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Simple Borsch

A beet and beef soup with cabbage, potatoes, carrots, tomatoes, onions, and vinegar.

From the Recipes Wiki (Fandom) · 9 ingredients
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Why it works: Carrot and parsley match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 8,053 recipes. Both carry 2,4-decadienal, which smells seaweed. The science ↓

Simple Borsch

Time1–2 hours

Ingredients

Directions

Make the broth

  1. Put beef into a large saucepan and cover with 3 l cold water.

  2. Boil, reduce heat and then remove the grease and froth from the broth surface with a spoon.

  3. Add one onion.

  4. Cook at low heat for 1–2 hours.

Prepare the beets and sauté

  1. Melt 1 tablespoon margarine in a saucepan.

  2. Cut red beets into thin sticks and add them into the cooking pot.

  3. Add tomato paste or sliced tomatoes.

  4. Simmer at low heat for 1 hour.

  5. If there is not enough liquid, add some broth.

  6. Add vinegar.

  7. Melt 1 tablespoon margarine in a frying pan.

  8. Add chopped onions and carrots cut into thin sticks.

  9. Cover and sauté for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Finish the soup

  1. Heat broth to boiling.

  2. Add chopped cabbage and potatoes cut into bars.

  3. Cook for 5 minutes, add sauté and cook another 10 minutes.

  4. Add simmered red beets and cook another 5 minutes.

  5. Add salt, black pepper.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

606Calories
39 gProtein
17 gFat
79 gCarbs
What these numbers assume: 12 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Beef100g cooked250
Potato1 medium (173g) baked161
Broccoli1 cup chopped (156g)55
Onion1 medium (110g)44
Beet1/2 cup (85g)35
Carrot1 medium (61g)25
Tomato1 medium (123g)22
Black Pepper1 tsp ground (2.3g)6
Dill5 sprigs fresh (1g) / 1 tsp dried4
Vinegar1 tbsp (15ml) distilled3
Parsley1 tbsp chopped fresh (3.8g)1
Salt1 tsp (6g)0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Carrot + parsleytop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together8,053 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).

  2. Pepper + parsleytop 2% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together34,122 recipes

    Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).

  3. Potato + carrottop 4% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together3,107 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-isobutyl-3-methoxypyrazine (green bell pepper, earthy).

  4. Potato + parsleytop 5% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together2,855 recipes

    Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).

  5. Potato + tomatotop 5% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together2,798 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Beef
Gives the broth its meaty body and rich savoury flavour.
Red beets
Provide the colour and an earthy sweetness to the soup.
Cabbage
Adds bulk and a mild, slightly sweet vegetable texture.
Potatoes
Thicken the soup slightly and add soft, starchy body.
Tomatoes
Add acidity and depth, balancing the sweetness of the beets.

The step that matters

Simmering the red beets. Beets stain everything they touch and can turn the broth muddy or pink if overcooked or added too early. Adding them after the other vegetables and cooking only until tender keeps the colour bright and the texture intact.

Swap the cabbage

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (beef, potato, carrot, tomato, vinegar, pepper, parsley):

  1. Capsicumfits better
  2. Onionfits better
  3. Okrafits better
  4. Cabbagethe original

Fit is the average pairing score against beef, potato, carrot, tomato, vinegar, pepper, parsley. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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