Today’s edition of 10almonds brings you a blast from the past with a modern twist: an ancient Russian peasant food that became a Soviet staple, and today, is almost unknown in the West.

Before we get to that, let’s take a sneaky look at this declassified CIA memorandum from near the end of the Cold War:

(Click here to see a bigger version)

The take-away here is:

• Americans were eating 2–3 times more meat than Soviets
• Soviets were eating nearly double the amount of grain products and potatoes

…and both of these statistics meant that nutritionally speaking, the Soviets were doing better.

Americans also consumed more sugar and fats, which again, wasn’t the best dietary option.

But was the American diet tastier? Depends on whom you ask.

Which brings us to a literal recipe we’re going to be sharing with you today:

It’s not well-known in the West, but in Russia, it’s a famous national comfort food, a bastion of health and nutrition, and it rose to popularity because it was not only cheap and nutritious, but also, you could eat it for days without getting sick of it. And it could be easily frozen for reheating later without losing any of its appeal—it’d still be just as good.

In Russia there are sayings about it:

Щи да каша — пища наша (Shchi da kasha — pishcha nasha)

“Shchi and buckwheat are what we eat”

Top tip: buckwheat makes an excellent (and naturally sweet) alternative to porridge oats if prepared the same way!

Где щи, там и нас ищи (Gdye shchi, tam i nas ishchi)

“Where there’s shchi, us you’ll see”

Голь голью, а луковка во щах есть (Gol’ gol’yu, a lukovka vo shchakh yest’)

“I’m stark naked, but there’s shchi with onions”

There’s a very strong sentiment in Russia that really, all you need is shchi (shchi, shchi… shchi is all you need )

But what, you may ask, is shchi?

Our culinary cultural ambassador Nastja is here to offer her tried-and-tested recipe for…

…Russian cabbage soup (yes, really—bear with us now, and you can thank us later)

There are a lot of recipes for shchi (see for yourself what the Russian version of Lifehacker recommends), and we’ll be offering our favorite…

Nastja’s Nutritious and Delicious Homemade Shchi

Hi, Nastja here! I’m going to share with you my shchi recipe that is:

• Cheap
• So tasty
• Super nutritious*
• Vegan
• Gluten Free

You will also need:

• A cabbage (I use sweetheart, but any white cabbage will do)
• 1 cup (250g) red lentils (other kinds of lentils will work too)
• ½ lb or so (250–300g) tomatoes (I use baby plum tomatoes, but any kind will do)
• ½ lb or so (250–300g) mushrooms (the edible kind)
• An onion (I use a brown onion; any kind will do)
• Salt, pepper, rosemary, thyme, parsley, cumin
• Marmite or similar yeast extract (do you hate it? Me too. Trust me, it’ll be fine, you’ll love it. Omit if you’re a coward.)
• A little oil for sautéing (I use sunflower, but canola is fine, as is soy oil. Do not use olive oil or coconut oil, because the taste is too strong and the flashpoint too low)

First, what the French call mise-en-place, the prep work:

1. Chop the cabbage into small strips, ⅛–¼ inch x 1 inch is a good guideline, but you can’t really go wrong unless you go to extremes
2. Chop the tomatoes. If you’re using baby plum tomatoes (or cherry tomatoes), cut them in half. If using larger tomatoes, cut them into eighths (halve them, halve the halves, then halve the quarters)
3. Chop the mushrooms. If using button mushrooms, half them. If using larger mushrooms, quarter them.
4. Chop the onion finely.
5. Gather the following kitchenware: A big pan (stock pot or similar), a sauté pan (a big wok or frying pan will do), a small frying pan (here a wok will not do), and a saucepan (a rice cook will also do)

Now, for actual cooking:

1. Cook the red lentils until soft (I use a rice cooker, but a saucepan is fine) and set aside
2. Sauté the cabbage, put it in the big pot (not yet on the heat!)
3. Fry the mushrooms, put them in the big pot (still not yet on the heat!)

When you’ve done this a few times and/or if you’re feeling confident, you can do the above simultaneously to save time

4. Blend the lentils into the water you cooked them in, and then add to the big pot.
5. Turn the heat on low, and if necessary, add more water to make it into a rich soup
6. Add the seasonings to taste, except the parsley. Go easy on the cumin, be generous with the rosemary and thyme, let your heart guide you with the salt and pepper.
7. When it comes to the yeast extract: add about one teaspoon and stir it into the pot. Even if you don’t like Marmite, it barely changes the flavour (makes it slightly richer) and adds a healthy dose of vitamin B12.

We did not forget the tomatoes and the onion:

1. Caramelize the onion (keep an eye on the big pot) and set it aside
2. Fry the tomatoes and add them to the big pot

Last but definitely not least:

3. Serve!
4. The caramelized onion is a garnish, so put a little on top of each bowl of shchi
5. The parsley is also a garnish, just add a little

Any shchi you don’t eat today will keep in the fridge for several days, or in the freezer for much longer.

*That nutritious goodness I talked about? Check it out:

• Lentils are high in protein and iron
• Cabbage is high in vitamin C and calcium
• Mushrooms are high in magnesium
• Tomatoes are good against inflammation
• Black pepper has a host of health benefits
• Yeast extract contains vitamin B12

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