Okroshka

Okroshka (cold soup)

Okroshka

Okroshka made with kvass
Type	Soup
Place of origin	Rus'
Region or state	Eastern Europe and Central Europe
Created by	Rus' people
Serving temperature	Cold
Main ingredients	Raw vegetables (cucumbers, spring onions), radishes, boiled potatoes, eggs, meat (beef, veal, sausages, or ham), kvass, sour cream
Media: Okroshka

Okroshka is a type of cold vegetable-based soup. The origin of okroshka is an open question, as no reliable historical information on this matter has been preserved. However, most historians attribute the origin of okroshka to the baptism of Kyivan Rus. According to the chronicles, after the act of baptism, Prince Volodymyr ordered to distribute "food, honey, and kvass" to the peasants. Presumably, after that, kvass became widespread among ordinary people. Together with black bread and green onions, it became the basis for a cold soup.

The Russians attribute its origin to their cuisine, [[Ruthenia#:~:text=citation needed]-,Modern period,-[edit]|although they were never part of Rus]]'.

Gallery

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History

The word "okroshka" became commonly used in the early twentieth century and first appeared in recipe books in O. Molokhovets' book "A Gift to Young Housewives" published in 1901. In many Russian villages, people do not know the word "okroshka" at all, calling this dish "kvass". "To drink kvass" means to drink kvass, but "to taste kvass" or "to eat kvass" means "to eat okroshka."

In the Russian Empire, the word "okroshka" appeared sometime in the late nineteenth century, when taverns began adding other ingredients to the traditional tura, including pieces of meat that remained on the bones after it was cooked or soaked corned beef. In other words, the first okroshka was a means of utilizing meat scraps. To this day, a recipe for making tyuri okroshka is still widespread in Russia, where ordinary jellied meat is poured with kvass.

Okroshka is one of the varieties of cold soups that have long been present in the cuisines of other countries under the names tarator, ovdukh, khladnik, hopta, jadzhik, sasyk (Kunduk), chalob, chalop, dogramach, matznabrdosh, etc. (see also Cold Soups), and coldnik. The difference between the Russian version of this dish is that okroshka is cooked with kvass.

Varieties of okroshka

By the presence of meat:

• meaty
• lean.

By ingredients:

It is believed that okroshka must contain boiled eggs, fresh cucumbers, radishes, green onions and dill. All other ingredients are added to taste and determine the varied appearance of okroshka.

• with meat products
• with seafood (squid, shrimp, krill meat, scallops, etc.)
• with crab sticks
• with fish - fried, boiled, smoked;
• with salted or pickled mushrooms;
• with pickled cucumber;
• with apples;
• with soaked apples;
• with olives;
• with capers;
• with spinach;
• with peaches or apricots;
• with cabbage;
• with sauerkraut;
• with rhubarb;
• with green peas;
• with green asparagus beans;
• with boiled beets;
• with horseradish;
• with cottage cheese;
• with melted cheese.

By the type of meat products:

• with boiled sausage or sausages;
• with smoked sausage or ham;
• poultry meat (chicken, turkey, etc.)
• with game meat;
• with beef or pork.

By filling:

• with kvass;
• with ayran, koumiss, whey, yogurt, cottage cheese, matzoh, kefir or yogurt;
• with kombucha;
• with mineral water;
• with decoctions of sorrel, red currant, currant;
• with fermented birch sap;
• with beetroot marinade;
• with beer (preferably non-alcoholic);
• with champagne (preferably brut).

Types of okroshka

Contrary to popular belief, okroshka is not just a dish made of kvass with certain products, but a certain cooking technique, a culinary term that unites a group of dishes made according to different recipes (mushroom, fish, meat, vegetable, etc.) under the name "okroshka".

Some people cook okroshka with fried potatoes, some with sprat in tomato sauce, some with grated cheese, some with champagne. The key to making okroshka is improvisation. The only limit is your own taste. There are a lot of ingredients and types of okroshka fillings, so you can create hundreds of recipes using combinatorial methods. Below is a recipe for classic okroshka, which requires boiled eggs, fresh cucumbers, radishes, green onions, and dill. All other ingredients are added to taste.

The classic okroshka is made from kvass, chopped greens, eggs, radishes, cucumbers with sour cream, and any meat dressing - this is the kind of okroshka that Kyiv nobles ate two centuries ago.

