Borsh / Борщ

In a pot put 2 liters and 300 milliliters of water, the veal, the bay leaf, the peppercorns and a teaspoon of salt. We wait until it starts to boil.

When it is boiling, clean the impurities from the broth with a strainer and add a whole peeled onion without chopping. Cover and simmer until the meat is very tender.

Meanwhile, chop the other onion and the peeled tomatoes into cubes, and the carrot and the peeled beet into strips (or grated).

In a frying pan put 50 ml of extra virgin olive oil, and when it is hot add the onion and fry it until golden brown. Add the carrot and fry it for 2 minutes. Then add the beet and sauté for another 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes and wait for everything to cook for 5 minutes. After this time, add 300 ml of water and two spoonfuls of tomato concentrate to the sauce. Stir everything, cover and let it cook for 45 minutes over low heat.

On the other hand, cut the cabbage into julienne strips and the potato into cubes. When the meat is tender, take it out of the pot, bone it and cut it into pieces. We also take out the bay leaf and the pepper, the broth can be strained for this purpose. We add the meat again and we put it to boil. When it starts to boil, add the cabbage and cook for 5 minutes. Then add the potato and cook for 10 minutes.

After this time, add the cooked and drained beans to the broth, and the fried beet, carrot, onion and tomato. Stir so that all the ingredients are well integrated and cook for 10 minutes. The soup should not be too watery, but not too thick either.

After this cooking time, correct the salt if necessary, add the ground pepper, a spoonful of vinegar and turn off the heat. Add the chopped parsley and dill and let stand for 15 minutes with the pot covered.

Ready to serve! It can be eaten with rye bread and/or with a spoonful of сметана (sour cream). Of course, it can be made vegan, just omit the meat. We eat it this way at Easter. Enjoy! Приятного апппетита!