It is widely believed that the Old Slavonic word barsch means beets . From the Ukrainian language the word buryak is translated in the same way. That is, beets in Old Slavonic are borsch. The etymological dictionaries of the Slavic languages explain the origin of the word borshch from the name of the plant hogweed (in soups it used young greens along with other vegetables, later this plant was no longer eaten), which had no relation to beets, later (from the 18th century) the Slavs became borsch call beetroot soups.
It is known that until the mid-19th century in Russia the term “Old Slavonic language” was referred to as the Old Church Slavonic language, that is, it was identified with the word Church Slavonic, which, in fact, is a form of the Old Slavic language and was used by the Orthodox Church (both Russian and Old Believers). Therefore, it is right to designate the term Old-Slavic beetroot soup prepared according to the recipe of Russian Orthodox cuisine.
Borsch is common among the peoples of central and eastern Europe and is a traditional dish in the cuisines of many countries. It is considered a national dish among Russians, Poles, Lithuanians, Ukrainians, Romanians, Belarusians. Each nation’s kitchen has its own characteristics and subtleties of its preparation. There are no standard canons, the richer and more varied are the taste qualities of dishes united by a common term - Old Slavic beets, which should be understood as traditional cold or hot soup with beets of any Slavic cuisine.
Recipe 1
Borsch - a multi-component dressing soup or beet in the Old Slavonic style - is distinguished by a complex cooking technology. According to the Lithuanian recipe Saltibarsciai, you can cook cold beet soup. Ingredients:
- ¼ cup distilled white vinegar;
- ¼ cup of fresh dill, finely chopped;
- 1 ½ liter of water;
- 1/8 tablespoon (teaspoon) of black pepper;
- ½ tablespoon (teaspoon) or to taste of salt;
- 2 cups sour cream;
- 1 ½ kg of beets;
- 2 cups peeled and thinly sliced fresh cucumbers.
Beets are peeled and boiled in water. Turn off the fire and take out the root crops. A portion is cut into strips, and a small amount is coarsely rubbed. In the cooled beetroot broth spread both grated and chopped root crops, cucumbers and dill. Add vinegar, salt, pepper and bring to a boil. Boil with low heat for another 15 minutes, remove from heat. A glass of warm liquid is mixed in a food processor with sour cream until a homogeneous mass is obtained. This mixture is poured back into the soup, cooled. Serve cold borsch with warm potatoes and onions.
Recipe 2
Ukrainian lean borsch or beetroot in Ukrainian with tomato paste, cabbage, onions and other vegetables is served on fasting days. Cooking time - an hour and a half. Ingredients:
- 3 beet roots;
- ½ cup dried mushrooms;
- 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil;
- 1 large onion, diced;
- 2 cloves of minced garlic;
- 1 large carrot (peeled and sliced)
- 1 large potato (peeled and diced).
- ½ parsley root (peeled and cut into strips);
- 1 stalk of celery, you can take the most extreme in relation to the core (cut diagonally);
- 3 peppercorns;
- 8 glasses of water;
- 3 shredded leaves of white cabbage (medium size);
- 2 tablespoons of beets (cut into strips and pickle with kvass, vinegar or lemon juice);
- 2 tablespoons (tablespoons) of tomato paste;
- 1 spoon (tablespoon) chopped dill;
- ½ cup boiled white beans (optional);
- salt;
- pepper;
- sour cream (optional);
- dill for decoration (optional).
The beets are cooked, the peel is easily peeled off after cooling in running water. Cut beets into thin plastic and set aside. In a bowl, dried mushrooms are soaked in boiled water for an hour, removed from the liquid and cut. Filter the liquid and set aside. In a soup pan, fry the onion in oil until clear, then garlic for 1 minute. Add carrots, potatoes, parsley root, celery stalk, pepper, mushrooms and liquid after soaking the mushrooms. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and cook until vegetables are al dente. Spread shredded cabbage and cook until tender. Beets are mixed with kvass, vinegar or lemon juice to give the soup a characteristic sour taste and a bright red color. Add tomato paste, dill, boiled beans, salt and pepper to taste. Cook for 5 minutes. Serve hot with sour cream and dill.
Recipe 3
In traditional English cuisine, beets are not used in soups, but in baked form. Beets in English are used in salads or main dishes. Ingredients:
- 8 beet root vegetables the size of a tennis ball;
- 3 tablespoons of olive oil;
- 1 spoon (tablespoon) of sea salt;
- 2 sprigs of fresh thyme.
The oven is heated to 200 ° C. They bake beets for 45 minutes, sprinkled with olive oil, salted and sprinkled with thyme. Allow to cool. Baked beets are combined with soft goat cheese, seasonal salads, herbs.