Entree: Belarus – Холодник ➤ Kholodnik (Cold beet and vegetable soup typically served with hard-boiled eggs and fresh herbs)

Serving Size: 4

Approximate Time

Prep 30 min

Cook 20 min

Additional 2 hrs

Total 2 hrs 50 min

Ingredients

- 4 cups (960 ml) kefir or plain yogurt thinned with milk
- 2 cups (280 g) cooked beets, grated or finely diced
- 1 cup (150 g) cooked beets cooking liquid or cold water (optional to thin)
- 2 cups (300 g) English cucumber, peeled and diced
- 1 cup (115 g) radishes, thinly sliced
- 4 hard-boiled eggs, approx. 1.75 oz (50 g) each, peeled and quartered
- 2 small boiled potatoes, approx. 6 oz (170 g) each, peeled and diced
- 1/2 cup (30 g) fresh dill, chopped
- 1/2 cup (30 g) green onions, thinly sliced
- 1 tbsp (15 ml) fresh lemon juice
- 1 tsp (5 g) granulated sugar
- 1 tsp (5 g) salt, or to taste
- 1/2 tsp (1 g) freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tbsp (30 ml) sour cream (optional for extra richness)

Instructions

1. If using raw beets, simmer whole beets in boiling water until tender, about 45–60 minutes depending on size; drain, cool, peel, and grate or finely dice. Reserve 1 cup of cooking liquid if desired.
2. Hard-boil the eggs for 9–10 minutes, cool in ice water, peel, and quarter. Boil the small potatoes until tender, cool, peel, and dice.
3. In a large bowl, whisk the kefir (or thinned yogurt) with lemon juice, sugar, salt, and black pepper until smooth. If the mixture is very thick, add up to 1 cup (240 ml) of the reserved beet cooking liquid or cold water to reach a soup-like consistency.
4. Stir in the grated beets, cucumber, radishes, chopped dill, and green onions. Taste and adjust salt, sugar, and lemon juice to balance acidity and sweetness.
5. Chill the soup in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours or until very cold to allow flavors to meld.
6. To serve, place a portion of diced potatoes and quartered hard-boiled eggs into each bowl and ladle the chilled holodnik over them. Garnish with extra dill and a dollop of sour cream if desired.