Polish Beet Soup (Barszcz or Borscht)

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Polish Beet Soup, Barszcz or Borscht, is an easy and delicious vegetable-packed soup that is bright in color and flavor! Your family will love this sweet and sour soup. 

My Polish Beet Soup Recipe (Barszcz) 

My dad has raved about his mother’s Polish Beet Soup (Barszcz or Borscht) for as long as I could remember. I, unfortunately, never had the opportunity to taste it, but I have been using my dad’s palate and memory to try and recreate her Polish Beet Soup.

After years of trying, my dad says I’ve got it! Over the years, I’ve tried different broths—vegetable, beef, and beef bone broth—and have found that the beef bone broth gives the best flavor.

It helps richen and elevate this simple soup into a meal itself! I like to serve it with some nice crusty bread and a simple green salad. 

I’ve also experimented with the vegetable that the soup is cooked with: I’ve drained the vegetables from the soup right before serving, pureed them in the soup with an immersion blender, and just left them in the soup as is. Personally, I like to leave them in the soup as is. It’s simpler this way, and the veggies make the soup a bit more substantial. 

Eating Barszcz makes me happy. The color is beautiful, and the soup warms me to my Polish core.

Do be careful while eating the soup, though, because little droplets of beet soup are hard stains to remove from clothing and tablecloths (trust me, I know from experience). 

Do you have a family recipe for beet soup, Barszcz, or Borscht? Leave me a comment below; I’d love to hear how you prepare it! 

If you love Polish food, then you must check out my Grandma’s Golumpki and Kielbasa Kapusta!

Cook’s Note – Polish Beet Soup:

• If you prefer your beet soup to be more of a broth, drain the vegetables from the soup right before serving. I personally don’t because I think the soup is delicious with the vegetables in it. 
• If you cannot find beef bone broth, then use beef stock. 
• I know it’s not exactly authentic, but sometimes I throw in some stew meat while the onions cook in step 1 of the recipe below. 

Cook’s Tools – Polish Beet Soup: 

• large heavy-bottomed pot
• spoon
• ladle  

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Polish Beet Soup

Polish Beet Soup, Barszcz or Borscht, is an easy and delicious vegetable-packed soup that is bright in color and flavor! Your family will love this sweet and sour soup.

5 from 7 votes

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Course: Main Dish, Soup

Cuisine: Polish

Keyword: beets, Polish recipe

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Servings: 4 people

Calories: 176kcal

Author: Jillian - a Food, Folks and Fun original!

Ingredients

• 3 Tablespoons butter
• 1 large yellow onion diced
• 5 large garlic cloves minced
• 6 cups beef bone broth or beef stock
• 5 medium beets peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
• 3 large carrots cut into 1/2-inch thick rounds
• 2 celery stalks chopped into 1/2-inch pieces
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 teaspoon caraway seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon allspice
• 3 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
• salt to taste
• ground black peppers to taste

FOR SERVING:

• Sour cream
• Fresh chopped dill

Instructions

MAKE SOUP:

• In a large heavy-bottomed pot melt the butter over medium-high heat. Once the foaming subsides, add the onion and cook until translucent and soft, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.
  
• Slowly add in the beef bone broth while scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Add in the beets, carrots, celery, bay leaves, caraway seeds, and allspice. Bring the mixture to a low boil, and cook until the vegetables are tender, about 10-15 minutes.
  
• Turn off the heat and remove the bay leaves. Add in the vinegar, sugar, and salt and pepper to taste.
  

SERVE:

• Ladle soup into bowls and serve with sour cream and fresh chopped dill (both optional).
  

Video

Nutrition

Calories: 176kcal | Carbohydrates: 11g | Protein: 13g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Cholesterol: 22mg | Sodium: 250mg | Potassium: 227mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 9285IU | Vitamin C: 6.4mg | Calcium: 32mg | Iron: 0.3mg

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