Recipes | Vegetable "Borscht" Soup

I don’t know about you but during the winter season, I cannot get myself to go on a juice cleanse or drink a smoothie, I can barely get myself to drink cold water. This recipe is inspired by Hong Kong style borscht soup, which I LOVE. I usually make this with oxtail or some sort of beef. However, with the holiday season here, my husband and I are trying to be a bit healthier in preparation of heavily overdosing on carbs later on. It’s all about balance right? This soup will warm and fill you up at the same time! If you’re looking for a lighter option while still feeling full, this soup may just be the one for you.

Vegetarian Soup

Instructions

  1. To start, peel the skins off of the Roma tomatoes. Tip: I cut an “X” at the ends of the tomatoes and pour boiling water from a kettle to cover them and let sit for about 5-10 minutes. The skins will peel off easily following that step.

  2. Once peeled, chop the tomatoes into small pieces.

  3. In a large pot over medium heat, add 1 tablespoon oil. Add in onions and saute for about 5 minutes.

  4. Add in carrots, celery and cabbage and cook for another 5 minutes.

  5. Add tomatoes and cook for about 5 minutes and then stir in the tomato paste.

  6. Pour 6 cups of water, or enough to cover all the veggies with a little more liquid on top to leave room for some evaporation during the cooking process.

  7. Stir in vegetable bouillon and add the bay leaves.

  8. Cover and let come to a boil. Then turn the heat down to low and simmer.

  9. After 30 minutes, season with soy sauce, Worchestire sauce, white vinegar, sugar and add in salt and pepper to taste.

  10. Let the soup come back up to a boil and simmer for another 15 minutes for the flavors to combine.

  11. Transfer to a bowl and serve.

Ingredients

  • 4 Roma tomatoes

  • 1 large onion, chopped

  • 2-3 carrots, peeled and chopped

  • 4-5 ribs of celery, chopped

  • 1/2 head of cabbage, chopped

  • 3 tablespoons tomato paste

  • 6 cups of water or enough to cover vegetables

  • 2 tablespoon of vegetable bouillon*

  • 2 bay leaves

  • 2 tablespoons low sodium soy

  • 1 tablespoon Worchestire sauce

  • 1 tablespoon white vinegar

  • 1 tablespoon sugar

  • Salt and pepper to taste

*If you do not have vegetable bouillon or prefer using vegetable/chicken stock feel free to do so, just substitute the 6 cups of water and bouillon with the stock. I just usually have vegetable bouillon handy so used that instead.

FoodCandace WongRecipe, Food, Dine