The need for this article had become evident to me several days ago, when I purchased a bundle of beets at Walmart, and the lady at the cash register picked it up and asked with much surprise, “What are these?”
“Beets,” I answered, not sure whether she was serious.
To which she replied, “Never seen them before.”
Now, fresh beets are not a new grocery item for Walmart; I’ve been buying them there for a long time. If a cashier, who runs through all kinds of groceries all the time, has no idea what beets are, that means very, very few people buy them. Why? Most likely because they don’t know how to cook them.
Meanwhile, beets are not only tasty but also very good for your health. According to Wikipedia, beet roots are used medicinally against infections, tumors, fevers, and other ailments. Beets are known since ancient times as a good laxative. They help with digestive and blood-related problems. Beets are rich in vitamins C and A, potassium, sodium, calcium, magnesium. In South Africa, beetroots are promoted for treatment of AIDS.
I will share three beet recipes in this article. The first one is rather simple, the second and the third will require some more work. Still, these dishes are not really difficult to make, only time consuming.
1. Beet Salad.
Take fresh beets and cut the leaves off (beet leaves are also edible and nutritious, they are said to taste good steamed, but I’ve never cooked them). Wash the beets in case there is some dry dirt stuck to them. Place the beets in a cooking pot with water and boil for 40 minutes to an hour. The larger your beetroots, the longer the cooking time.
Cool the beetroots, either by placing them in cold water or just by leaving them alone for a while until they cool off. Carefully remove the skin. I usually do that with a small knife, not peeler; boiled beets are very soft, and the peeler tends to take off too much. This part is rather messy, your hands will be covered with dark purple beet juice. Make sure to wear an apron to protect your clothes, and have a paper towel nearby to wipe your hands when you’re done. When the beets are peeled, grate them, add some salt, garlic powder (or a crushed fresh garlic clove), and mayonnaise for dressing. Mix the salad well with a spoon. That’s it!
This beet salad works great as a side dish, especially if you also serve mashed potatoes. Leftovers need to be refrigerated.
2. Mixed Vegetable Salad with Beets.
Prepare beetroots the same way as for the first salad: cut of leaves, boil, remove the skin. Then dice the beets into small cubes. Add in equal proportions:
Dress the salad with mayo and carefully mix with a spoon. Beet juice will color the whole dish dark purple, making it look very original. You can replace dill pickles with sweet ones for sweeter taste. Refrigerate leftovers.
3. Borshch, the famous Russian / Ukrainian beet & cabbage soup.
My recipe of borshch is veggie only. You will need beetroots, cabbage, potatoes, carrots, tomatoes, and onion, all fresh.
Fill a large cooking pot 2/3 full with water and put it on the stove on medium heat. Peel and dice 3-4 medium sized potatoes, put them into the pot.
Chop a frying pan full of cabbage and fry it in vegetable oil for 3-5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Sprinkle some salt in the process.
While you are pre-cooking the cabbage, peel & grate 3-4 medium sized carrots. When the cabbage is done, dump it into the pan with water. Pre-cook carrots in the same way, stirring and adding some salt.
Once again, while the carrots are being cooked, prepare the next part – tomatoes and onion. These are to be cooked together. Dice 3-4 medium sized tomatoes; add 1/2 cup diced onion. When the carrots are done, dump them into the pot and pre-cook tomatoes & onion.
Beetroots go in the last. This time, you peel them fresh and grate them. Then pre-cook in vegetable oil, just like the rest of your veggies, only add a tablespoon of vinegar. When the beets soften, add them into the soup.
By this time, the water in the pot will be boiling (reduce heat when it starts). Add some more salt, sprinkle some garlic powder, and cook the soup for additional 10-15 minutes. Then turn the heat off and let it cool off a little.
Borshch is served hot. Traditionally, you add a teaspoon of sour cream into each bowl and mix it in. The soup will be dark purple in color and very filling. Refrigerated leftovers can be kept for over a week. You can always adjust the recipe to suit your taste: more/less potatoes or cabbage, more or less salt. The cooking process might seem like a bit too much, but it really isn’t. When you know what you are doing, you can go through all the steps in about one hour.
