When I was child, my family lived upstairs from my Polish grandparents. Whenever Grandma Plona made her beet soup (borscht), I would get a small pot our of our cupboard, run downstairs and have her fill it up. I wanted to make sure I got my fair share since it disappeared so quickly! She started with a good hearty beef broth and then added all her other ingredients. The soup cooked all day on the stove and it warmed up the whole house. Her soup pot did not fit into her tiny icebox, so when it was time to put it away, she put it in the front hallway where it was very cold. The soup tasted even better the next day after all the flavors had time to blend.
If you are using fresh beets, prepare them the night before. Slice 4-5 beets thin and sprinkle with white vinegar. Let soak overnight and they will become softer. If using canned beets, you do not need to start the day before, simply take from the can, slice thin and sprinkle with vinegar. Peel and slice thin approximately 4 -5 white potatoes and one medium onion. In a large soup pot, add 2 - 2.5 lbs. beef soup meat (shank or round steak with bone), beets, potatoes, onion, salt to taste and approx 1 teaspoon of whole peppercorns. Add water enough to cover everything. Add one whole onion; not peeled. Cover the pot and bring to a boil, reduce to simmer and cook until meat is tender, approximately 2 hours. Skim the top as it cooks. Remove the whole onion and discard. Remove pot from heat to cool down. Blend in approximately 1 pint of sour cream and stir until smooth. Reheat the soup so the sour cream heats with the soup. Enjoy!
In a frying pan, saute 1 cup chopped onion, 1 clove of chopped garlic in 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil; approximately 5 minutes. Add 1 lb. of sliced Old World Meats smoked Slovenian sausage or smoked Kielbasa and cook about 10 minutes more over medium heat. Add 3 chopped carrots, 8 cups of shredded cabbage, 1 chopped green pepper, 6 cups of water and salt to taste. Cover and cook 15 minutes more. While the soup is cooking, prepare a roux in a separate sauce pan.
For the roux: Melt 2 tablespoons of butter, and whisk in 1.5 cups of flour. Take 1 cup of liquid from the soup and add it to the roux. Finally, add 12 oz of tomato juice. Whisk until well blended and the mixture thickens. Add the roux to the soup pot. Continue to cook on medium to low heat until all the vegetables are cooked and the soup has thickened slightly, approximately 1 hour.
One of Mom's best - by Dolores Plona
Whenever my Mom made this dish, everyone asked for more. The meat was always tender and you could enjoy the gravy over the noodles just by itself! Be sure to use a good quality sweet paprika such as Szeged brand, as the final touch.
Cut 1 lb. sirloin steak into medium sized pieces, dredge in flour, season with salt, pepper; brown in oil. Add 1 can tomato soup, 1 minced onion and 1 can drained mushrooms. Simmer for approximately 1 hour or until steak is tender. Remove from heat and cool slightly. Add 1/2 pint sour cream. When blended cook 15 minutes more. Serve over cooked wide egg noodles. Sprinkle with paprika before serving.
SLO-Ghetti by Scott Koprivec
Scott created this Slovenian style spaghetti sauce and the sausage adds a unique flavor.
Brown 1 lb. Fresh Ground Chuck seasoned with garlic salt; drain. Combine ground chuck with 1 lb. sliced Old World Meats Slovenian Sausage, 1 chopped onion, 1 chopped green pepper (1 can mushrooms, optional), 1 jar spaghetti sauce, 1 can tomato paste. Combine all in a crock pot; cook on low all day. Serve sauce over your favorite pasta.
by Sharon Jesse
Grandpa Ziegler was a fabulous cook. He had a special way of preparing simple dishes; the taste could not be beat. Whenever you asked for one of his recipes, he became very secretive and never gave out the complete ingredient list. It took me many years of observation to get the recipe below just right. The homemade dumplings are great, but if you don't have time, you can purchase spaetzle to add instead. This paprikash is eaten as a soup.
Prepare a chicken broth by boiling chicken wings, backs and necks or a whole chicken with 1 cup of chopped onion, 2 cups of chopped celery, 4-5 sliced carrots and salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a boil, then cover and simmer until the chick is tender. Remove all chicken from the pot and discard bones, etc. Return meat to the pot and allow it all to cool. Once cooled, you can add approximately 1 pint of sour cream to the soup and 1 - 2 Tablespoons of sweet paprika; blend well. In the meantime, you can prepare the homemade dumplings.
Dumplings: Beat 3 eggs with 2.5 cups of flour, 1 teaspoon of salt and 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil. Slowly add water until the mixture is like very thick pancake batter. Boil water in a quart sized pot. Start to pour the mixture into the boiling water and cut off into small clumps to form small dumplings. Let them boil 5 - 8 minutes, they should float to the top when done. Once they are done, add them to the soup. Reheat the soup so all the flavors blend. Add more paprika, salt, pepper and sour cream to taste.
By Stanley Knaus
My mother comes from Mali Log in Slovenia and here is her goulash recipe that we all love.
Saute 1 onion, sliced or chopped in hot bacon fat (3 T) over medium flame, stirring sometimes to brown evenly, about 10 minutes. Add 2 lbs. beef stew meat from the chuck, cut into 1" - 2" cubes. Cook to brown, about another 10 minutes; add 2 or 3 tsp. of paprika and cook 5 minutes. Add 1 to 2 tablespoons of flour and cook another 5 minutes. Add 2 bay leaves, and enough water or beef stock to cover the meat and onions. Bring to a simmer, cover partially and cook about 1.5 to 2 hours until meat is tender. Serve hot with wide noodles, soft polenta or boiled potatoes. Delicious!