It is known that borsch is a famous ancient dish, very tasty, healthy and quite unusual. Culinary experts continue to conduct their inexhaustible debates about the methods of its proper preparation. Today this dish is considered truly international - information about the homeland of borsch is lost, and in different cuisines of the world this dish is prepared in its own way: in Ukraine - with pampushki, in Moldova - with chicken, in Lithuania - with kohlrabi and mushrooms, in Poland - with bread kvass, in Siberia - with meatballs, etc.
Borsch is a recognized symbol of home comfort and warmth. Therefore, all the housewives try to cook it as fragrant and tasty as possible. This hearty and mouth-watering dish is loved by everyone: both adults and children. Each family keeps its trademark secrets of cooking delicious borscht, passing them from generation to generation. In our article, we will talk about how to cook this first dish so that the saucepan with it invariably becomes empty long before the end of the weekend.
On the secrets of cooking borsch
There are countless ways to create this culinary masterpiece. In this borsch is akin to the Kazakh pilaf, known for the wealth of recipes. What are the secrets of cooking borscht?
Broth - the basis of taste
The basis of delicious borsch is the broth. It should certainly be cooked on the bone, according to the housewives, preferably pork or beef. Chicken legs are also used to prepare the broth, but, according to the assurances of experienced housewives, they do not give the necessary fat. A broth for a delicious borsch must be fragrant and strong. This can be provided with special bone preparation. Before laying it in a pan, the bone should be cut. This is done so that the bone marrow can freely enter the broth.
Another important secret of cooking borsch is the need to observe the correct proportions of ingredients. At the end of cooking, one and a half cups of broth should be consumed per serving. At the beginning of cooking, water should be used twice as much as the specified amount. It is recommended to remove the meat from the prepared broth until the moment the dish is served.
If the water boils strongly during cooking of the broth or vegetables, it is recommended to add only boiling water to the dish. Cold water at this stage can significantly spoil the aroma and taste of borsch. Usually it takes about 2-2.5 hours to prepare the broth. But if you cook borsch in a slow cooker, one hour will be enough. Seasonings are usually added to the broth to taste: a mixture of peppers, salt, garlic (dried or squeezed through a press), bay leaf, etc.
How to cook a rich broth?
To make borsch rich, preparing the broth, many housewives recommend not sparing meat. Cooking it on a bare bone does not make sense. Before cooking, rinse the meat and add water.
The basis for borscht will turn out tasty and aromatic if you put the meat in cold water at the very beginning of cooking. The product is placed in hot water if the hostess is not interested in rich broth, but in particular tasty boiled meat.
They cook the basis for borsch slowly and very thoroughly. Bring to a boil, remove the foam and keep on low heat for about two hours. After the meat is ready, it is removed, separated from the veins and bones, and then cut at the request of the hostess into large or small pieces. Ready broth is recommended to be definitely filtered, otherwise it will not be transparent.
How to choose meat?
A huge variety of options for this first course are known. Including vegetarian borscht cooked, on fish or bird stock, on a broth of smoked or canned food, etc. However, borsch cooked on a broth cooked from pork ribs or pork with beef is considered to be a real classic of the genre.
Some apologists for classic rich borscht claim that a real broth as the basis for a delicious dish will be made from beef bone meat. And it would be better if the cook uses the brain bone from the front limbs of the animal. A brisket containing a sufficient amount of meat, fat, as well as connective tissue and gelatin is also suitable, due to which the necessary consistency of the brew is provided.
One of the important secrets of cooking borsch is the following: you must choose meat clean and fresh, without films and veins. After all, everyone will agree that the quality of the ingredients used in the preparation of any dish is directly related to its taste and appetite.
Grill
An equally important part of cooking borsch (a photo of the process of creating the dish is attached) is frying. The consistency of the dish and its color depend on how saturated it is. First fry the carrots and onions. Carrots are grated or cut manually - in this case, it looks better in the broth. The pan is heated and vegetables are laid out. After the onions and carrots are browned, add the tomatoes (tomato paste) and slightly reduce the heat. If the frying is too thick, a little water (boiled) should be added to it. This is important - otherwise the frying may turn out to be scorched, and the borsch - spoiled. Next, the mixture is salted, pepper to taste and added to strained broth.
Vegetables
Meanwhile, vegetables are prepared: peeled potatoes, chopped cabbage, etc. If the soup is cooked without beets, as soon as the broth is boiled with frying, they throw potatoes there. For those who like boiled vegetables, 10 minutes after the potatoes boil, you can add chopped cabbage. If you like the cabbage in the borscht to be crispy, it should be added along with the greens at the last moment. Then they wait for the soup to boil again and turn it off. Some housewives recommend to cook the dish for a stand - the present borsch will be tastier. Served with garlic and pepper (hot). To make meat or vegetarian borscht more rich, butter (a slice) is added to it.
On the secrets of cooking red borsch
The main and most important ingredient in delicious borscht is considered by many beets. Some housewives refused it, but beets and color are given to this popular first dish by beets. In the process of cooking borsch with beet mistress, it is recommended to use a root crop of not borsch, namely salad. This vegetable has a burgundy hue, due to which the dish will be painted in the necessary beautiful red color. Some use beetroot from a can, but it does not have such a saturated color as fresh.
Many people prefer to grate beets - at the same time, it gives more juice. It is added to the roasting 10 minutes after the tomatoes are added there. Then fry slightly diluted with water (boiled), add garlic (for smell) and simmer over low heat for 15 minutes, with regular stirring.
Color nuances
Mistresses share one of the secrets of cooking red borsch: to get the color of the dish, as in the picture in the culinary booklet, add lemon juice or vinegar to the roasting process - a few drops are enough. In addition to the saturated color, this maneuver also retains a bright acidity in taste. In addition, many housewives advise stewing beets separately from carrots and onions.
