Borsch

 Ingredients

• 4 medium potatoes, cubed
• 2 peppers (green, yellow, red, or orange), diced 
• 2 ½ tsp
• 3 quarts water 
• 1 large beet, grated
• 2-3 Tbsp. oil
• 1 tsp rosemary
• ½ Tbsp oregano
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1-2 onions, diced 
• 3 carrots, grated
• 1 lb- 1 ½ lb meat, cubed (could be pork, chicken breasts, or beef) 
• 1 medium white cabbage, shredded

Optional

•          3 Tbsp tomato paste
•          1 tsp vinegar (to maintain red color better)

Instructions:

• Add potatoes, peppers, and salt to water in an 8 quart pot. 
• Cover and cook on medium heat for 10 min. 
• Put beats in a fry pan with oil, rosemary, oregano, garlic, and optional items if desired. 
• Cover and cook on medium heat until the beats are easy to stir (about 20 min.). 
• Add onion, carrots, and meat to the pot and let simmer, covered, for 10 minutes.   
• Add beet mixture and cabbage to the pot and stir.    

*You may need to add extra water to the pot to submerge the vegetables. 

• Let simmer, covered, for another 20-30 minutes.  
• Serve as is, or with a dab of sour cream.

Commentary:

My husband served his mission in Russia and loves Borsch. He taught this recipe to me. He also said that Russians prefer to use pork, but we like chicken better. So mix things up and see what you like.

I would highly advice that you wear junk clothes to cook in. When you grate the beat, the purple juices go everywhere.  They will stain your clothes.