Cooking Beets Recipe

Beets Recipe: Borscht – A Heavenly Slow Cooked Soup

Borscht has a bad reputation in some quarters. This is primarily due to the fact it has often been associated with the soup of the decade for nearly destitute people in the former Soviet Union. In truth, Borscht is one of the best soups you will ever taste. It is particularly good when slow cooked.

Borscht is a red soup that is greater than the sum of its parts. I am almost hesitant to tell you that beets roots are the main ingredient because…well, that doesn’t exactly sound all that great does it? Trust me. It is. Even better, you can put the ingredients in a slow cooker in the morning and it will be ready when dinner rolls around. On a cold winter day, it really hits the spot. This is why it is such a staple meal in much of Russia and Eastern Europe.

There are different recipes for borscht. The main ingredients are:

4 large white onions
2 medium peeled potatoes
4 peeled carrots
1/2 head of cabbage
3 medium-beets
3 large cloves of garlic
2 large tomatoes [optional]
Parsley and/or dill (to taste)

Slice, dice and mince the onions, potatoes, carrots, garlic and so on as appropriate. Place into the slow cooker. Add 3 cups of water or beef broth to the cooker to the point where everything is covered. Now add a tablespoon of salt and brown sugar. Cover and slow cook for 8.5 hours.

When the cooking time is done, give it a taste. You may want to add salt to spruce up the taste. Once done, it is time to pull out the sour cream. Pour a bowl of the borscht and then add a dob of sour cream to the bowl. If you’re into authentic Russian style, you’ll need some vodka too, but I leave that to you! Regardless, you can dig in. It should be excellent as the beets and sour cream really go together.

About the Author

Thomas Ajava writes for BasicCookingTips.com – where you can find easy crockpot recipes.

Beets? What should I do with them?

Okay so I went to the grocery store and bought one large beet. I was thinking of pickling it. But now I’m not sure. What are some good things to do with a beet.

I’ve never cooked with one before. And I’ve never pickled before.

Any suggestions and recipes as to what i can do with by Beet.
Thanks.

I make a salad with diced cooked beets, shredded leftover roast chicken, a generous sprinkling of white pepper, and enough sour cream or yogurt to give it the consistency of potato salad. It’s unusual, but it’s wicked good.

Thanksgiving Suggestions From Last Week
Last week’s Food section offered recipes for Roasted Turkey and Whiskey-Blood Orange Gravy from Jason Cichonski, former executive chef at Lacroix Restaurant at the Rittenhouse. To see those recipes – plus recipes for roasted red and golden beets with basil, olive oil mashed potatoes with scallions, and four kinds of pies – go to the Restaurant & Food link at www.philly.com …

Roasted Balsamic-Honey Glazed Carrots and Beets Recipe

 

Cooking Beets Recipe

Pickled Red Beets

This pickled beets recipe is taken from an old family cookbook; where ingredients are listed, however, quantities are not. Meals made from these recipes were consistently fabulous, but preparing them with success now without having measurements requires creative guesswork.

After a little experimenting, we determined the measurement ratios needed to achieve the classic pickled beets flavor we remember so fondly. Here, measurements are determined based on the quantity of red beets we gathered from our garden one day this summer.

Simply adjust our recipe to match your starting quantity of red beets or the final yield you want. I started with approximately 15 quarts of whole red beets; finished with 11 full quarts of pickled beets; and had just about two cups of pickling juice remaining. You can use the leftover pickling juice as a salad dressing for fresh cucumbers and tomatoes. Otherwise, reduce the vinegar and water quantities in your recipe.
 
Pickled Red Beets
• 15 quarts whole red beets
• 2 quarts cider vinegar
• 4 quarts water
• 4 cups sugar
• 2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
 
Yield: 11 quarts
 
Wash your quart jars in hot soapy water. Since they will boil with the red beets for 10 minutes, sterilizing them before filling is not required.

Heat a small saucepan of water to a simmer. Remove from heat and place your canning lids in the hot water. Keep them in the water until you are ready to seal your jars.
 
While the beets are simmering, fill your water bath canner midway with water and bring the water to a boil. Once it reaches a boil, turn off the burner. Suspend the canning rack in the water bath canner by locking its handles over the sides of the canner.
 
Remove greens from the red beets and clean the beets under cool water. Place whole, unpeeled beets in a large cookpot. Cover with cold water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and simmer for 20 minutes or until tender. Remove from heat and drain. Cover with cold water.
 
While the beets are still warm but cool enough to manage, slip off the skins. (They will slide off without your having to use a peeler as long as you keep the beets immersed in water.) Once you clear away the skins, slice the beets into uniform 1/4″ slices.

Fill each quart jar with beets. Pack them tightly if your plan is to serve them as they are. If you plan to use them in recipes for pickled eggs and need more pickling juice for the recipe, then pack them loosely. Leave 1/2″ of headspace in each jar.

Add the vinegar, water, sugar, salt, and pepper to a clean stockpot and bring this pickling mixture to a boil. As soon as it boils and the sugar is dissolved, turn off the heat.
 
Pour the pickling juice over the red beets filling each jar to leave 1/4″ of headspace. Place a canning lid and band on every jar and twist the band until snug. Place each jar in your water bath canner, which already contains hot water.

After you fill the rack with your first set of jars, lower the rack into the water. Make sure that the jars and the lids are covered with water (lids should be 1″ below the surface of the water). Heat the water bath to a boil and cover it with a lid. Cook for 10 minutes.
 
After boiling for 10 minutes, turn off the heat. Using insulated mitts or hot pads, lift the jar rack and suspend it from the sides of the water bath canner. Place a kitchen towel or cutting board on your counter and utilizing a jar lifter, remove each jar from the rack and place it on the towel or cutting board.

Make sure that each band is twisted on tightly and allow the jars to cool while the lids seal themselves. (Lids are sealed when their centers appear with slight depressions in them and when pressed, the lids have no movement. If they pop or move up and down in the middle, they are not sealed.)

After the jars cool and the lids seal themselves, carefully remove the bands. Store your pickled red beets in a cool, dark pantry for up to 12 months. Serve cold or at room temperature. Refrigerate open jars.
 
To see our analysis of the Ball enamel waterbath home canning kit and to find the lowest prices for these Ball canning supplies, please go to toolsforkitchens.com.

About the Author

Christy Naujalis created toolsforkitchens.com to help you find real value in kitchen tools and appliances. For our review of the Ball enamel waterbath home canning kit, and to find the lowest prices on Ball canning supplies, visit us at toolsforkitchens.com.

Purple Pickled Eggs and Beets Recipe

Congo Food….

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