Souper Cool

If you come to Russia in summer, you’re almost certain to be offered some okroshka. Don’t be surprised if this offer comes with a chuckle or a meaningful  look. The fact is, your Russian friends are interested in your reaction to this dish. The combination of kvas, meat, smetana and herbs gives it an unusual taste, which, like some types of French cheese, takes some getting used to. But the French are proud of their cheese, just as the Russians are of their okroshka. And so they should be — there’s nothing better than this cold soup on a hot day.

If you like to experiment, then you can also prepare okroshka from sour shchi or cabbage brine, but classic okroshka is made with kvas. 

Kvas is a wonderful drink consumed over the centuries in Russia almost as frequently as water. The early Slavs noted that kvas had many healing properties, and scientists have proved that it helps a lot with, for instance, catarrhal illnesses. But the most ‘popular’ property of kvas is its ability to revive your appetite. That’s why it used to be used as an aperitif.

Just a couple of years ago, if you wanted to try this Russian national drink, you would have had to spend ages looking round the shops for it. Kvas was undeservedly forgotten in the flood of foreign fizzy drinks. But now some Russian firms have decided to revive it. Even the Moscow city government has a kvas program. And the results are visible — today kvas is much easier to buy in the capital than last year.

Okroshka is the aristocrat of kvas dishes. Its predecessors, turia and   (skilly), were modest both to look at and to taste. A good illustration of what Russians thought of these dishes is the sayings invented about them: “What a turia,” is what you might say about a characterless, absent-minded person. And if you say to someone  “I hope you go and eat balanda for the rest of your days,” it`ll be taken as a serious insult — people associate this dish with prison food.

In the 18th century okroshka was a fish soup, usually made with sturgeon or sterlet, which graced noble and royal tables. Then, as the needs of Russians became simpler, so did the contents of the okroshka. Today people chop in anything they can afford, from poultry to the cheapest variety of boiled sausage.

Okroshka is actually a complicated dish to make. Even the kvas has to be specially prepared. Experienced cooks advise against using ordinary kvas (if you can find any of course) because it’s not strong enough. But at the same time it has to be fresh. If you want to make okroshka quickly, you can use ordinary kvas. But if you want a real feast, be patient and follow these instructions.

— Yelena Utenkova

Okroshka

To make 4 pints of kvas:

3 oz. rye bread

2 tbsp. sugar

0.1 oz. live yeast

12 cups of water

To make okroshka (for four persons)

3 pints kvas

2 eggs

1 tsp. mustard

1 tbsp. sugar

2 fresh cucumbers

7 oz. spring onions

7 oz. boiled beef

3-5 oz. ham

horseradish to taste

To make the kvas, slice the bread, fry till it’s dark brown in color, then pour on the water, leaving a small amount aside for the yeast (it should be freshly boiled, and at a temperature of 80°C – 175°F) and leave for 4 hours. Strain off the liquid, add to it the sugar and yeast dissolved in the remaining water(warm) and leave in a warm place for 8 hours. Strain the ready kvas and take to a colder place.

To make okroshka, hard boil the eggs, leave to cool, then separate the whites from the yolks. Put the yolks into a bowl, mix with mustard, sugar, salt and horseradish, and mix with half a cup of kvas.

Chop the meat, cucumbers, spring onions and egg whites finely, pour two cups of kvas into the mixture, and stir carefully but thoroughly. Mix with the yolks etc., pour into a vessel with a strong lid, and put in the refrigerator for 2-3 hours. Before serving, add the remaining kvas.

Okroshka is served with herbs, and smetana (sour cream) or vegetable oil. The smetana should be mixed in quickly so that it doesn’t coagulate.