Liden & Denz BORSCH party

If you´re studying Russian, I am sure you´re by now familiar with the dish called BORSCH (борщ). Liden & Denz organized a borsch party in Riga for their students yesterday in order to give them a full experience of preparing, cooking, and tasting borsch as a true Russian. 

1. Preparations for the party

Almost twenty students from all around the world gathered on a Friday afternoon to prepare one of the most famous Russian dishes – borsch. Our teachers took care of the organizational part, so we all headed to Dasha´s cozy kitchen and started preparing. Once all the Russian terminology for vegetables and dishes was learned, everyone got their task – some cut the onion, others made their way through grating some red beet, all while listening to some great Russian music.

Students preparing borsch

2. Zakuska (закуска)

While the borsch was cooking, we decided to kill some time with the 80s music and zakuska – a must if you´re drinking vodka. Zakuska is considered a snack that is very common in Russia (and other Slavic-speaking countries) and it is a cold dish served with your alcoholic drink. This time, we placed some herrings on top of bread and enjoyed a shot of vodka with it.

Traditional zakuska is meant to follow every shot of vodka

3. Finally – borsch (борщ)

After cooking for an hour – our borsch was finally ready! There was a vegetarian option as well, so everybody got to enjoy this amazing meal that is very common in Russian households. Liden & Denz borsch party was definitely a success and it´s safe to say that we all had a blast! Thanks to everyone who organized it. The rest of you – scroll down to see our pictures and join us at our next Liden & Denz borsch party in Riga – sign up for Russian language courses here.