Cooking Borsch: Laserson Principles

Ilya Lazerson is a well-known cook, author of cookbooks, and host of cooking shows. The famous principles of cooking borscht from Lazerson is a great way to improve the taste of this dish without deviating from the traditional way of cooking.

Principle 1: broth

A well-prepared broth is the main component of any first dish, including borsch. According to the principles of Lazerson, this dish is prepared on a good, rich broth. To achieve the right taste, it is recommended to follow the following recommendations for cooking borsch:

1. It is necessary to prepare the meat, and ideally it should contain a good bone. The most rich broth is obtained from meat with bone. For example, beef brisket is good.
2. Prepared and washed meat should be poured with cold water and put on fire. When cooking, you can put a whole unpeeled (but at the same time well washed) onion. When boiling, the foam is carefully removed.
3. Cook the broth over low heat. The main rule is that the longer the broth is cooked, the tastier it will be. Do not add heat to prevent excess boiling liquids. Then the cooking process can be carried out longer.

This basic principle of cooking borsch from Lazerson will allow you to get a quality and tasty base for the dish.

Principle 2: Beets

Since it is impossible to imagine this dish without beets, it is necessary to take into account the features of its preparation. According to the principles of Lazerson, the vegetable is added separately stewed in borsch:

1. Beets must be cut into thin strips, having washed and peeled beforehand.
2. Then they put it in a bowl with thick walls, add a little vegetable oil and water or broth. Additionally, you need to put tomato paste, salt with sugar.
3. The beets are stewed until soft.

In the same way, you can prepare beetroot harvesting, which is rolled up in cans and stored in a refrigerator for a long time. This dressing can be used for cooking borsch all year round.

Principle 3: vegetables and bell peppers

To add or not add bell pepper to borsch - everyone decides independently, depending on their own preferences and tastes. According to the principles of Lazerson, this vegetable is not an obligatory ingredient in borsch.

However, if you decide to add it, it is best to prepare using the following method:

1. The core and the stem are removed from the pepper, the pulp is thoroughly washed from the seeds.
2. The vegetable is cut into thin strips.
3. Passerization of bell pepper is carried out along with onions and carrots.

Saving vegetables for borsch is best done on a mixture of butter and vegetable oil. Thus, it is possible to achieve a rich and rich taste.

Do not fry vegetables until crusted or, worse, darkening. The best option for preserving the taste is warming the vegetables over low heat until they reach a soft consistency.

The cabbage for borsch is finely chopped and added directly to the boiling broth. The dressing is separately prepared - the peeled garlic is ground in a blender with the addition of fresh herbs and a small amount of water.

As additional spices in the borscht add a classic bay leaf and black pepper in the form of peas.

Principle 4: Sour Flavor

Cooking borsch according to the principles of Lazerson implies that the dish itself will have a sweet and sour taste. As you remember, sugar was added during the stewing of beets, but the acidic ingredient - a little later:

1. Take some table vinegar or lemon juice. The use of slightly diluted citric acid is allowed.
2. Add acid to the broth where vegetables are cooked. An important point: to preserve the bright purple color of the finished borsch, vinegar or lemon is added to the dish just before the stewed beets are sprinkled. Thus, the coloring of the dish is fixed.
3. Stir the finished borsch and put the beets in it. Try it - there should be a pleasant balance of sour and sweet accents. You can add a little sugar or, conversely, an acidic ingredient to achieve the perfect combination of tastes - adjust as you wish.

After all the ingredients are added to the borsch - broth, cabbage, sauteed vegetables and stewed beets with seasonings, you need to boil it for about 5-10 minutes. The consistency of borsch should not be too thin - the ingredients for it should give it a pleasant density.

After removing from heat, the dish is allowed to brew for several minutes to half an hour, so that the taste becomes brighter and more saturated, after which it is poured into plates and served to the table.

Before serving, it is recommended to warm the plates by rinsing them with hot water. And in the finished borscht add green onions for a pleasant taste accent.

Conclusion

The principles of cooking borsch from Ilya Lazerson make it possible to achieve a pleasant and vivid taste of this borsch without violating the classic recipe of cooking. Try it and you will understand that it’s easy and interesting to cook a delicious treat of Ukrainian cuisine.