Okroshka

Okroshka (Cold Kvass and Vegetable Soup)

A classic Russian cold soup for hot summer days, okroshka combines crunchy raw vegetables, tender potato, egg and a choice of cured meats into a chilled, herb-flecked broth of bread kvass (or kefir, in a popular variation). It is meant to be cool, tangy and refreshing — never heavy.

Prep

25 min

Cook

25 min

Total

50 min

Serves

4

Difficulty

Easy

Recipe ingredients

• •1.2 l (5 cups) bread kvass, well-chilled, use a sour, fermented bottled kvass; substitute 700 ml kefir + 500 ml cold water + 1 tbsp lemon juice if kvass is unavailable
• •400 g (14 oz) waxy potatoes, such as Yukon Gold or Charlotte
• •200 g (7 oz) ham and cooked beef tongue (or all ham), diced, a 50/50 mix of ham and boiled beef tongue is traditional; kielbasa or cooked chicken breast are common home substitutions
• •4 large eggs
• •300 g (10½ oz) fresh cucumbers, partially peel in stripes for color
• •200 g (7 oz) radishes
• •1 small bunch spring onions, white and pale green parts
• •15 g (½ oz) fresh dill
• •200 g (7 oz) sour cream, for serving
• •1 tsp salt, plus more to taste
• •0.5 tsp (½ tsp) sugar (optional), balances the kvass acidity
• •1 tsp prepared horseradish (optional), adds the classic sharp bite

Steps

1. 1 Place the eggs in a small saucepan, cover with cold water and bring to a boil over high heat. Once boiling, reduce to medium and cook 9 minutes for hard-boiled yolks that slice cleanly. Transfer to ice water, then peel and dice.
2. 2 Scrub the potatoes and place them in a saucepan with salted water. Bring to a boil and simmer 18–22 minutes, until a knife slides in with no resistance (internal temperature above 95 °C / 200 °F). Drain, cool completely, peel if you prefer, and dice into ~5 mm cubes.
3. 3 While the potatoes cook, prep the raw vegetables: dice the cucumbers and radishes to the same size as the potato. Finely slice the spring onions and chop the dill. Lightly mash the spring onions with the back of a knife or a pinch of salt — this releases their juices, which is traditional in okroshka.
4. 4 In a large bowl, combine the diced potato, eggs, ham and tongue (or substitute), cucumbers, radishes, spring onions and most of the dill. Season with 1 tsp salt, the optional sugar and horseradish, and toss gently.
5. 5 Pour the chilled kvass (or kefir-water mixture) over the solids, stir once, and taste. Adjust with more salt or a splash of cold water if the broth is too intense. The soup should taste cool, tangy and lightly seasoned — the vegetables, not the broth, are the star.
6. 6 Ladle into chilled bowls. Top each portion with a generous spoonful of sour cream, a pinch of the reserved dill, and a grind of pepper. Serve immediately, with extra kvass on the table in case guests want to thin their bowl.
7. 7 Safety and serving note: keep the cooked components (potato, egg, meat) refrigerated until assembly, and serve the finished okroshka the same day. Do not let the mixed soup sit at room temperature for more than 1 hour — eggs and meat make this a perishable cold dish, despite the kvass.