New Women New Yorkers

Warm up with a vegan spin on traditional borscht this winter

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“I love [Borscht] because it’s inexpensive, fulfilling, and always reminds me of my family,”  says Liudmila, a Russian immigrant and LEAD graduate from our 2017 spring series at the NYPL Mid-Manhattan branch. “Borscht is a traditional Russian-Ukrainian soup which is made of beets, cabbage, and potatoes.”

“Usually it is prepared with meat, but I decided to make this recipe vegetarian,” Liudmila adds. “For those who still crave for some meat you can add it in the end of this recipe or look up a recipe for traditional Russian borscht.”

 

Vegan Borscht 

Approx. 6 servings

Prep time: Approx. 30 mins

Cook time: 1 hour

Ingredients:

2 beets
2 tomatoes
2 carrots
2 onions
3 potatoes
½ of cabbage
Olive oil
2 cloves of garlic
Parsley (to taste)
Dill (to taste)
Salt and pepper (to taste)

Instructions:

  1. Cut the beetroots, carrots, and cabbage into thin sticks (julienne) and cut onions into a halfmoon form. Set aside.
  2. Bring a large pot of water to boil. Boil whole tomatoes for 30 seconds, and then remove tomatoes and rinse with cold water. Remove skin from tomatoes and dice. Set aside.
  3. Peel and dice the potatoes. Set aside.
  4. Heat two tablespoons of olive oil in a large pot, add beetroots, and sauté on low heat for 10 minutes. Add a cup of water and cook for another 5 minutes. Then add tomatoes, stir together, cover with lid, and simmer for 10 minutes.
  5. While the beetroots and tomatoes simmer, heat 3 tablespoons of olive oil in another pan. Add carrots, onions, and salt and pepper to taste. Sauté for 10 minutes, and then add the mixture to the pot of beetroots and tomatoes.
  6. Allow pot of beetroots, tomatoes, carrots, and onions to cook together for 5 minutes. Then add 8 cups of water and bring to a boil.
  7. Add cabbage to the pot and cook for 10 minutes.
  8. Add potatoes to the pot and cook another 10-15 minutes until potatoes are soft.
  9. Dice or smash garlic cloves.
  10. Add garlic, chopped parsley and dill, and salt and pepper (to taste) to the pot and let simmer for 20 minutes covered with lid.
  11. Serve and enjoy!

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