Kvasolyana Yushka (квасоляна юшка, bean soup)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •A big heavy pot or modern stockpot
• •A wide pan for the zasmazhka
• •A wooden spoon or potato masher for crushing a few beans

Instructions

1. 1

   Soak the beans

   The night before, cover the beans with plenty of cold water, more than you think, because dry beans drink like gossiping aunties. By morning they should look plump and a little wrinkled at the edges. Drain them and rinse once; the soaking water has done its job.

   If you forgot the soak, bring the beans to a boil in fresh water, turn off the heat, cover, and leave them for an hour. Not perfect, but the pot forgives you.
2. 2

   Start the yushka

   Put the drained beans into a big pot with the cold water, halved onion, parsley root or parsnip, carrot pieces, and bay leaf. Bring it up slowly, skim off any foam, then let it murmur rather than boil hard. At first the beans tap sharply against the spoon; later the sound goes dull and soft. That is the pot beginning to feed you.

3. 3

   Add potatoes

   When the beans give under your spoon but still hold their shape, lift out the spent onion, carrot, parsley root, and bay leaf. Add the diced potatoes and salt lightly. Keep simmering until the potato corners soften and the broth looks cloudy, not watery. Crush a few beans against the side of the pot if you want more body.

4. 4

   Build the zasmazhka

   Warm the sunflower oil in a wide pan. If you're using salo, render it first until the little cubes turn golden at the edges, then add the onion. Cook low and slow until the onion turns translucent and sweet, then add the grated carrot and keep going until the oil is orange and glossy. You're not browning. You're coaxing sweetness out.

   The zasmazhka goes in near the end because that orange sweetness should sit brightly on the broth. Add it early and it disappears into the stock.
5. 5

   Finish the pot

   Scrape the zasmazhka into the soup, including every green-gold drop of oil from the pan. Add the garlic, black pepper, and most of the dill. If the pot tastes sleepy, stir in a spoon or two of fermented tomato or cucumber brine, but only after the beans are fully soft; acid tightens bean skins if you rush it. Taste again. It should be creamy, savory, and bright at the edges.

6. 6

   Rest and serve

   Turn off the heat and let the yushka sit covered until it settles into itself. Ladle it into deep bowls, finish with more dill and a thin thread of unrefined sunflower oil. Add smetana if the table is not fasting, or don't. Both pots are honest.

Chef Tips

• •Old beans take longer, and no recipe writer can bully them into softness. If they are still chalky inside, keep simmering and add hot water as needed.
• •Salt lightly once the beans begin to soften, then finish the seasoning at the end. Brine, salo, and old beans all change the saltiness of the pot.
• •Use unrefined sunflower oil if you can. It smells nutty and green, Ukraine in a bottle of oil, and it gives a Lenten pot its backbone.
• •For a weeknight version, use two large jars or tins of cooked white beans with their liquid and start with a lighter vegetable broth. A bit more modern, and useful when everyone is already hungry.
• •The soup thickens overnight. Loosen it with a splash of water when reheating, then wake it back up with fresh dill and a little oil.

Advance Preparation

• •Soak the beans 8 to 12 hours before cooking. This is the only planning the soup asks from you.
• •The finished yushka keeps 4 days in the fridge and improves after the first night.
• •Freeze without smetana. Reheat gently, loosen with water, and add fresh dill at the table.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 390g)