Borscht

Fun fact: Borscht is one of my favorite soups of all time! I love beets because of their natural beauty, subtle sweetness, and earthy flavor, so I am excited to share this budget-friendly Ukrainian borscht with you! This vegan version gets its gorgeous ruby red color from canned beets, its heartiness from white beans and potatoes, and a tangy finish from a splash of vinegar. It’s a delicious sour soup that’s chockful of veggies, is incredibly nourishing, and makes amazing leftovers!

Easy Recipe for Borscht

My recipe here is based on the Ukrainian red borscht, which is typically made with fresh beets, but I wanted to keep this version extra affordable by using canned beets. I was worried I was making a grave mistake when I put the fresh beets back and grabbed cans instead, but let me tell you, this recipe absolutely hit the spot! My tummy was just as happy and my wallet was even happier with the easy canned beets version of this delicious borscht soup.

I would like to give a special shout-out to one of our talented photographers, Dan Chuma, and his mother, who helped me fine-tune this recipe so it was as authentic as could be within my budget restrictions! Dan’s family is 100% Ukrainian (and his Dad is plant-based!), so I was excited to lean on Dan when it came to developing this budget-friendly Ukrainian (vegan!) borscht for you guys. If you’re dairy-free, just skip the sour cream—it’s delicious without it!

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Borscht Recipe

This easy Ukrainian Borscht recipe is made with canned beets, plenty of veggies, fresh herbs, and vinegar to create a tangy, earthy, and delicious soup!

Course Main Course

Cuisine Ukrainian

Total Cost $8.33 recipe / $1.04 serving

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 41 minutes minutes

Total Time 56 minutes minutes

Servings 8 servings (2 cups each)

Calories 232kcal

Author Jess Rice

Equipment

• Large Pot
• Mandolin Slicer or Knife

Ingredients

• 1 ½ cups carrots, diced (4 carrots) $0.40
• 1 ½ cups diced onion (1 onion) $0.78
• 1 ½ cups celery, diced (3 stalks) $0.33
• 4 cloves garlic, minced $0.12
• 1 Tbsp olive oil $0.19
• 1 tsp salt, divided $0.01
• ½ cabbage, thinly sliced (5 cups) $1.66
• 8 cups vegetable broth* $0.72
• 1 bay leaf $0.12
• 1 ½ cups beet juice (from the canned beets) $0.00
• 1 tsp white vinegar $0.02
• 4 Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and diced (1 lb) $0.99
• 2 x 15 oz cans sliced beets, juice reserved $1.56
• 1 x 15.5 oz can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed $0.86
• 2 Tbsp minced parsley $0.05
• 2 Tbsp dried or fresh dill $0.42
• ½ tsp freshly cracked black pepper $0.10

Instructions

• Gather ingredients. Drain and rinse cannellini beans, dice celery, onion, carrots, and potatoes. Mince garlic, parsley, and dill.
• Strain the canned beets and reserve all juices! You can dice the beets or cut them into little juliennes (matchsticks) like I opted for.
• Sauté carrots, onions, celery, and garlic in large pot with olive oil and 1/2 tsp salt until tender, about 6-8 minutes on medium heat.
• Meanwhile, using a mandolin or a knife, shave cabbage into thin strips.
• Once vegetables have softened, add cabbage, vegetable broth, bay leaf, and juice from the canned beets to the large pot. Cover and simmer on medium low heat for 15 minutes.
• Then, add white vinegar, diced potatoes, chopped canned beets, drained and rinsed cannellini beans, and bring everything up to a boil. Then, reduce heat to medium low and cook for 20 min, covered, until potatoes are tender.
• Stir in minced parsley and minced dill.
• Serve hot with a dollop of sour cream, extra herbs (both optional), and an extra pinch of salt and pepper, if needed.

See how we calculate recipe costs here.

Notes

*We like to use Better Than Bouillon to keep broth costs low.

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 232kcal | Carbohydrates: 43g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 2g | Sodium: 1501mg | Fiber: 8g

how to make Borscht step-by-step photos

Gather all of your ingredients.

Strain the canned beets: Be sure to reserve all the juices from two 15 oz cans of sliced beets when straining them! The juice will be added to the soup later on. Now dice or julienne (cut into matchsticks) your sliced beets.

Sauté the mirepoix: Add 1 ½ cups diced carrots, 1 ½ cups diced onion, and 1 ½ cups diced celery (known as a mirepoix) to a large pot along with 4 cloves minced garlic, 1 Tbsp olive oil, and ½ tsp salt. Sauté the veggies and garlic for about 6-8 minutes, until tender, over medium heat.

Prep the cabbage: While you wait for the vegetables to sauté, use a knife or a mandolin slicer to shave ½ a cabbage into thin slices. You need about 5 cups of shaved cabbage in total.

Assemble the soup: When the carrots, onion, and celery are softened, add in the shaved cabbage, 8 cups vegetable broth, 1 bay leaf, and 1 ½ cups juice from your canned beets.

Cook: Cover with a lid and simmer on medium-low for 15 minutes.

Now add in 1 tsp white vinegar, 4 peeled and diced potatoes, chopped canned beets, and one 15.5 oz can of drained and rinsed cannellini beans. Bring everything up to a boil, then reduce the heat back down to medium-low. Cook for 20 minutes while covered or until the potatoes are tender.

Add 2 Tbsp fresh minced parsley and 2 Tbsp minced dill. Stir to combine into the soup.

Serve: Season with the remaining salt and ½ tsp black pepper, if desired. Serve in bowls topped with sour cream and extra fresh herbs (optional). Enjoy!

Serving Suggestions

I kept my vegetarian beet borscht pretty traditional and topped it with sour cream, extra parsley, and fresh dill. A side of bread would also be perfect for soaking up every last bit of the tangy, flavorful broth. I’d go for rye bread or sourdough (made with my sourdough starter, of course!), but any hearty bread you have on hand will do the trick.

Storage & Reheating

Let your leftovers cool before storing them in airtight containers in the fridge. This borscht recipe will stay good for about 3-4 days. You can enjoy this soup cool straight from the fridge if you like or reheat it in the microwave or on the stovetop. You can also freeze this one for about 2–3 months, but just note that potatoes can get a bit grainy after thawing. Let it thaw completely in the fridge before reheating.

More Easy Soup Recipes

Fish Soup Recipe (Budget-Friendly)

$11.33 recipe / $1.41 serving

Cabbage Soup

$8.65 recipe / $1.44 serving

Stone Soup

$8.93 recipe / $0.63 serving

Potato Corn Chowder

$5.46 recipe / $0.68 serving

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