Chernihivskyi Borshch (чернігівський борщ, summer borshch)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •A big modern stockpot, 6 to 8 litres
• •A wide pan for the zasmazhka
• •A box grater
• •A sharp knife for thin beet matchsticks

Instructions

1. 1

   Cook the beans

   If using dried beans, drain the soaking water, cover them with fresh water, and simmer until creamy inside but still holding their shape. Salt them near the end, when the skins have softened. They should give under your teeth, not burst into paste.

   Tinned beans are fine on a Tuesday. Add them later with the courgette so they warm through without falling apart.
2. 2

   Start the broth

   Put the meat, cold water, bay leaves, and halved onion into a big stockpot. Bring it up slowly and skim the grey foam as it rises, then keep it at the gentlest bubble, what my grandmother called spirit, until the broth smells clean and meaty and the bones have given what they can. Lift out the onion and bones, pull off any good meat, and return the meat to the pot.

3. 3

   Add beet and potato

   Add the beet matchsticks and potatoes to the broth with a good pinch of salt. Let them simmer until the beet has stained the broth deep red and the potato edges soften. Don't rush the color. The beet needs time to open into the pot.

4. 4

   Layer the summer vegetables

   Stir in the cabbage, cooked beans, courgette, grated tomatoes or tomato mors, and sliced tart apples. Keep the pot lively but not violent. The courgette should soften without disappearing, and the apple should bend into the broth while keeping a little bite at the edge.

   This borshch is soured by fruit, not vinegar. The apple gives a clean northern edge, and the tomatoes round it out without making the pot sharp.
5. 5

   Make the zasmazhka

   Warm the sunflower oil in a wide pan and add the diced onion. Let it go translucent and sweet before the carrot and parsley root join it. You're not browning anything. You're sweating it slowly until the oil turns orange-gold and the smell changes from raw root to sweetness.

   The zasmazhka, the slow-sweated flavour base, goes in at the end so its sweetness sits brightly on the broth instead of flattening into the stock.
6. 6

   Finish the pot

   Scrape the zasmazhka into the borshch, then add the garlic smashed with salt and most of the dill. Taste for salt, pepper, and the balance of sweet beet, creamy bean, and tart apple. The spoon must stand up straight. If it tastes sleepy, add another spoon of tomato mors or a few more apple slices and let them speak.

7. 7

   Rest and serve

   Take the pot off the heat and let it sit before serving, because borshch gathers itself when left alone. Ladle it into deep bowls with smetana and the remaining dill. Tomorrow it will be better, which is why you made a big pot.

Chef Tips

• •Use a tart apple that keeps its shape. Antonivka is perfect if you can find it; Granny Smith does the job in London without drama.
• •Courgette goes in late because it gives summer softness, not mush. If it disappears completely, the pot still feeds you, but you lose the Chernihiv character.
• •The beans can be cooked two days ahead. Keep them in their own cooking liquid so they stay creamy, then add them to the borshch when the cabbage and courgette go in.
• •No tomato mors in the house is not a tragedy. Use grated ripe tomatoes and let the apple do the souring. Vinegar is the shortcut here, and it tastes like one.
• •This improves overnight. The apple mellows, the beans drink the broth, and the dill settles into everything.

Advance Preparation

• •Soak dried white beans overnight in plenty of cold water, then cook them before starting the borshch.
• •The broth can be made one day ahead and chilled; skim the fat if you like, or use a spoonful of it in the zasmazhka.
• •The finished borshch keeps well for 3 to 4 days in the fridge and tastes best after a night of rest.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 600g)