The great country of soups

More on the food that I depend on to keep warm and fit... this time I'll write about the russian soups: soups are to Russia what pastas are to Italy, cheeses to France, and Frito pies to USA. The variety of soups is quite large in Russia, and I am on a mission to try them all. Tough mission, particularly cuz I already have my favorites. Here they are.

1- the Logman
I like the name of that one, which sounds like a soup made for real men from the logging industry. It is not a genuine russian soup though, I think it may be kazak but I am too lazy to Google if it's real true. It is a mix of meat, potatoes, pasta, carrots and water. It is hard to eat it without staining one's shirt, because the pasta drips all the time on the way from the plate to the mouth. That's why I recommend to eat it with a brown, orange and yellow shirt.



2-The solianka
I like that one very much too, because it is a chunky one. It is tomato based, with plenty of meat and a nice layer of oily fat on top, and water. That one keeps you warm. They also put olives, a slice of lemon, and a spoonful of cream. A little bit like a warm bloody mary, with more meat and with the vodka on the side...


3- The borsch
You probably heard of that one. I think it is Ukrainian. It is a beetroot soup, with chunks of meat and water. They usually add a spoonful of cream on that one too, just to make sure you get your load of calories.


3- The unknown soup in a bread bowl
I don't know the name of that last one: it contains cabbage, other veggies, dill (the favorite herb in Russia), and water. It comes in a bread bowl a bit like the clam chowder that I got in San Francisco, except this one is not sourdough. You don't have to eat the whole bread, because that is a lot of food... and the soup is only the appetizer, so leave some room for the beef tongue that's coming.


I wish you all a happy holiday. Stay warm. Eat more soup.