This Vegetarian Borscht is a hearty, colorful soup full of beets, carrots, cabbage, potatoes, and fresh herbs. Packed with flavor and great for make-ahead meals, it reheats beautifully for several meals.
Borscht is one of those classic soups that’s always comforting, no matter the time of year. While I absolutely love the traditional version made with beef, I’m also a huge fan of this Vegetarian Borscht. It’s just as hearty and satisfying, thanks to the addition of beans, which give it that meaty texture without any actual meat. The best part? It’s loaded with colorful, wholesome veggies—beets, carrots, potatoes, cabbage, onions, and garlic, all simmered together and finished with fresh herbs to create a soup that’s as flavorful as it is vibrant.
One of the things I love most about Borscht is that it only gets better with time. The flavors deepen and meld the longer it sits, so it’s the perfect make-ahead meal. This soup reheats beautifully, which means you can enjoy it for several meals throughout the week—it's a time-saver that still feels special each time you enjoy a bowl. I'm all about meal prep that's delicious and satisfying.
Whether you're serving it as a cozy lunch or a satisfying dinner, this Vegetarian Borscht is the kind of dish that feels like a bowl of comfort and nutrition all in one. And with so many ways to make it, it's a recipe that never gets old.
Ingredients:
1 cup dry beans, brined overnight in 4 cups water and ¾ teaspoons table salt, or 1 (14.5 oz.) can of beans
12 cups water
2 dry bay leaves
3-5 black peppercorns
3 potatoes, peeled and chopped
½ cabbage, thinly sliced
1 Tablespoon oil or butter
1 onion, chopped
1 carrot, peeled and grated
1 celery stalk, sliced
2 medium roasted beets (or canned beets, 2 (14.5 oz) cans), peeled and grated or sliced into matchsticks
2 tomatoes, seeded and chopped
2-3 garlic cloves, minced
1-2 teaspoons vinegar or lemon juice
1 bunch beet greens, chopped
salt, pepper
fresh herbs - parsley, green onions, dill
sour cream, to garnish
How To Make Vegetarian Borscht
I like to brine the beans the night before I am planning to make the Borsch. You can also use canned beans, if you prefer. In that case, you would add the beans at the very end of cooking.
Brining the beans will help to soften the skin of the beans so that they cook faster without bursting. As they brine, they will expand a bit. The beans on the left are the ones that I brined overnight and on the right is the same amount of dry beans. Quite a difference, wouldn't you say?
Drain the beans from the brining liquid and put them into a large pot with the 12 cups of water. Bring it to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cook the beans for about 20 minutes. 
Meanwhile, prep the rest of your ingredients.
After the beans have cooked for 20 minutes, add the potatoes and the cabbage to the soup. 
Add the dry bay leaf, peppercorns and season with salt. 
In a skillet, melt the butter or oil, add the onions, season with salt and pepper and cook on medium heat for about 5 minutes, until the onions are translucent and softened. Add the carrots and celery, season with salt and pepper and cook for another 3-5 minutes, until they are tender as well. 
Add the vegetables to the soup.
Using the same skillet, add the beets, tomatoes, garlic, vinegar (or lemon juice) and season with salt and pepper. 
Cook for about 5-7 minutes. 
Add the beets to the soup along with the beet greens. 
Beet greens are wonderful to add to Borsch, especially if you have your own garden. During the summers, my Mom would always add the beet greens to the soup and it added so much freshness and flavor. I would add a lot more if my grocery store beets had more that a measly amount that I could get.
Add the fresh herbs to the Borsch and serve with sour cream.
