Okroshka, the composition of which can be very diverse, can have kvass, serum, kefir, and mineral water as the basis. The history of this dish has more than a thousand years, and during all this time the recipe for its preparation has undergone many changes.
Serum okroshka is gaining popularity due to its beneficial properties and low calorie content, as well as low cost. Whey is a by-product in the manufacture of cottage cheese and cheeses, and therefore is inexpensive.
Serum okroshka is prepared from a standard set of products - boiled potatoes, eggs, ham, boiled sausages or boiled meat, radishes, green onions, fresh cucumbers and greens. For refueling use mustard and a little sugar. Potato tubers are boiled, then cut into small cubes. Chives, dill and parsley are finely chopped. Dice eggs, cucumbers, radishes and ham. Sliced ingredients are poured with whey, salt, pepper, add mustard and sugar. Put in the refrigerator for at least half an hour. Serum okroshka can be served with sour cream or mayonnaise.
Some housewives add a little horseradish sauce and citric acid to the dish. Serum okroshka can be cooked in different densities - it all depends on personal preferences. From meat products, you can use boiled veal and beef, chicken, turkey, boiled sausage, ham and many other products. The main secret of the Okroshka on Serum dish is a harmonious taste in which no one ingredient should prevail. All products should be cut into neat little cubes.
Equally popular is okroshka cooked on kvass. Now this drink can be found in a variety of variations on store shelves. But if you cook kvass for okroshka at home, it will be much more useful.
This traditional Russian drink is prepared in several ways: from ready-made sourdough, brown bread, must, with or without yeast. The easiest way to make kvass from a dry mix. The drink is obtained with a rich bread taste of a very beautiful shade. Ferment formed during fermentation can be used further. Ideally, the drink is prepared from a mixture of rye malt and dry kvass, but if there is no component, then you can make one. The first cooked kvass smells a bit like yeast, so it is better not to use it for okroshka.
It will take 3 tablespoons of dry kvass, rye crackers, dried yeast, granulated sugar - 4 tablespoons, rye fermented malt - about 2 tablespoons. In a clean three-liter jar, add malt, dry kvass and
sugar. The mixture is poured with warm boiled water “on the shoulders”. Pour into a jar
a pinch of dry yeast and mix. On top put a few rye crackers, cover with a clean cloth and leave to ferment at room temperature. Kvass is ready the next day. Before use, kvass must be filtered through a layer of gauze and refrigerated.
Ferment can be reused, but it must be stored in the refrigerator. In order to make a new portion of kvass, you need to add all the ingredients to the sourdough except yeast.
In addition to whey and kvass, yogurt and rhubarb decoction can be used as the basis for okroshka. Yogurt is bred with cold water or mineral water. To improve the taste, okroshka can be seasoned with yolks of hard-boiled eggs, mashed with sugar and mustard. In order to prepare a rhubarb decoction, it is washed, cleaned, cut into small slices and boiled. Then the broth must be cooled.
Many housewives pre-peel the peel from cucumbers intended for okroshka. You need to remove it from the tips of the vegetable so as not to spread the bitterness, which is located mainly near them.