I wrote up another recipe for chilled beetroot soup which is similar to this one except the potatoes are boiled, chopped and mixed into the soup. I called the other soup 'chilled borsch' because borsch usually contains beetroot. 'Okroshka' on the other hand is the name Russians use for a variety of cold summer soups, so it seems we could use either name for a cold beetroot soup. Since I now have two such recipes, and we have two equally good names, why not use a different name for each?
The reason I included this recipe, even though there was already one with similar ingredients, is because the contrast between the hot, crispy fried potatoes and the cold slightly sour soup sets this dish apart from anything else. Eating it is a very pleasant experience. If you are watching the calories you are probably going to miss out on this, but take note. If you omit the fried potatoes here, you'll have a totally fat-free and extremely low-carb soup which is still delicious on it's own.
Because everything apart from the potatoes is served cold this dish can be prepared in stages. For example the beetroot can be cooked the day before. The soup can be prepared a few hours before needed and the potatoes peeled and par-boiled ready for frying.
Peel the beetroot and cut them into quarters. Put the pieces in a pan and cover with water. Bring to the boil and simmer until the beetroot is soft. Leave the beetroot and cooking liquid to cool then drain and save the liquid.
Peel the cucumber then finely chop it, the beetroot and the herbs and mix with the cooking liquid from the beetroot. Thin with more water if necessary then add lemon juice and salt to taste. That's the soup ready. Leave it in the fridge to chill before serving.
Peel the potatoes by holding a knife blade at right angles to the potato and scraping the skin off. If the potatoes are fresh the skin should come off easily. Put the whole potatoes in a pan, cover with water and boil for a few minutes, but not until the potatoes are soft (add a little salt to the water after it starts to boil). Drain the potatoes and leave them uncovered so that the last of the water evaporates.
Put oil in a pan to a depth of about 5 centimetres and heat until a small cube of bread browns in thirty seconds. This is the optimum temperature for frying the potatoes. Use a slatted metal spoon to lower the potatoes into the oil and fry until they are golden brown. Lift out onto a plate covered with a few layers of kitchen paper to absorb the excess oil.
Serve the chilled soup in small bowls with side plates of piping hot potatoes.