Vegetarian Borscht
Ingredients
- 1 cup dry beans brined overnight in 4 cups water and ¾ teaspoons table salt, or 1 (14.5 oz.) can of beans
- 12 cups water
- 2 dry bay leaves
- 3-5 black peppercorns
- 3 potatoes peeled and chopped
- ½ cabbage thinly sliced
- 1 Tablespoon oil or butter
- 1 onion chopped
- 1 carrot peeled and grated
- 1 celery stalk sliced
- 2 medium roasted beets or canned beets, 2 (14.5 oz cans), peeled and grated or sliced into matchsticks
- 2 tomatoes seeded and chopped
- 2-3 garlic cloves minced
- 1-2 teaspoons vinegar or lemon juice
- 1 bunch beet greens chopped
- salt pepper
- fresh herbs - parsley green onions, dill
- sour cream to garnish
Instructions
- I like to brine the beans the night before I am planning to make the Borsch. You can also use canned beans, if you prefer. In that case, you would add the beans at the very end of cooking.
- Drain the beans from the brining liquid and put them into a large pot pot with the 12 cups of water. Bring it to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cook the beans for about 20 minutes.
- Meanwhile, prep the rest of your ingredients.
- After the beans have cooked for 20 minutes, add the potatoes and the cabbage to the soup. Add the dry bay leaf, peppercorns and season with salt.
- In a skillet, melt the butter or oil, add the onions, season with salt and pepper and cook on medium heat for about 5 minutes, until the onions are translucent and softened. Add the carrots and celery, season with salt and pepper and cook for another 3-5 minutes, until they are tender as well. Add the vegetables to the soup.
- Using the same skillet, add the beets, tomatoes, garlic, vinegar (or lemon juice) and season with salt and pepper. Cook for about 5-7 minutes. Add the beets to the soup along with the beet greens.
- Add the fresh herbs to the Borsch and serve with sour cream.
We love this recipe so much Olga 😋 I make it often. I am going to try your Pryaniki for Christmas this year. I think with the addition of coffee they will be delicious. They are similar to German pfefferneuse minus the coffee, so I am very excited to try them. Thank you so much for all your wonderful recipes. Tomorrow I am making your mini stuffed peppers, I can't wait to make them. Kind regards from Canada 🇨🇦
Hi Lori,
Welcome! Thank you for sharing:). I hope you enjoy all the recipes that you try.
I did make the Ukha today Olga, and Mr and Mrs and Grandma all thought it was excellent !!
It is very interesting to make some Russian specialities, I know they like simple but tasty food, and it is a very well written, and very well illustrated blog, that makes following the recipes much easier.
I will have to try the pelmeni, a few of our chefs have found it difficult to get right, yet in theory it looks simple. We will see !!
Thank you for blog, it is excellent.
I'm so glad you're enjoying the recipes, Stuart. I hope you enjoy the Pelmeni too.
Just made this for the first time for my Russian boss. She said it was amazing, and she can't make borscht like that !!!
She was explaining the simple fish and veg soup to me, so am gonna try yours !
Thanks !!
I'm so glad you enjoyed the Borsch, Stuart. How thoughtful to make it for someone Russian:). I hope you enjoy the Ukha as well.
This recipe looks delicious! What type of beans do you usually use? I will probably go with canned.
I like Northern beans or Navy beans, Lilia.
I hope you enjoy the Borsch.
Thank you!! Just made it tonight and it turned out delicious!
I love the vegetarian version! Nice to take a break from meat once in a while and enjoy some healthy vegetables 🙂
I agree, Vita. Vegetables are so satisfying in their own way too.
Thank You for a wonderful recipe , i am vegetarian mostly vegan and we would love more recipe like this one great job, u are amazing !!!
That's great, Liuda! Enjoy.
I am a vegetarian & I usually make my borshch with out meat. I know that w/meat it has richer taste but I'm so used to the taste w/out meat that I just enjoy it anyway. All the herbs bring out amazing taste! Thank you for this recipe it looks amazing!:)
Thank you, Julia.
I love fresh herbs in food; they definitely give so much fresh flavor to a dish.
I love borsch with or without the meat! Sometimes I just don't feel like un-thawing some meat and don't have any fresh meat on hand and I whip up a borsch similar to yours!
It's a great option when you are craving Borsch but don't have the time or the thawed meat:). My thoughts exactly, Katy.