Marina's Borscht

Ingredients for 6 servings:

• 5 medium-sized potatoes, waxy
• 1 m.-large onion(s), red
• 1 clove(s) garlic
• 2 carrots
• 1 beetroot, fresh or from a jar
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• 1 kg soup meat, with bone marrow and not too lean
• Salt
• 6 peppercorns
• possibly sour cream, if desired
• Parsley, if desired, for decoration
• possibly dill, if desired
• ¼ head of white cabbage
• 4 liters of water

Instructions

Working time approx. 30 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 2 hours; Total time approx. 2 hours 30 minutes

Slavic stew

Place the meat in cold water and cook over medium heat with 6 peppercorns (skim off any egg white foam that forms, otherwise the borscht will become undesirably cloudy). In the meantime, first fry the onions in a pan, then add the grated carrots and diced tomatoes. Add the tomato paste and a little water (about 100 ml). Season with salt and pepper and cook under the lid until everything is simmering in its own juices. Cut a quarter of the cabbage and the beetroot into long strips and add to the pan, cooking for about 15 minutes. Meanwhile, cut the potatoes into small pieces and store them in a bowl of water. After the meat has cooked for 90 minutes, add the potatoes and the contents of the frying pan. Crush the garlic clove and add it. Stir everything well and continue cooking for about 30 minutes. The time varies depending on how quickly the potatoes are cooked. Finally, remove the meat from the bone and cut into smaller pieces. Season the borscht generously with salt and let it cool slightly, then serve in deep bowls and top with a dollop of sour cream. The dill and parsley are for decoration and can be used as desired. The borscht tastes even better the next day. I personally enjoy it best with cobra in the borscht and sour cream on bread. Cobra is a Russian-Asian tomato sauce with garlic and chili.