Rakhmanov's Cabbage Soup
⏳ Time
3 hours
🥕 Ingredients
9
🍽️ Servings
6
Description
The name of the soup is attributed to a Tambov landowner named Rakhmanov, who was a great gourmet. He taught his serfs the art of cooking using French cookbooks and is said to have 'eaten away' a family fortune of two million. Looking at the recipe for Rakhmanov's cabbage soup, where the main ingredient is sturgeon, it’s hard to doubt this story. Rakhmanov's name is also associated with several other extravagant dishes, such as buckwheat porridge cooked in the juice of roasted grouse. This recipe and its history are taken from the monumental work of John Smith, 'Russian Cuisine: The Best of 500 Years.'
Ingredients
- Sturgeon - 3 lbs
- Bristle - 4 lbs
- Spinach - 17.6 oz
- Sorrel - 8.8 oz
- Leek - 5.3 oz
- Vegetable Oil - 0 fl oz
- Dill - to taste
- Chicken Egg - 6 pieces
- Salt - to taste
Step by Step guide
Step 1
Wash the ruffe (or you can use perch instead), gut them and remove the gills. There's no need to scale them, and it's better to leave the fins on for more flavor. Place the fish in a large pot, cover with cold water, and set over medium heat to cook for about 2 hours.
Step 2
Thoroughly rinse the sturgeon under running water. Scrub the skin with a brush or a piece of burlap to remove the slime from the surface. The fish will change from black to gray. Cut off the head, tail, and fins. Remove the entrails and cut off any parasites. Place the head and fins into a pot where the perch are being cooked. Set the sturgeon aside in the refrigerator for now.
Step 3
When the broth is ready, strain it through a linen cloth. Pour the strained broth into a large pot, place it over heat, and bring it to a boil. Add the sturgeon in one large piece. Once the broth reaches a boil again, wait for another 5 minutes and then turn off the heat. Cover the pot with a lid and let it cool. Remove the sturgeon, place it in a container, and store it in the refrigerator, while straining the broth again.
Step 4
Slice the leeks into small rings and half-rings. Pour a little vegetable oil into a pot and sauté the onion until it becomes soft. Do not fry!
Step 5
Meanwhile, chop the spinach. Cut it quite coarsely, including the stems – they will soften as they cook. Rinse the spinach in a large colander and add it directly, still wet, to the pot where the leeks have already been sautéed. Gently press it down with a spatula.
Step 6
Chop the sorrel a bit finer and remove the stems. Add the sorrel to the same pot once the spinach has softened. Wash the eggs thoroughly and place them in a small saucepan with cold water. Bring it to a vigorous boil over high heat. As soon as the water boils, turn off the heat and let it sit for about 5 minutes. No longer! Rinse the eggs under cold water and peel them. The goal is to achieve a 'soft-boiled' level of doneness, meaning the yolk should be soft but not runny.
Step 7
Remove the sturgeon from the refrigerator and cut it into portion-sized pieces. Pour the fish stock into the pot with the herbs, bring the soup to a boil, and then turn off the heat.
Step 8
Remove the tough stems from the dill and chop it finely. Ladle the soup into bowls. In each bowl, add a halved egg, a piece of sturgeon, and sprinkle with dill.
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