Features of cooking beets
Beets are laid immediately after cabbage (if it is cooked directly in borsch). 10 minutes will be enough to prepare the vegetable (if cut into thin strips). However, experienced cooks do not advise boiling beets in borsch: this way it loses its beautiful color. Vegetables should first be steamed or baked in the oven, and then cut into strips (thin) and send to the broth. If borsch is cooked with bacon, beets can additionally be fried in bacon.
Using beets of sweet and dark varieties, borsch is given a bright red color and a rich beetroot flavor. Pink beets complement the taste of tomatoes.
About garlic
Some housewives refuse to add garlic to the borsch during cooking, believing that it is much tastier to use it with a little biscuits. However, the classic recipe for cooking borsch with beets, cabbage and other vegetables involves the addition of garlic complete with lard (pork). Moreover, lard should have a smell, and garlic is not crushed, but finely chopped. To this mixture should be added parsley, dill and other herbs. Garlic with lard is placed in borsch at the very end of cooking. It is these two products that are responsible for the final flavor of the dish.
One of the secrets of cooking Ukrainian borsch is the use of crushed lard with garlic. However, many gourmets do not consider fat in the dressing a mandatory element. But without garlic, some borscht will not recognize. Many housewives recommend that garlic not be cut and crushed with a press, but crushed with salt in a special mortar.
About the order of adding vegetables and how to process them
The recipe for making borsch with beets, cabbage and other vegetables provides the following procedure for sending the ingredients to the pan: first put potatoes in the broth, then cabbage, stewed beets and other ingredients (they are pre-steamed and thoroughly stewed). After the borsch is ready, herbs and spices are put in it: pepper (black), bay leaf, celery, dill, parsley, bell pepper (slices), etc.
Passerovka
Someone likes boiled vegetables in borsch, and someone, on the contrary, prefers to fry them, believing that it is so tasty. One of the great options for cooking vegetables is caramelization, i.e. languishing over low heat. In this case, onions become transparent, and carrots - soft, but retaining its color and aroma. If the hostess decided to cook the onion, it should be removed from the water before the potatoes are added there.
How to cook tomatoes?
It is recommended to cook tomatoes in borscht before potatoes are laid there. In the process of cooking, they should become soft. Tomatoes are taken out, ground through a sieve and at the end of cooking they are again sent to the borsch. Mistress ripe tomatoes are often replaced with tomato juice or pasta.
What is the best way to cook potatoes?
This vegetable is cut coarsely, and for the borscht, the housewives recommend choosing one so that it does not boil. Before laying the potatoes, it is better to fry a little, while the dish will turn out to be more saturated and rich. Carrots are put together with potatoes, which are previously cut into strips.
How to cook cabbage?
In the process of cooking borsch with beets and cabbage, the last one, before being put into the pan, should be mashed - so the vegetable will give the broth the necessary amount of juice. Cabbage is added after the potatoes are already half cooked. Sour cabbage is cooked for approximately one minute, and a passer is added immediately. Winter cabbage (white cabbage) is cooked longer, about ten minutes. All the while cabbage is cooked, it is not recommended to cover the borscht with a lid - some housewives believe that it can ruin the dish with its specific aroma.
What is better to acidify borsch?
To acidify the dishes, the hostess most often uses vinegar, which simultaneously acidifies and preserves the color of beets. But vinegar cannot be considered the most useful supplement. Alternatively, beets are sprinkled with lemon juice before being added to the broth. For acidification, tomatoes are used, which are added to the frying, as well as sour cabbage or a spoonful of cabbage brine.
Which utensils should I use?
There are no trifles in the preparation of this legendary and beloved first course. It is important not only to observe all the rules and secrets of cooking meat and vegetables for borsch, but also to think through the dishes in which the treat will be cooked. The fact is that the broth, which is the basis of the dish, requires a very careful attitude. The broth is not recommended to boil on too high a fire. So that borsch does not boil, it is recommended to use a pan with thick walls and a two-layer bottom. In such a dish, the contents heat up faster and cool more slowly. In addition, the hostess can not be afraid to move away from the pan for a while: the risk of boiling over in it is the lowest.
Cooking soup (step by step recipe)
Introducing the classic way to cook borsch. Ingredients:
- beef on the bone - 400 grams;
- beets - 2 pcs.;
- carrots - 1 pc.;
- white cabbage - 300 grams;
- four potatoes;
- tomato paste - two tablespoons;
- garlic - one head;
- lard (pork);
- to taste: salt, greens, black pepper;
- vegetable oil).
Cooking
A step-by-step recipe for cooking borsch involves the following actions:
- In a saucepan (3-3.5 L) place the meat (in a piece) and fill it with water (2 L). Boil on low heat, removing foam as necessary.
- When the water boils, the fire is reduced, the pan is covered with a lid and left to cook for an hour.
- Meanwhile, peel and chop the onion, rub the carrots and beets on a grater (coarse) (some housewives chop the last with straws).
- Spread the vegetables in a pan preheated with vegetable oil. Passerize them for several minutes, after which they add tomato paste according to the recipe and remove them from the heat after three minutes.
- The meat is taken out of the prepared broth, cut into pieces (portioned).
- Cabbage (finely chopped) is placed in the broth, and after ten minutes - potatoes. At this time, the broth should be salted.
- After the potatoes are ready, add vegetables (sautéed) and return the meat cut into pieces into the broth.
At the end of cooking, bay leaf, pepper, greens mixed with pork lard and garlic are put in borsch. Borsch is covered and cooked for another five minutes. Bon Appetit!