Borsch! Culinary Disaster-Land. Panela.

[lovimoment]

I made borsch this Sunday.

Comments

[wolk_off]

So, you grated the beets for borsch? Ukrainians just cut them in small cubes instead.

[lovimoment]

I guess I did Ukrainian borsch, then. I cubed the beets, cut the carrots into matchsticks, and cut the cabbage very, very fine, so it was almost like grated (like on a tyorka).

[wolk_off]

Well, Ukrainian borsch is THE borsch :) But if it does not contain SALO, it's not Ukrainian! :))))

[lovimoment]

They don't sell salo here, but the ribs were covered in a thick layer of chewy fat about an inch thick...close enough?

[hettie_lz]

I use pork neck bones for the borsch broth, and I think it's better than the ribs. Do they sell them in Bogota?

For the stuffed peppers just ground beef and rice should be fine, and not dry... just get not exactly lean meat... and the rice should be of the sticky kind... you only cook it half-way before stuffing, and you mix it with raw ground beef and then bake, and then cook them in the pan, right?

[lovimoment]

I couldn't find anything like that. I asked for leg bones and some other types, but they didn't have them, so I told them I was making soup. Whenever I'd ask for soup bones, they'd redirect me to the ribs.

I think I see the problem with my peppers - I cooked the beef and rice all the way separately before stuffing the peppers. I don't know if cooking the rice halfway would work at high altitude. (Rice and beans here both have to be done in a pressure cooker or else they never cook...you can literally boil beans for ten hours without them cooking if they're not in a pressure cooker.) But probably I could cook the rice all the way and mix it with the raw beef and it would still absorb more of the flavor. I'll try that next time!

[hettie_lz]

yes, I think, mixing raw meat in will do. And make sure it's not 90% lean :)

[lovimoment]

I don't think Colombia even sells lean meat.

And I have to comment that I don't understand the point of lean meat - why don't people just drain the fat off if it bothers them so much!