope you love the recipe.
Great and easy!
Yum, just what I needed to help me through this tonsillitis. Was a bit unsure about putting mayo on soup but it was delicious! I’ve made this recipe with fresh beets and canned beets, fresh beets are much tastier but the canned beets work in a pinch. Added quartered radishes from the garden too, delicious!