Borscht - Zurek / Bialy barszcz recipe

Thanks Fred chopin. I will try the soured cream next time. Smacnego

No Problem!

What else did you put in it?

kielbasa, potatoes and marjoram.and egg

All good stuff. Try some hard boiled eggs and a little mushroom. MMMM.

Okay, I bought Zurek ( rye starter) and now need a recipe for sour soup ( we had this in Poland served in a bread bowl) want to make it at home but finding a good recipe has been difficult....

Ok, seems as there is some confusion here about "barszcz", so maybe I coud try to explain. But, beware: there is LOT OF regional names and variations, so, you could still be suprised.

So, let's start with some classification:

There is:
a) red barszcz - where main ingredient is beet

b) white barszcz - also called "żurek" (pron. "zhoorhek"), "żur" ("zhoor"), or "zalewajka" ("za-leh-vay-ka"). The differ a little, but main ingredient is "rye starter" - fermented, sour miixture of water and thick rye flour.

Unfortunately, this "rye starter" is also named "żur", "żurek", or even "barszcz"; so, to avoid confusion I'd call it just - "rye starter". Remember: it's generaly inedible (although not poisonous, or something), and it plain fermented flour. It's usually sold in jars, bottles, or bags. And looks more or less so:

mojegotowanie.pl/var/self/storage/images/przepisy/zupy/zurek3/488573-1 -pol-PL/zurek_popup_watermark.jpg

So, lets start with "white barszcz". There are two main kinds: one is made on meat broth, another is made without. Both can be made with, or without potatoes, although "no meat, no potatoes version is very rare".

Lets start with meat version:
make a stock, using either ribs, bacon, or white or red kiełbasa (you can even mix it all!), bacon could be chopped and fried with chopped onion. Add allspice, bay leaves, peper (not necessary, it's widely using in Polish kitchen just for extra flavor), let it boil for an hour or so. You could, if you wish, add some vegetables - one small carrot, one small parsley root, or 1/4 of small celery. You can also add marjoram.

And then it's time for first big decision: add, or add not potatoes - as the taste could be a little different. If you wish to add directly to the soup, cut it in 1-2 cm cubes and boil till it will be soft. Then pour "rye starter" - cautiously, let it boil for while, check the taste and if necessary, add more. Leit it boil for few minutes - and its ready!

You could also add some cream (it's safer to do on a plate, however). It's served on a plate, with boiled eggs (cut in half, or four) and swimming kiełbasa.

Alternatively, you can use no potatoes, and make clear soup, that could be eaten with potatoes boiled separately, egg and kiełbasa, or even drunk in glasses, as addition to mashed potatoes on a plate.

b) "zalewajka" is made in similiar way, but stock is made without meat (although you can use some stock cube) and with cut potatoes. Kiełbasa could be added, however.

And remember, there is no "canon" version of this soup. Bacon could be cut, and fried with onion, so it "swim" on surface, adding some flavor - or could be just boiled in one piece. The same is with sausage - could be cut in little pieces, or served in whole piece. You coud add marjoram, or not, the same is with vegetables. Just try and improvise.

I believe my Grandfather used to make this but, he used pickle juice. Would this be the same thing? All I know is that I loved it and miss not getting it any more.

Hi from Rome NY. My mother-in-law made a white easter soup here in central NY. She boiled the leftover ham bone and some kielbasa in water, removed the meat and cut it into small pieces and then added cream to liquid . Then she sliced hardcooked eggs and also added a little horseradish. YUM!!

Grandma in Rome

I grew up in Northern NY and my mother made our soup similar - instead of adding cream, she used hardboild egg yolk to thicken the soup and also added vinegar.

Mar 21, 10, 20:05 - Thread attached on merging:
Borsch

Does anyone have the instructions for preparing the Farmer's Cheese for use in the White Borsch? I have been told to "salt" it, but I do not know how much, how long, etc... ??

would be nice if you posted it then. easter is just around the corner now. thanks

Keep it simple....slow cook your kielbasa but continue to add water so you have enough broth for your barszch.......then add just a little butter milk, cup of flower and add vinegar and salt, pepper....the cut up your hard boiled eggs and your kielbasa and there's your Easter morning breakfast barszcz with either babbka (polish raisen bread) or polish rye with seeds... Yummy....Happy Easter.

that is some strange white borscht.

