Barszcz recipe (according to my father)

This is how my father made Barszcz.

Get fresh beetroot. Peel, dice.
Place in a large jar, add sugar yeast and cover with water.
Leave in a warm place for 10 days to ferment.

Pour clear purple liquid into a separate container, avoiding sediment.
Filter if nessessary (usually not required).

Heat chicken stock and add Barszcz concentrate to taste. Do not boil - it loses colour.

Server with fresh cream.

If you are me and its Christmas, add vodka as well.


I've never see any recipe like this elsewhere. Has anyone else heard of fermenting the beetroot?

Cool.

thanks for this. I love that soup and would love to have a go... Im not sure where I would leave beetroot to ferment for 10 days though.. maybe an airing cupboard? Can you still make it the same way without the fermenting or is this absolutely vital?

I think so.

you wouldnt put yeast in it though would you? do you use fresh chicken stock? guess i should just look up the recipe.

I don't know if the fermenting is necessary. I've had Barszcz in Poland and even out of a jar bought in a local shop (yipee for all the Polish food now being sold) and I find it a bit bland and sweet. I better warn you - the yeast and sugar ferment violently and it will overflow easily. Staining everything so put it in capturing container.

I just wanted to post my fathers method because its quite different.

Foxy, sorry, but 1st - I can't cook at all, 2nd I am after 5 beers, so can't help much

It's not even 5.30 in Poland yet Mr G. You are in danger of reinforcing some messages from another thread. Oh what the hell, have another one on me

Peterweg.. your fathers method sounds like it would taste great, but Im thinking it sounds a bit messy and may seek another option. Thanks though, youve got me thinking about trying it out this weekend. Worried about cooking Polish food though.. as a non Pole it is never gonna match up to his (my partner) mothers is it.. could be a recipe for disaster
My dad used to make great Mulligatawny, but its not exactly Polish.

That is quite a complex recipe so here is my mom's. This is pretty good for when you want to have barszcz the same day ;)

Prep time from start to finish is about 1 hour or less.

5 medium size beetroots
1 small cellery root
3 parlsey roots
1/3 pound of fresh carrots
6 bay leaves
10 pimiento seeds (ziele angielskie)
1 generous teaspoon of table salt
a pinch or two og ground black pepper
1/2 cup of saurekraut juice

Thinly peel and slice or dice. The smaller the slices or dice the faster it will all cook. Peel and slice cellery root and parsley. Bring about 2 quarts (2 liters) of water to a rolling boil and place all ingredients (except sauerkraut juice and black pepper) in the pot with boiling water. Bring the mixture to a boil again and turn the cooking temperature so a little more than a simmer.

Add some of the ground pepper and some of the sauerkraut juice. This part is more an art and personal preference than hard rule. Add ground pepper and saurekraut as needed. Each time you add some more, stirr give it a minute and taste again. If you think you added too much of some ingredient then add a little more water and try again.

Serve with or without the vegetables used to make barszcz and with your choice of: potatoes, sauerkraut and mushrooms pierogi, cottage cheese pierogi, or uszka aka tortellini with mushrooms. Some people settle for bread, toasted or not.

Reheating is OK.

Yeast? Will any yeast do the trick? Is ten days really necessary? If it can be a little volatile, I suppose a large container may be a good idea.


A very ugly, but a very good and underrated vegetable.


Juice?