Recipe for classic okroshka

Ingredients:

• Boiled potatoes. Admirers of okroshka are divided into two irreconcilable camps: those who believe that boiled potatoes must be added and those who are sure that this should not be done in any case. The second camp has its own views: some do not use potatoes at all, while others eat them bit by bit, like bread. Those who eat it in a bite argue about which potato is better - cold or, on the contrary, hot. Those who put potatoes on a plate argue about whether it is better to cut them into cubes or mash them. We recommend that everyone try different options and make their own choice.
• Green. In addition to green onions and dill, you can put almost any garden or wild greens in okroshka: parsley, celery, cornflower, sorrel, clover leaf, young nettle leaf, parsnip, pea, green shoots of garlic, cherry, shepherd's purse, spinach, basil, thyme, cilantro, mint, lemon balm, watercress and any other types of lettuce. It is better to experiment with especially spicy herbs first, adding them directly to the plate.
• Vegetables. Sometimes, last year's black radish is added instead of radish. Boiled carrots do not spoil okroshka.
• Meat. Okroshka can be meat or lean. But due to the fact that okroshka is usually eaten after fasting, the meat dish has many more fans.

Boiled sausage or sausages give okroshka a delicate, soft taste. You can add boiled chicken, beef, lean ham, pork. Boiled meat has a sharper, but noble taste. The combination of different types of meat in okroshka - lean pork, beef, poultry, game (meat collective okroshka) enriches its taste. Meat and sausage products do not go well together, you should also not add hard smoked meats and meat with a lot of lard. Some fans of okroshka consider adding sausage products to okroshka a crime and strongly recommend using only veal or beef for its preparation.

• Fish. The fish does not tolerate the presence of meat, but is especially fond of spicy herbs. Fish for okroshka should be taken that is not too bony. Okroshka can be cooked with hot smoked fish, baked (for example, mackerel baked under a layer of salt), or boiled. It is preferable to cook fish for okroshka in very salty water.
• Kvass Okroshka with kvass is the most famous of all okroshkas. Kvass for okroshka should be sour and therefore it is better to make it yourself. Drinking barrel kvass is not suitable for okroshka - it is sweet. However, it can be poured into a jar and left for a day on the sunny side of the windowsill.

"Proper" homemade kvass is prepared as follows: slices of rye bread are dried in the oven until they are very tanned, but not burnt. This is achieved with a little heat and a longer time. If they catch fire, it's not scary. A three-liter jar is filled with about a quarter of crackers and poured with boiling water. Cool to a warm state and add 4-5 tablespoons of sugar, a dozen raisins. To speed up the process, add 1 g of yeast and put the jar in a warm place, covering it with cheesecloth. After 3-5 days, depending on the weather, kvass is ready (the taste of yeast should disappear and acidity should appear). Before use, kvass is filtered through a strainer, and water is added to the jar and sugar is added. Strained kvass can also be used as a drink.

There are many other kvass recipes: beetroot kvass, Petrovsky kvass, bread kvass, honey kvass, rye kvass, horseradish kvass, etc.

Many people instead of kvass pour okroshka with whey, kombucha, mineral water, shavings, kefir or sour milk, sorrel decoction, currant decoction, and even beer. Okroshka made on ayran is very tasty.

Cooking a meal:

Everyone chooses the ratio of products experimentally, but there is a "golden" okrosh ratio: one egg, one sausage, two medium cucumbers, a small bunch of green onions, a spoonful of sour cream for one eater.

Finely chop the green onion (parsley and dill can also be used), add salt to it, pound with a makogon or mash with a spoon until juice appears. If okroshka is prepared for several people, it is advisable to do it all in a large pot.

Then cucumbers and radishes are cut into quarters, sausage or meat is diced, eggs, parsley and dill are finely chopped (if they have not been pounded) - all this is mixed and laid out on plates. The main rule for cooking chopped dishes: harder products should be chopped smaller than soft ones, otherwise large hard pieces will taste like something foreign. The shape of the pieces also plays a role: geometrically correct shapes, once on the tongue, confuse and thereby drown out true feelings. To taste, add mustard, salt, sour cream, grated horseradish, and ice to each plate.

Some people prefer to grind the egg yolks separately with sour cream and mustard, add a little kvass, stir, add all the kvass, and then pour this filling over the other components. Others like to pour kvass over crushed onions, sour cream, egg yolks, mix thoroughly, and then add proteins, meat, cucumbers and radishes. There are many options, but, as they say, everyone is their own chef.

There are two types of okroshka - fresh and infused, the difference is clear from the name, and their taste is also different.

Tips:

• Use dishes that do not oxidize.
• Potatoes are boiled in their skins until they are okroshka.
• If you use boiled vegetables, put them in boiling water and cover with a lid - this way you will preserve the maximum amount of vitamins.
• Horseradish goes well with fish okroshka, and mustard goes well with meat, vegetable and mushroom.
• If the filling is not sour enough, you can add apple cider vinegar, lemon juice or citric acid to the okroshka.
• Okroshka should be salted in a plate, salt adds the desired flavor to the dish.
• If you add sugar to okroshka, its taste will become more refined.
• Do not spare the sour cream.
• Improvise!

External links

• Cold soups in a hot city
• Lose weight with okroshka
• Cold okroshka with... olivier salad [Архівовано 26 липня 2009 у Wayback Machine.]
• Okroshka - a dish for a hot summer day [Архівовано 22 вересня 2009 у Wayback Machine.]