Hello, my grandparents didn't speak much english but I watched my gran make Easter Soup every year, and as an adult I do as well. Here is how i do it:

Boil 4 large peeled potatoes covered with about 4 inches of water till they fall apart. Mash them up in the water.

The original recipe had a rye stock to it that was prepared the day before. To shorten the time I add a slice or two of rye bread to the boil - the sort with seeds in it.

Add one pound fresh keilbasa (remove the casing for a different texture to the soup). Cook for about 45 mins. You can cool the soup and skim the fat after the meat is done for less fat content, but I never do.

Before serving, add 1/4 cup sour cream, and 3-5 tablespoons horseradish.

Add 5 or 6 sliced boiled eggs, and serve warm.

Hope this helps

Yes, can you please email me your recipe. My mom used to make Easter Borsht thickened with beaten eggs and flour. Thanks...Sharon sgreer9311@aol.com

My family has made this for years. We call it Shvinsunka - but I'm sure that's not how it's really spelled...

Every Easter morning we had a soup that my polish mother called borsct. It was diced ham, keilbasa, bolied eggs. Horeseradish and white vinegar pepper salt, to taste and then boiling water was poured on top. stir well so the egg yolks melt in the broth. Add more ingredients to your taste if needed........... So yummy.

Here you go. This is the real deal!

Pickle Borsch:

Stock:
4 cups pickle juice (Clausen Kosher Dill)
1/4 cup flour
1 egg
4 tablespoons sour cream
-optional to substitute one cup water for one cup pickle juice for weaker panzy stuff-

Bring pickle juice (and optional water) to simmer.
Take flour and add a little water to make a smooth paste.
Then dilute with water or pickle juice to make 3/4 cup.
Add gradually to simmering pickle juice and bring to slow boil, while stirring, for 5 minutes.
Beat egg and add sour cream, mixing well.
Slowly add hot mixture to egg/sour cream, while mixing, until it is very thin.
Add thinned mixture very slowly to hot mixture, mixing well.

Serve with chopped ham, Polish sausage and hard boiled eggs.
I also suggest a good Jewish rye, with seeds, for dipping.

Enjoy!

Krysia: I have your receipe from your I hope your mother or father for "Biarly Barszcz".
I am exciteded! We are Polish and donot know how to make Barszcz. I have lost a dauthter
age 32 cancer who loved barszcz. Our lost was 2003. Age 32. Her Fiancee who is Italian
loved barszcz made by her grandmother, year after year. Her grandmother age 93 outlived her granddaughter by 4 years. we have conctant contact with our dughter Laura's finaccee

Michael who loves her grandmothers barszcz, but I donot know how to make it. Your receipe
was the best close to my mother-in laws. I would like to please my daughter's fiancee Mike as well asa myself and my wife to give to them for Christmas 2010 this gift and the memories of Baci's Barszcz, who died on 02.14.2008. (Albina)

Your receipe ends salt to taste. Is that the end? What to make this, what to make it like
Baci"s. Thank you, please replay.
W. Manijak

White Barszcz, but made traditionally, country style, can't do it from some packets bought at a store, dump a whole loaf of bread into a jar a let is stand for a week or so, dump that into a pot add water kielbasa, onion, eggs, that's real Barszcz.

Busia Kaminski (76 years old) was over for Christmas & my brother & I wanted the recipe for KWAS - We could not find a written recipe for mom's holiday tradition. So we immediately got out our cooking pot, filled it with water and added our ham bone. As mom added the ingredients we followed behind with our measuring cups and measuring spoons and came up with the following recipe to pass down to future generations -

ham bone (and any ham juice left from your baked ham)
in approx 16 cups of water
add 2 or 3 bay leaves
add 1 tsp peppercorns
carrots

Bring the above ingredients to a boil
add 2 cups of vinegar and 1 tsp salt - cook on medium heat for an hour

in a separate container - mix 1 egg yolk, 2 cups of milk / then add 2/3rd cup of flour
whisk together.
To this mixture add 2 to 4 cups of the hot broth - whisk together and then slowly add to the
pot
bring pot of soup to another boil and add salt and vinegar to taste

I found that the next best thing to homemade noodles are kluski noodles.

