Šaltibarščiai - cold beetroot soup, also known as cold borscht or simply ‘the pink soup’ - is a staple of Lithuanian cuisine and particularly popular on hot summer days.
If you ask any Lithuanian about šaltibarščiai (how I could explain pronunciation? Something like Shahl- tee-bahrsh-tschyay), most likely they will invite you not to restaurant, but home, as this is really the meal we are having in each family during hot summer days.
The bright pink-colored soup, served cold with boiled or fried potatoes, is quite easy to make (at least easier than to pronounce: shull-tee-barsh-chay).
To cater to šaltibarščiai lovers, many supermarkets offer the soup ready made.
Šaltibarščiai are served cold in the plate or bowl. Skanaus!
Ingredients and Preparation
In Lithuanian supermarkets you may find beetroots in jars in light marinade, specially for šaltibarščiai. In past when all vegetables were harvesting in gardens, not in supermarkets, early in spring we already had spring onions and dills, but cucumber - not yet. Spring onion - fresh green part of each onion.
Recipe:
- Boil beetroot in water until tender.
- Let it cool down, peel and grate coarsely.
- Mix with salt and a pinch of lemon acid.
- Chop spring onions.
- Chop dill finely.
- Chop cucumber into small cubes.
- Mix all together with salt and let release the flavor.
- Add grated beetroot.
- Peel shells from hard-boiled eggs.
- One option (more comfortable, but less beautiful) - to cut eggs really small and mix with all other ingredients.
- Add sour cream, buttermilk or kefir. Stir. The color will appear slowly.
- If you like more liquid soup, add some cold boiled water.
- Peel potatoes, cut them in half and boil in slightly salted water until tender.
Cultural Significance
If you ask any Lithuanian about traditional Lithuanian meal, most likely they will answer “cepelinai” (zeppelins) and invite you to restaurant to taste them. Well, cepelinai are good, but… but actually cepelinai is just our trick to distract attention of foreigner from truly Lithuanian meal. Šaltibarščiai!!! Shocking pink, delicious and healthy cold soup - we can‘t imagine spring nor summer without it.
Šaltibarščiai has been cherished in Lithuanian homes and kitchens for generations, and its vibrant pink color is a symbol of Lithuanian summer meals.
Vilnius (capital of Lithuania) even has a festival for this soup - Pink Soup Festival!
Miglė Gruzdenė, a shop owner, confirms that this week she is running out of the main ingredients for the soup. Kefir and beetroot sales spike every summer, two to three times, she says, but this year has been extraordinary. Algis tells LRT TV, “There is no kefir, I can't find any beetroot, things like that.”
The "New York Times" Incident
“Visi piktinasi vienu didžiausių Lietuvos istorijoje kulinariniu skandalu, kai The New York Times savo kulinarijos skiltyje šaltibarščius pavadino lenkiška sriuba (nors recepto aprašyme ir nurodė sriubos kilmę - nuo ATR laikų). Visas New York Times išlikimo klausimas dabar kabo ant Kasios pasirinkimo - sureaguoti ar leisti problemai eskaluotis iki tokio lygio, kokį Ameriką matė tik 1962-ųjų spalį.
In this post, The New York Times incorrectly referred to our traditional Lithuanian soup, šaltibarščiai (cold borscht), as Polish. I must stress how important this dish is to Lithuania’s national identity and culture. Calling it Polish is not only historically inaccurate, but it also disregards the pride that Lithuanians take in our unique culinary heritage.
Lithuania was the last pagan state in Europe, and we have a long history of standing strong for our principles.
So before this situation stirs up even more trouble, I suggest that The New York Times issue a formal apology to the people of Lithuania. This apology should be prominently displayed on the front page of your next issue.
Embassy Vilnius, išsigandusi aštriadančių lietuvių antplūdžio į Niujorką, pasirinko puses! O šitame šaltibarščių žinomumo pakilime dabar būtų puiki proga pasiremti istoriniais šaltiniais ir pabandyti įtraukti juos į kokį nors Lietuvos kulinarį paveldą ES lygmenyje.
Žiūrėkit, čia ne apie šaltibarščius, ar jų kilmę. Čia apie šansus Lietuvos įvaizdžio formavimui - kadangi neturim ir neturėsim tam šimtamilijoninių biudžetų, galim gaudyti ir išnaudoti mums nukrentančias progas. Reaguoti ne su pykčiu, o su humoru. Ši proga - viena iš tokių.