If you want to cook tasty white borscht, you will need wheat sourdough. It is milder in flavour than rye sourdough. Preparing home-made sourdough takes a few moments and is extremely simple.

But before we go any further let us explain once more the difference between sourdough for rye soup and white borsch.

Żur (and żurek) also known as rye soup and white borsch look, taste and even smell similarly. But as we mentioned before in our sourdough recipe for rye soup according to the majority of opinions and recipes, sour rye soup is made with rye sourdough, while white borscht is made with wheat sourdough. This has a significant impact on the later flavour of the soup. Thanks to this, white borsch is a bit more delicate, because sourdough on rye soup must be firmly and strongly flavoured. And for borsch, it can be even without additional spices. It is the sourdough that largely gives flavour to the soup.

But without further delay let’s get started with the recipe.

Sourdough for white borscht by CRAVEmonkey
Sourdough for white borscht by CRAVEmonkey

Ingredients for sourdough:

  • 700ml of boiled water (lukewarm)
  • 7 tbs of flour (wholemeal wheat flour)
  • 6 cloves of garlic
  • 2 tbsp of marjoram
  • 8 allspice seeds
  • 4-5 bay leaves

Method:

  1. Prepare a large jar.
  2. Pour in the jar the boiled, lukewarm water.
  3. Add flour, bay leaves, allspice seeds, peeled cloves of garlic and marjoram.
  4. Mix it and cover with gauze or cotton cloth (so it could “breath”) and put it away in a dark place with no sun exposure ( it can be a cabinet, pantry or any similar place).
  5. Mix 1-2 times a day for 7-8 days.
  6. Tip: During the pickling process, some foam may form on the surface – this is a natural thing. We collect it and remove it. To make the sourdough faster, you can add a piece of dried sourdough bread to it or pickle juice.

The sourdough will change the scent after just 3 days. After 5 days, it can be ready for use. The longer it pickles, the stronger it will be.

Sourdough for white borscht by CRAVEmonkey
Sourdough for white borscht by CRAVEmonkey

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