Russian · Seafood
Fish Soup (Ukha)

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Method
- In a medium pot, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions and cook, stirring occasionally until the onions start to caramelize. Add the carrots and cook until the carrots start to soften, about 4 more minutes.
- Add the stock, water, potatoes, bay leaves, and black peppercorns. Season with salt and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and cook for 10 minutes. Add the millet and cook for 15 more minutes until millet and potatoes are cooked.
- Gently add the fish cubes. Stir and bring the soup to a simmer. The fish will cook through very fast, so make sure to not overcook them. They are done when the flesh is opaque and flakes easily.
- Garnish the soup with chopped fresh dill or parsley before serving.
Cooking notes
Scaling works best when you weigh ingredients rather than measure by volume — small differences in packing can compound at higher multipliers.
For volume-to-weight conversions of any ingredient — flour, sugar, butter, salts — use the ingredient converter. To translate the recipe's oven temperature between °C, °F and gas mark, see the temperature converter.
When you scale this recipe up or down, remember that cooking time does not scale linearly. A doubled cake takes longer, but not twice as long; a doubled soup takes roughly twice as long. The cooking-time guide gives sensible starting estimates by dish geometry.
Recipe video
Fish Soup (Ukha)
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Volume
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OpenTemperature
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OpenCooking time
The cube-root rule for scaling up, the differences between meat / cake / soup geometry, and sensible starting estimates.
OpenPan size
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OpenLength
Inches and centimetres — for when a recipe says “cut into 1-inch pieces” and your ruler is metric.
OpenIngredient density
A cup of flour weighs 120 g; a cup of honey weighs 340. The full table of ~40 staples, with sources.
OpenOpen in main scaler
Edit the recipe text, scale by serving count, and copy the result. Same parser as the in-page scaler, more room to work.
OpenFrom the journal
Original essays on the small details.
The why behind the technique — original writing on the ingredient and equipment choices that separate a good cook from a frustrated one.
Eggs by weight, not by count
Why your four-egg recipe might really be a five-egg recipe
Read essayApril 12, 2026
The case for the oven thermometer
Your oven is probably lying to you, and here's how to catch it
Read essayFebruary 28, 2026
Butter temperature ruins more cookies than the oven does
Cold, softened, melted — three states, three completely different bakes
Read essayDecember 15, 2025
Go deeper
Where this recipe sits in the wider tradition.
Each guide below is a real essay on the cuisine or the category — pillars, staples, techniques worth learning — paired with a curated grid of recipes filed under it.
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