The Ukrainian Beef Borscht

Being a huge fan of the legacy of Agatha Christie's Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple, I never fear to dig into a good detective story when I see one! This is the reason why I was fascinated to investigate the origins of this next dish, only to find out that it's a recipe responsible for maintaining a... culinary vendetta between countries of eastern Europe who have been fighting over its ownership for decades! And what a dish this is: a powerhouse of vitamins and minerals, rich enough to keep you full, balanced it its protein-carb mix and exciting enough to rock your tongue, the Ukrainian Borshch is here to stay!

Borsch (also spelled borsch, borscht, borsht, or even bortsch according to the Encyclopedia Britannica!) is a Slavic name for "beet soup". Although Russia, Lithuania and Poland fight over it's descend, the dish is generally attributed to Ukraine. And if we start to think like botanists (who believe that the place of origin of any species is the place where the largest number of natural variations is recorded), then the dish must be Ukrainian: one can lose count over the multiple recipe variations in place (such as the ones from Kiev, Poltava, Odessa, and L'vov). Or at least that's what Alan Davidson had to say about the origin issue in his 1999 "Oxford Companion to Food"!

So, for the time being, I will stick to the Ukrainian version of the dish (apologies to all my Russian, Lithuanian and Polish folks: I do promise to get back to you with an upcoming WanderFood from each and every one of your countries too!). And if you go around in life carrying an emotional heart like my own, do go read James Meek's touching walk-through of the story of Borshch before we get down to the nutritional business!.

It shouldn't come as a surprise if I told you that the core ingredient of any self-respected Ukrainian Borshch and the main reason why the dish has such a distinct red color is... beetroot!

Beetroots are an excellent source of Folic Acid (i.e. Vitamin B9 - Folate). 100grams of chopped beets covers for an amazing 20% of a person's daily needs. Why this is important you may ask? Let's discuss two many reasons. Firstly, the human body cannot compose micro-nutrients like Vitamin B9 (see this previous WanderFoods post on the topic for more insight) therefore we are all expected to cover for this need through our food. Secondly, Vitamin B9 is necessary for empowering fertility in both men and women, contributing to spermatogenesis. Need more to up-vote? I'm game!

Another great thing about red beets is that they are a great source of Manganese. 100 grams of red beets covers 14% of our daily need in a great Mineral absolutely necessary for development, metabolism, and the antioxidant system. All minerals (and vitamins) should be consumed in moderation to avoid exceeding quantities leading to toxicity, but it's always great to know you can enjoy some beetroot once in a while and have your metabolism boosted!

So now... off with the show to see how you can make your own Borshch wonder and enjoy the beetroot frenzy!

Preparation

• ½ kg of Beef on the bone
• 1 cup of chopped Red Beets
• 3 Lt of Water
• 2 medium sized Onions
• 2 medium sized Carrots
• 1 tbsp of Tomato Sauce
• 1 medium sized Tomato
• 3 medium sized Potatoes
• ½ Cabbage
• 1tsp of Sugar, 1tsp of Salt & 10 whole black peppers
• 2 tbsp of Olive Oil, 3 tbsp of Parsley, 2 Bay Leaves & 2 cloves of Garlic

There exist so many dish variations that one could dedicate an entire post just to name them. For instance the veggie version with no meat. Or the chicken version without beef. Or even the alternative version with avocado just to give you an idea. But for today's post let's go simple and trust an original Ukrainian who was kind enough to walk us through the preparation of the dish, in a step-by-step video for dummies with English subtitles found above!

A brief history of... ingredients: Beet that!

Alan (Davidson again) has written that today's cultivated beetroot form derives from an ancient wild seashore plant that was growing once upon a time around the Mediterranean and Atlantic coasts of Europe and North Africa. The plant was called "Beta Maritima". We are lucky enough to know this actually existed through the Greek Peripatetic philosopher Theophrastus (born: 371 - died: 287BC). The first mention of a swollen root (recognized as the prototype of the modern beetroot) seems to have been in a botanical work of the 1550s, whereas red beets were introduced in the kitchens of the 17th century.

If you love looking into mythology, I should be the one to warn you that beetroot is no stranger to myth and fairy-tale. Often associated with the Greek Goddess Aphrodite, beetroot has a legendary connection to affairs of the heart! The ancient word spread that beetroots could enhance beauty and provide aphrodisiac properties, whereas the Oracle at Delphi claimed that beetroots are worth their weight in silver, second only to horseradish in mystic potency. To read more about the mythological / theosophical side of red beets, I'd say you check out this vivid review presented by Chas Saunders and Peter J Allen!

And if you are more of a gamer well... the following video will tell you everything you need to know about Beetroot and its multiple uses in... Minecraft!

Nutritional ID

This is the nutritional analysis of this amazing WanderFood, as extracted using SuperTracker.

This is it guys and gals: 12 Eurovision points should go to Ukraine for offering such a great mix of flavor and wonder to the World! So let's hear it from you now: how do you like your Borshch? With or without the meat? Do you know of any good places to shop for sour cream? It is said to be the best final touch for the plate! Do let me know!