Solanka

⏳ Time

2 hours 10 minutes

🥕 Ingredients

🍽️ Servings

Description

Another hit from Soviet cafeterias, solanka soup is known for its impressive array of ingredients, earning it the nickname 'the collective.' It's also a delightful mix of flavors: the tanginess from tomatoes, the sweetness from onions sautéed in oil, and the saltiness from gherkins. The broth, with its delicate fatty layer, achieves richness thanks to fatty beef on the bone and smoked sausages. In fact, you can toss in any leftover meats or sausages you have in the fridge. The more variety of meats, the richer the flavor. During the colder months, it's best to use canned whole peeled tomatoes in their own juice for making solanka, as they are already skinless.

Ingredients

Beef - 5 oz
Onion - 1 head
Carrot - 5 oz
Baking Tomatoes - 20 oz
Gherkins - 0 oz
Cooked Ham - 15 oz
Capers - 0 oz
Olives stuffed with lemon - 12 pieces
Butter - 0 oz
Olives stuffed with lemon - 12 pieces
Lemon - 4 pieces
Sugar - 0 oz
Parsley - 0 oz
Sour Cream - 4 spoons
Bay leaf - 2 pieces
Salt - to taste
Green peppercorns - to taste
Beef hoof - 15 oz
Sausages - 15 oz

Step by Step guide

Step 1

Chop the carrot coarsely and lightly sauté it in a grill pan along with half of a large onion. Transfer the vegetables to a pot, add the meat and bone, pour in 1.5 liters of water, and after it comes to a boil, cook for about an hour and a half until the meat is done. About five minutes before it's finished, add a bay leaf and whole peppercorns.

Step 2

Remove the meat and set it aside to cool. If it was on the bone, once cooled, slice it off. Strain the broth. Chop the remaining onion as finely as possible.

Step 3

Place canned peeled tomatoes (that is, without the skin and in their own juice) into a suitable container and puree them using a blender. You can use tomato paste, but it won't taste as good.

Step 4

Cut the butter into small pieces and melt it in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté until it is thoroughly golden brown. The flavor of the solyanka depends on the onion: if it is undercooked, the taste of raw onion will be noticeable in the soup. The main task is to evaporate the moisture and caramelize the sugars contained in the onion.

Step 5

Place the tomato puree in a saucepan and mix thoroughly. Cover with a lid and simmer for twenty minutes. Dice the gherkins (or simply pickles) into small cubes and boil them in a small pot for about twenty minutes after reaching a boil, so they won't be too tough.

Step 6

Dice the ham, sausages, and cooked meat into small cubes. In fact, you can use any cold cuts or leftover meats you find in the fridge.

Step 7

Bring the broth to a boil, then add the onion and tomato puree. Once it comes to a boil again, add the meat, sausages, and ham, along with the gherkins and capers. Let it simmer for about five minutes, then adjust the seasoning with salt and sugar to taste. If the tomatoes are very sweet, you can skip the sugar. Instead of salt, you can use the brine from the capers or olives.

Step 8

Place the pitted olives and olives, along with lemon wedges, in the bowls. Pour in the brine, adding a spoonful of sour cream and a bit of finely chopped parsley.