Lenivye shchi (Lazy shchi)

Russian fresh cabbage soup

Russian cabbage soup shchi is part of the national cuisine of Russia
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Lenivye shchi (Lazy shchi)

Traditional Russian cabbage soup
Prep Time1 hour
Cook Time2 hours
Total Time3 hours
Course: Soup
Cuisine: Russian
Keyword: cabbage, Russian, shchi, soup
Servings: 8

Ingredients

  • 1-2 pounds beef short ribs
  • 2 Tbsp oil in all
  • 2 medium onions in all
  • 2 carrots in all
  • 2 ribs celery in all
  • 1 parsley root
  • 2 ounces celery root
  • 1 tsp salt plus more to taste
  • 1/2 tsp whole peppercorns
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 small turnip
  • 2-3 medium potatoes
  • 1 small head green cabbage
  • 1 Tbsp butter
  • 2 Tbsp tomato paste or 1 small roma tomato, chopped
  • black pepper to taste
  • fresh parsley and dill for garnish
  • sour cream for garnish

Instructions

  • In a ducth oven, brown meat in a little of the oil, turning to brown all sides. Turn off heat and add 1/2 of one onion, 1 carrot, 1 rib celery, the parsley root and celery root. Season with 1 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon peppercorns and the bay leaf. Add 2 quarts of water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover tightly and simmer at least 1 hour or until meat is tender but not falling off the bones.
  • While broth is cooking, prepare the vegetables. Dice the remaining carrot and celery rib. Peel and dice the turnip. Slice the remaining onion. Peel and cube the potatoes. Submerge the vegetables in water to prevent them from turning in brown until you're ready to use them. Half the head of cabbage and remove the stem and core. Shred the cabbage into ribbons about 3 inches long.
  • Remove ribs and set aside. Strain the broth through a mesh and reserve for the soup. Discard the vegetables. (You can save the bay leaf and put it into the soup pot as the shchi cooks). If you want beef in your shchi, cube the short rib meat, removing any tough gristle.
  • Heat butter in the dutch oven and sauté the diced carrot, celery and turnip. Add the sliced onion with 1 Tbsp of oil and stir everything together. Add the shredded cabbage and continue to sauté until vegetables soften but don't brown.
  • Pour the beef stock over the vegetables. Add the cubed potatoes. Add 1 cup of sauerkraut (or souring liquid if not using sauerkraut). Stir in 2 Tbsp of tomato paste or chopped tomato. Season with salt and pepper. Add water if needed to submerge the vegetables. Add the short rib meat (if using) or save it for another meal.
  • Bring the soup to a boil, reduce heat then simmer covered for 1-2 hours until everything is to your desired tenderness. Ladle into serving bowls, sprinkle with chopped fresh parsley and dill; serve with a dollop of sour cream and rye bread.

Notes

Instead of tomato paste or tomatoes,  you could use a little tomato salsa or even ketchup.  You don’t want to much to make it a tomato-based soup; but tomato adds the richness of umami to the dish.  You can also increase the depth of flavor by adding some mushrooms, if you like them.  Feel free to try other vegetables or meats as well.