The famous beet soup, sweet-sour and garnet-red, ladled over beans and finished with dill and sour cream.

Where does Borscht come from?

Borscht is a Ukrainian dish from Poltava, Ukraine.

Can Borscht be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?

Yes. This Borscht recipe includes ingredient substitutions to make it vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, or egg-free — including several of those at once, such as gluten-free and dairy-free together.

How long does Borscht take to make?

About 85 minutes total (25 minutes prep, 60 minutes cooking), serving 6.

Recipe

Name: Borscht
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 60 min
Total time: 85 min
Yield: 6 servings
Cuisine: Ukrainian
Ingredients: 3 medium beets, peeled and grated; 3 cups green cabbage, shredded; 3 potatoes, cubed; 1 each carrot and onion, diced; 1.5 cups white beans, cooked; 2 tbsp tomato paste; 3 cloves garlic, minced; 1.5 tbsp white vinegar or lemon juice; 1 tsp sugar; 1/2 cup fresh dill, chopped; 3 tbsp neutral oil; 3/4 cup sour cream, to serve

Europe → 🇺🇦 Ukraine → Poltava

Borscht

Ukrainian · medium · serves 6

prep 25 min · cook 60 min

~450 cal · 15g protein · 59g carbs · 18g fat (estimated, per serving)

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Bowl of deep red borscht with sour cream and dill

🇺🇦 Poltava

UNESCO recognized Ukrainian borscht culture as endangered heritage in 2022, and Poltava is where Ukrainians say it reaches its peak. Every region — every family — holds its own recipe, but all agree: the beets must keep their color, and the balance is sweet-and-sour.

Make it yours

Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.

🥕 Vegetarian

🌱 Vegan

🌾 Gluten-Free

🥛 Dairy-Free

🥜 Nut-Free

🥚 Egg-Free

Ingredients

Serves 6 —

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3 medium beets, peeled and grated

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3 cups green cabbage, shredded

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3 potatoes, cubed

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1 each carrot and onion, diced

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1.5 cups white beans, cooked

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2 tbsp tomato paste

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3 cloves garlic, minced

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1.5 tbsp white vinegar or lemon juice

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1 tsp sugar

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1/2 cup fresh dill, chopped

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3 tbsp neutral oil

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3/4 cup sour cream, to serve

Instructions

Sauté the carrot and onion in oil; add the beets, tomato paste, vinegar, and sugar with a splash of water and stew 10 minutes — the acid locks in the color.

Meanwhile simmer the potatoes in 8 cups salted water for 10 minutes; add the cabbage for 5 more.

Combine the beet mixture and beans into the pot and simmer gently 15 minutes.

Add garlic and half the dill, then rest off the heat 20 minutes — borscht wants to settle.

Serve with sour cream, the rest of the dill, and (traditionally) garlic-rubbed bread.

Poltava-region meatless (pisniy) tradition.

Ratings & reviews

No reviews yet — be the first to cook it.

🌏 While it simmers — know your destination

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Poltava. The region Ukrainians themselves credit with the finest borscht.

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Ukraine. The breadbasket of Europe and home of true borscht.

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Europe. Village recipes guarded for generations.

The story behind this dish is up top — worth a read while the pot works.

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Richard Moore & Kelsey Tucker

Recipes cooked, tested, and researched by the creators of Spin the Globe. How we build our recipes →