Olga below discusses the deeply held national tradition of mushroom gathering. An important part of Russian food tradition for many centuries, Russian children are taught in school from an early age to tell the difference between various types of native mushrooms. Many, like Olga, will go with relatives and friends to the woods to put […]

Potato pancakes dominate coffee shop menus in Riga, Latvia—and for good reason! Meticulously prepared using grated potatoes, eggs, and flour, these pancakes are crisped to a brilliant golden hue, reaching a level of perfection that rivals the shining sun itself. The mouthwatering allure of this delightful dish is recognized worldwide. Following their inception in Eastern […]

Bigos, sometimes referred to as “Hunter’s Stew,” is a Polish dish comprised of slow-cooked meat, cabbage, and spices. There are many variations of this simple dish. Different meats such as pork, beef, and mutton in fresh, smoked, and/or sausage form can be used. Sauerkraut can be used instead of or with fresh cabbage. Red wine […]

This is a quick introduction to Warsaw’s milk bars, which are important cultural institutions as well as great places to eat, and to the Polish food they offer and the Polish language needed to order in them. While English-speaking eating establishments can be found, they will typically be more expensive and less of an important […]

Medovukha (медовуха) is a Slavic honey-based alcoholic beverage. It is one of the most recent and perhaps the best known iteration of a long evolutionary tree of Russian honey-based beverages that can be traced all the way back to the Old Slavs. In Russia today, some argue that a return to these honey drinks, which […]

Kartoshka cake, known as in Russian as “пирожное картошка” (Pirozhnoe kartoshka – literally “cake potato”), or sometimes more affectionately just картошка (kartoshka – “potato”), is a mouthwatering pastry that takes many people from the former USSR back to their childhood. Once used to prevent food loss and combat shortages, kartoshka cake spread widely in the […]

Pelmeni (Пельмени) are Russian dumplings: small portions of ground meat and onion wrapped in a thin, unleavened dough and boiled. While Russians prize pelmeni as a Siberian dish, “рецепт русских пельменей может на самом являться измененной версией китайских пельменей” (the recipe may actually be an adaptation of Chinese pot-stickers). Other ancient foods such as manti, […]

The history of coffee in Russia has long reflected the country’s wider history. Originally a western import brought by Peter the Great, coffee culture has risen and fallen with the country’s revolutions and wars, and with its economic developments and collapses. Today, an increasingly thriving coffee culture can be found across Russia as record amounts […]

Borsch (Борщ) is one of the most popular soups in Central and Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is sweet and sour, healthy and can be eaten at any time of year. It has a complicated and very long history, with the soup changing over time within various geographic regions. Today, the broadly recognized “standard” borsch […]