Boil all until meat is nice and tender. Remove meat and strain soup into another container. Cut meat away from bone and put back into soup. Add cooked noodles and serve.

KWAS
Definition: Polish for a sour starter made by fermenting bread and/or beets or other vegetables or fruits. It is used in soup making, especially barszcz or rye bread.

Pronunciation: KHVASS

Here is a recipe for White Easter Barszcz:
easteuropeanfood.about.com/od/polishsoups/r/whitebarszcz.htm
And here is a picture

We had something called Shvinsunka for breakfast on Easter, but is was this mixture of Polish Sausage, hard boiled eggs, and horseradish that was blessed on Saturday.

YES, YOUR MOTHER PROBABLY CALLS IT THE SAME NAME AS 'BEET SOUP'. IT IS CALLED BORSCH BECAUSE SOMETIMES BEET SOUP USES SOUR CREAM. THE NAME IS BORSCH (pronounced 'borsch'). THE RYE BREAD & THE SOUR CREAM GIVE THE SOUP A SLIGHT'SOUR' TASTE, WHICH MAKES IT UNIQUE. I WAS ALWAYS TAUGHT THAT INSTEAD OF CORN STARCH, YOU MAKE A MIXTURE OF WATER, SOUR CREAM & FLOUR TO THICKEN AS IF YOU WERE TO MAKE A GRAVY. YOU STIR THE MIXTURE TILL YOU HAVE THE DESIRED CONSISTENCY. BE CAREFUL NOT TOTHICKEN IT TOO MUCH OR YOU WILL HAVE A MUD CONSISTENCY. YOU HAVE TO BE CAREFUL WHEN YOU YOU USE 'FLOUR' TO THICKEN.. YOU JUST WANT IT TO HAVE A 'WHITE' COLOR TO THE SOUP & THAT'S ALL! LPT'S OF LUCK!!!

Correct spelling is Święconka and more info here:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C5%9Awi%C4%99conka


Beet soup in Polish is called "Zupa buraczkowa" and is similar to barszcz czerwony but it becomes barszcz when you remove from the soup all the vegetables&meat and use the clear "soup" only adding pierogi or uszka

There are different Polish soups from beetroots:

-Zupa buraczkowa (beetroot soup) and when cleared of vegie and meat it's called- barszcz czerwony (red barszcz);

- botwinka soup from fresh&young beetroots, incl.leafs

- Barszcz ukrainski (Ukrainian barszcz) really nice Polish soup from different sorts of vegie incl. beets and pea or lima beans;

In general, we have two main and different barszcz :

-czerwony barszcz (red barszcz) popular Christmas dish;
-biały barszcz (white barszcz) popular Easter dish.

oliwka.przepisy.net/barszcz-czerwony/
ugotuj.to/przepisy_kulinarne/2,87561,,Barszcz_bialy_wielkanocny,, 39175006,9495.html

flaki soup is disgusting but delicious :D

One of those adjectives is true.

hi, I am from Buffalo also and My family never wrote down the iinfo for white borscht. I have not made it myself in a good 20 yrs and now that I am no longer in B-lo I am dying to have some this easter! I know that we did not bake our keilbasa but I can not remember which went in to make the stock is it the fresh or the smoked?

Well if you can help I would so greatly appericate it. Also if you or anyone out there has a recipe for the potatoe /cheese filling for perogies please pass them along to me! Most of my family has passed when I was very youong and I have not had a chance to get any of these recipes. Thank you so very much and I hope that everyone has a Blessed Easter season!

You can email me at dziedzic.lynne@gmail

Our family borsch has hard boiled eggs, Polish sausage, ham, horseradish, and I think some vinegar. It's my Grandmothers recipe and I have asked my Uncle to teach me the recipe. I just got my yearly batch (better than ever) and next year I will make it with him on Holy Thursday. Sorry I don't have the measurements for you.

Chuckling as I read some of these posts. Now it's Holy Saturday, 2011, and I'm searching for a "barsch" recipe since all my husband's older relatives are gone.

I have found a few recipes here that I'll try, but I just had to add that my husband's family always referred to this soup, eaten for dinner on Holy Saturday, as Garbage Soup! They called it that because of the way you put all the torn kolbassy (Pittsburghese), eggs, and rye bread into your bowl, then ladle the whitish broth over everything.