Due to the fact that borscht can be prepared in a huge number of ways, the list of ingredients is usually not treated very strictly.
That is why you can sometimes see very exotic products in the soup, which no one would have thought of adding to the dish before.
But this does not mean that the soup will be better. On the contrary, there is a high probability that you will simply ruin the dish. However, sometimes even familiar components have the same feature. If you refuse them, the taste will be much better.
What ingredients would be unnecessary in borscht?
Vinegar
Of course, the soup should have a sour taste, since this is its distinctive feature and "gimmick". However, vinegar has too sharp a taste and smell.
If you add a little more vinegar, the soup will be simply edible.
It is better to add a noble sourness with lemon juice or tomato paste. These options will also be healthier.
Potato
For many, this will come as a complete surprise, but potatoes are actually a completely unnecessary component in borscht. They "simplify" the taste of this luxurious soup, not allowing all the other components to fully reveal themselves.
Potatoes also make a light dish heavier. Try making borscht without potatoes as part of a culinary experiment and feel the difference.
