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?
I made this recipe and it was okay…. Seems like something is missing, and I think it also has a bit toooo much dill… I will serve this with sour cream and top it off with grated cukes… Interesting that you put beans in this soup… Like my borscht cold, but this is good too. Think it needs one more beet… Thanks for the recipe, I will make it again…
Joyce, sometimes it makes a difference if you are using fresh beets vs older beets. I noticed that newer beets taste much sweeter. Did you use fresh beets or canned? Sour cream topping definitely enhances the flavor of the soup. I love your idea of adding grated cucumbers, thanks for sharing :).
Delicious!! I had never made Borscht before. I omitted the beans and added a little apple cider vinegar and sugar . Everyone loved it!
Thank you for a great review Megan, I’m glad everyone loved it :).
Love this soup! Made it several times already!
Thanks for a great recipe!
You’re so welcome 🙂 I’m just happy you are enjoying it!
Wowza! Just wanted to thank you for the Recipe! What extreme luck that I stumbled across this site. We cooked this tonight and stared at each other across the table in astonishment at how delicious it was. (Cooked with fresh beets from our garden of course!) We didn’t think of it, but next time we may try adding a few beet greens to the soup!
This is the first borscht recipe I have tried but it totally blows all the restaurant borscht I have had out of the water.
Thank you again!
That’s fantastic!!! Thank you so much for such a great review 🙂
Would you serve this recipe cold? I know borscht can be a cold soup, but wasn’t sure if you used a different recipe for the chilled version.
You could, but this version is intended to be served warm. This holodnik is intended to be eaten cold, but it’s not really a borscht
It’s not Russian. It’s Ukrainian!!!
I think we cleared that up a few comments up 😉
Thanks for this recipe. We get a farm box every few weeks and have not always known what to do with the beets. This was a great way to serve them. We added beef stew meat, dredging it in flour, salt and pepper and braising it with the onions until tender while the beets boiled, then combining everything. We tried another technique, roasting the beets in the oven for about an hour. Roasting the beets made them sweeter, but using the beet juice from the boiling water gave us a little more beet flavor. However, this is really a wonderful, hearty soup. With the addition of the meat, it is a substantial and delicious meal all by itself.
I agree. It is very satisfying; especially with a thick slice (or two!) of crusty bread. 🙂 Mmmm you’re making me hungry! I agree roasting beets does enhance their sweetness. Now I’ll be thinking about beets all day 😉
Hey there!! Great, great!!!
I added honey at the end. Two tbsp!
But here is the result
I’ve never made borscht, but have always wanted to try it. Borscht seems to be one of the healthiest (and prettiest!) soups out there. I made the above recipe, with a few modifications (chopped veggies as opposed to shredding; much less liquid, for a chunkier, more veggie-packed soup; half onion, half leek; added 1 tablespoon MSG-free Vegeta seasoning). The result was delicious. And the dollop of sour cream is a must! Thanks for a great recipe of a classic dish.
Thank you so much for sharing your modifications! I’m always so curious to know how other folks make their borscht. It’s one of my all-time favorite soups since childhood 😉
This was so delicious!!! I used plain Greek yogurt instead of sour cream. My family loved it even my kids aged 7 and 4. Thanks for sharing!
That is just the best feeling when your kids approve! Thanks so much for sharing your experience! 🙂
Wow, beautiful pictures! I love the beauty of borscht. I just posted a recipe for borscht on my website and it’s amazing how different the prep can be. I think everybody’s borcht recipe is different. In fact, my borscht from week to week might even taste different! Borscht just has that reputation. Cheers from a fellow Russian.
I should say, fellow Immigrant, not fellow Russian. 😉
🙂
Hi Irina! I’ll have to check out your recipe. I spent some time surfing your blog and I love it. I love the concept of reviving traditions! Awesome work you’re doing! Thank you for your sweet compliments. It sure is hard to photograph borscht 🙂
Thanks, Natasha! I’m excited to try more of your recipes. Maybe I’ll trick my husband into liking beets with your Russian Vinaigrette recipe. My absolute favorite Russian salad.
