Solyanka — Russian Mixed-Meat Soup with Beef Tongue and Pickles

Put the beef shank in 2.5 liters of cold water and bring it to a boil. Skim off all the foam. Add the whole onion and bay leaf, reduce the heat, and cook with the lid ajar for 100 minutes, until the meat comes away from the bone easily.

Remove the shank and separate the meat from the bone. Cut the meat into strips. Strain the broth; you should have 2 liters. If there is less, top it up with hot water.

Heat the oil in a wide skillet and sauté the thinly sliced onion for 8 minutes, until the edges turn golden. Add the tomato paste and cook for 2 minutes, until its raw smell is gone and it turns a deep brick red. Stir in the matchstick-cut pickles and pickle brine; cook for 2 more minutes.

Add the sliced beef tongue and smoked beef to the skillet and cook for 3 minutes, until the edges of the smoked meat are lightly browned. Add everything in the skillet to the simmering broth along with the boiled beef.

Simmer the soup over low heat for 7 minutes. Add the sliced olives and capers, then simmer for 5 minutes more. Taste the soup; the pickle brine and smoked meat provide most of the salt. Add salt and black pepper now if needed.

Put one lemon slice in each bowl and ladle the soup over it. Do not add the lemon to the pot; the peel turns bitter during a long simmer. Add one spoonful of sour cream and chopped dill to each bowl.