Ukha ( rus, уха) is a clear

Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries * Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and p ...

soup, made from various types of fish such as

bream Bream ( ) are species of freshwater and marine fish belonging to a variety of genera including ''Abramis'' (e.g., ''A. brama'', the common bream), ''Acanthopagrus'', '' Argyrops'', ''Blicca'', '' Brama'', '' Chilotilapia'', '' Etelis'', '' Le ...

wels catfish The wels catfish ( or ; ''Silurus glanis''), also called sheatfish or just wels, is a large species of catfish native to wide areas of central, southern, and eastern Europe, in the basins of the Baltic, Black and Caspian Seas. It has been intro ...

, northern pike, or even ruffe. It usually contains

root vegetable Root vegetables are underground plant parts eaten by humans as food. Although botany distinguishes true roots (such as taproots and tuberous roots) from non-roots (such as bulbs, corms, rhizomes, and tubers, although some contain both hypocotyl a ...

s, parsley root,

leek The leek is a vegetable, a cultivar of '' Allium ampeloprasum'', the broadleaf wild leek ( syn. ''Allium porrum''). The edible part of the plant is a bundle of leaf sheaths that is sometimes erroneously called a stem or stalk. The genus ''Alli ...

, potato,

bay leaf The bay leaf is an aromatic leaf commonly used in cooking. It can be used whole, either dried or fresh, in which case it is removed from the dish before consumption, or less commonly used in ground form. It may come from several species of tr ...

dill Dill (''Anethum graveolens'') is an annual herb in the celery family Apiaceae. It is the only species in the genus ''Anethum''. Dill is grown widely in Eurasia, where its leaves and seeds are used as a herb or spice for flavouring food. Growt ...

tarragon Tarragon (''Artemisia dracunculus''), also known as estragon, is a species of perennial herb in the family Asteraceae. It is widespread in the wild across much of Eurasia and North America and is cultivated for culinary and medicinal purposes. ...

, and green parsley, and is spiced with black pepper,

saffron Saffron () is a spice derived from the flower of ''Crocus sativus'', commonly known as the "saffron crocus". The vivid crimson stigma and styles, called threads, are collected and dried for use mainly as a seasoning and colouring agent i ...

, nutmeg, and fennel seed. Fish such as

perch Perch is a common name for fish of the genus ''Perca'', freshwater gamefish belonging to the family Percidae. The perch, of which three species occur in different geographical areas, lend their name to a large order of vertebrates: the Perci ...

tench The tench or doctor fish (''Tinca tinca'') is a fresh- and brackish-water fish of the order Cypriniformes found throughout Eurasia from Western Europe including the British Isles east into Asia as far as the Ob and Yenisei Rivers. It is ...

, sheatfish, and

burbot The burbot (''Lota lota'') is the only gadiform (cod-like) freshwater fish. It is also known as bubbot, mariah, loche, cusk, freshwater cod, freshwater ling, freshwater cusk, the lawyer, coney-fish, lingcod, and eelpout. The species is closely ...

are sometimes used to add flavour to the soup. The roots of the soup originated in the culture of the Russian

Cossack The Cossacks , es, cosaco , et, Kasakad, cazacii , fi, Kasakat, cazacii , french: cosaques , hu, kozákok, cazacii , it, cosacchi , orv, коза́ки, pl, Kozacy , pt, cossacos , ro, cazaci , russian: казаки́ or ...

steppe riders and the soup is mostly associated in Russia with the

Don Don, don or DON and variants may refer to: Places *County Donegal, Ireland, Chapman code DON *Don (river), a river in European Russia * Don River (disambiguation), several other rivers with the name * Don, Benin, a town in Benin * Don, Dang, a v ...

region. While ukha is a fish dish that is made with

broth Broth, also known as bouillon (), is a savory liquid made of water in which meat, fish or vegetables have been simmered for a short period of time. It can be eaten alone, but it is most commonly used to prepare other dishes, such as soups, ...

, calling it a fish soup may not be absolutely correct. "Ukha" started to be used as a term for fish broth in Russian cuisine in the late 17th to early 18th centuries. In earlier times, this term referred to thick meat broths, and then later chicken. Beginning in the 15th century, fish was more and more often used to prepare ukha, thus creating a dish that had a distinctive taste among soups. In the 19th century, many travellers visiting Russia claimed ukha to be one of the best dishes in Russian cuisine. Vegetables were kept to a minimum when preparing ukha, and in fact, in classic

Belarusian cuisine Belarusian cuisine shares many similarities with cuisines of other Eastern, Central and Northeastern European countries, based predominantly on meat and various vegetables typical for the region. History Belarus cuisine has predominantly S ...

, ukha was simply a rich fish broth that accompanied fish pies (

pirozhki Pirozhki ( rus, пирожки́, r=pirožkí, p=pʲɪrɐʂˈkʲi, plural form of ; uk, пиріжки, ''pyrizhky'') are Russian and Ukrainian baked or fried yeast-leavened boat-shaped buns with a variety of fillings. Pirozhki are a popular st ...

rasstegai Rasstegai ( rus, расстегай) is a type of Russian pirog with a hole in the top. History and etymology The dish was very popular in Tsarist Russia. In rasstegai the filling is not hidden in dough, and in Russian means "unfastened" pies. ...

coulibiac A coulibiac (from russian: кулебя́ка, kulebyáka) is a type of pirog usually filled with salmon or sturgeon, rice or buckwheat, hard-boiled eggs, mushrooms, onions, and dill. The pie is baked in a pastry shell, usually of brioche or puff ...

, and other

pirog Pirog ( rus, пиро́г, p=pʲɪˈrok, a=Ru-пирог.ogg, pl. ''pirogi'' пироги ; be, піро́г; se, pirog; lv, pīrāgs, pl. ''pīrāgi''; uk, пиріг ''pyrih'', pl. ''pyrohy'' пироги; lt, pyragas, pl. ''pyragai''; ...

i). These days it is more often a

fish soup Fish soup is a food made by combining fish or seafood with vegetables and stock, juice, water, or another liquid. Hot soups are additionally characterized by boiling solid ingredients in liquids in a pot until the flavors are extracted, form ...

, cooked with potatoes and other vegetables. A wide variety of freshwater fish can be used, and some aficionados opine that one cannot make a good ukha from saltwater fish species. Fresh fish lends the dish the best flavor, and so if frozen fish is used, it is better not to defrost it. Preference is given to smaller, younger fish, with the tail parts of bigger fish discarded. Commonly fishermen add a shot of vodka to ukha at the end to create a specific flavour. Another custom is to dip the smoldering firebrand from the fire directly into ukha at the very end.River fish soup recipe. Ukha with river fish
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References

{{Russian soups Russian soups Fish and seafood soups

See also

References