That is a really good salad 🙂
I made this today! Unbelievably delicious!
Yes!! Thanks for the awesome review 🙂
Ohh, I want to try this. I’ve been craving Babushka’s Borsch for almost a yr now. She served it warm in winter, and cold with sour cream in the summer. I’m also anemic and heard that beets are full of iron.
Miss her cooking, but DO NOT miss the spoonfuls of cod liver oil she forced on me. LOL
Beets are a great source of iron. I hope you love it and I hope it reminds you of your Babushka’s version 🙂 Ewe cod liver oil? :-/
Hi Natasha,
I am just making your Borscht as I type this 😉 I live in northern Ontario, Canada, and this looks like a fabulous meal for a cold, snowy day. I wondered what size tin of kidney beans you typically use? I tried to tell from looking at your photos, but could quite make it out. Is it a 14 ounce tin, or larger? Thanks for sharing all of your great recipes! You have a beautiful website.
It’s the 14 oz can 🙂 Thanks so much Cathy! I’m so glad you like the site 🙂
I had Beets already cooked and the rest of the ingredients it is quite good I kept hearing people talking about Borsch, it is good but have not tried it befor
Thank you for the recipe . about a 4 star.
Thanks Patricia! Did you use canned beets or pre-cooked ones? Were they boiled? If boiling the beets, it’s nice to use the water that you boiled the beets in to get more flavor and color into the soup.
I’ve only ever had borsch once and it just looked like a bowl of blood with nothing in it, like it had been super blended. Is that another way of doing it. Yours looks much more appetising, so I will have to have a go at it. Thanks
That definitely isn’t the look we are going for. lol. A hearty borsch is a wonderful treat. I hope you love it!
I bought a lot of beets super cheap (2lbs for 50c) at Presidente supermarket in Miami and decided to try to make Borscht. Was in a tearing hurry, so I just chopped beets (without peeling them), garlic and onions in a blender with water and threw in celery I had around, plus one hot pepper as well, and put them on to boil. Then sauteed the onions and carrots, ketchup etc quickly and threw them in the pot with the bay leaves, salt and pepper, plus some vinegar, and sauteed for an hour. No stock added. I didn’t expect too much but this came out fresh and rich with the traditional borscht flavor overlaid with a slight peppery zing. My guests raved and I was pretty pleased with it. Sour cream worked great with it, even with the little habanero pepper kick in the background.
Looks like I’ll have to try your quicker method! I bet it was delicious with a little kick to it.
when I asked to day what sounded good for dinner, on of my Russian sons Sasha said “Borsch, its cold today”! yep record lows for San Antonio TX. So can’t wait to see how your version is – I can already see I like the way you prep the veggies and the dark beans are a great addition and Dill. I will still ad meat – 3 teen boys – LOL YUM!
3 teen boys huh? You’ll need to make 1/3 of the pot meat. lol. I am overdue for a beef borscht recipe and we have plans to make it soon 🙂
NO MEAT ? TRY IT WITH THE MEAT THAT HAS THE BONE ON IT.
i AM RUSSIAN SO I KNOW WHAT I AM TALKING ABOUT
I have a beef borscht on my to-do list 🙂 I’ve had several requests for it and it’s coming, eventually 😉
My Mum akes this soup and indeed it is very good. Spasiba.
You are welcome :), reading your comment just made me crave for some.
I made this last week and it was so yummy! My husband said it tasted better than my mom’s borscht. Thanks for this wonderful recipe 🙂
Nice! lol. I’m so glad you both liked the recipe. 🙂
Hello! As I am not in North America and I’m not sure whether the cans of beans here are the same size as yours, are you able to tell me how large are the cans you use? I remember from Canada the cans being a bit larger than the ones here in New Zealand… I think. Thanks very much!
12-14 oz would work 🙂