Best 7 Cold Borscht Recipes

COLD RUSSIAN BORSCHT

Steps:

• Remove stems and leaves from beets, but leave on skins. In a deep pot, cover beets with cold water and bring to a boil. Boil until fork tender, about 40 minutes.
• Drain beets, but reserve two cups of the liquid. Strain the liquid and add to a large saucepan. Remove skin from beets. Grate beets through coarsest blade of grater. Add to beet liquid. Add beef broth, onion, salt, pepper and vinegar. Bring to a boil, and then cover and reduce heat to low. Simmer for 20 minutes, then remove from the heat.
• Chill in refrigerator for one hour, or until cold before serving. Ladle into bowls and top each serving with cucumber and a big spoonful of sour cream.

MAMA LEAH'S JEWISH KITCHEN COLD BEET BORSCHT

Steps:

• Boil water in stock pot.
• To prepare beets: Wash beets well, scrubbing away dirt and sand.
• Trim the root and stem ends and discard.
• Cut in large (2-3 inch) slices.
• Add to water: beets, onion, lemon juice, salt, and sugar.
• Boil 1 hour, let beets cool and peel.
• Chop coarsely in food processor, and return to broth.
• Place pot in refrigerator until cold.
• 1/2 hour before serving: boil and peel potatoes, drain and place one in each serving bowl.
• Ladle cold borscht over hot potatoes and serve with sour cream on the side.

COLD BORSCHT

Steps:

• Using a food processor, pulse beets until finely chopped. Transfer to a large saucepan and add onion, salt and 2 1/2 quarts (10 cups) water. Place over high heat to bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer until onion is tender, about 40 minutes. Add sugar and lemon juice, and simmer for 10 minutes.
• Remove onion and discard. Pour soup into a heatproof container and allow to cool to room temperature. Adjust salt, sugar and lemon juice to taste. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Serve chilled, with chilled boiled potatoes added to soup, if desired. Garnish with a dollop of sour cream or yogurt.

SUMMER BEET BORSCHT (COLD SOUP)

Steps:

• 1. Preheat oven to 375. Line sheet pan with aluminum foil. Leave skin on beets lightly coat with olive oil. Roast for 30 minutes or longer until tender. After roasting, pull foil around beets to enclose, sit out to cool completely.
• 2. In large bowl whisk sour creams, yogurt, sugar, lemon juice, vinegar, salt and pepper. Peel cooled beets by rubbing the skins off or using paring knife(hint, use gloves for rubbing skins off to prevent staining of your hands.) Dice beets to 1/2 to 1 inch cubes. Add beets, cucumber, scallion and dill to soup mixture.
• 3. Cover with plastic wrap and chill at least 4 hours, overnight is better. Season with salt again if needed and serve cold with a dollop of sour cream and dill sprig.

COLD BEET BORSCHT

Steps:

• Wash and peel the beets and cut into fine dice or grate on the coarse side of a grater. Place in a saucepan with the juice of 1/2 lemon, a pinch each of salt and sour salt, and the 5 cups water. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, cover, and simmer until the beets are tender, about 40 minutes. Add the juice of another 1/2 lemon. Remove from the heat.
• Using whole eggs results in a creamier, thicker borscht, but it is much trickier to add the hot beet soup to the whole eggs without having them coagulate. If you feel inexperienced with this process, use just the yolks. In either case, beat the eggs with a fork until they are thin and watery. Slowly ladle some of the hot borscht into the eggs, beating constantly. When about half the soup has been added, pour the egg mixture back into the pot with the remaining soup; again pour slowly and beat constantly. When all the egg mixture is beaten into the soup, pour the soup back and forth between the pot and a bowl or pitcher about 10 or 15 times until the mixture is smooth, airy, and creamy. Halfway through, add more lemon juice to produce a winy effect; add a tiny pinch of sugar, if necessary, and salt and white pepper as needed. Continue pouring to blend. Chill thoroughly.
• It is best to add sour cream shortly before serving so that the borscht will keep longer. The sour cream can simply be served on the side, to be spooned in at the table. Or you can add sour cream (about 1 heaping tablespoonful per cupful of borscht) to the soup in a jar. Close tightly and shake vigorously to blend. Fluffy, dry, hot boiled potato is wonderful in the middle of this ice-cold soup.
• Variation: Canned beets can also be used for this soup with excellent if slightly less flavorful results. Use whole beets even though you will dice or grate them, as they have more taste and better color. For the above recipe use a 1-pound can of whole beets. Dice or grate. Cook for 10 minutes in a combination of their own canning liquid plus 1 1 /2 cans of water, to make a total of 4 cups of liquid. Proceed with the recipe as described above.

COLD PINK BORSCHT IN A GLASS

Steps:

• Peel and slice the beets and put them in a large saucepan. Cover with 8 cups water and add the garlic, shallots, bay leaf, coriander, cloves, cayenne, sugar, vinegar, oil and salt. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook for 15 minutes, or until the beets are tender. Check the seasoning of the broth. It should be distinctly sweet, sour, peppery and flavorful. Correct the seasoning, adding salt and cayenne if necessary, and freshly ground pepper. Cool slightly.
• Remove the bay leaf. Purée the soup well in a blender, then strain into a large bowl. Chill in the refrigerator or over ice until cold.
• Just before serving, whisk in the yogurt. Taste and adjust the seasoning, adding a splash of vinegar if necessary. Thin with a little water to achieve the correct thickness - like a thin milkshake. To serve, pour into small water glasses. Garnish with freshly ground pepper and, if desired, fresh dill or chives.

COLD CHERRY BORSCHT

Steps:

• Set aside 18 cherries. Pit the remaining cherries, holding them over a bowl to catch the juices. Place the pitted cherries in the bowl with the juices, and place the pits in a small saucepan. Add 1 cup of the water, the rose geranium sprig, the sugar and the lemon zest. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, cover and simmer 5 minutes. Strain the liquid in the saucepan into the bowl with the pitted cherries. Discard the pits.
• Transfer the cherries and liquid to a large saucepan and bring to a simmer. Simmer uncovered for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly.
• Working in batches and covering the blender top with a kitchen towel to avoid hot splashes, puree the soup, about 1 1/2 cups at a time. Strain through a medium strainer into a bowl, pushing the soup through with the back of a ladle or with a rubber spatula. Stir in the almond extract, a pinch of salt and the lemon juice. Chill the soup by placing the bowl in a larger bowl of ice water, or refrigerate.
• When the soup has chilled, whisk in the yogurt. Taste and add more lemon juice if desired.
• Serve garnished with the cherries you set aside.