If you have never tried dishes of Ukrainian cuisine on cook.me, now is the time to change this. This amazing cuisine offers a wide selection of tasty dishes that you won’t be able to forget once you try them.
Typical Ukrainian food utilizes simple ingredients but it manages to achieve incredible taste combinations. Even if you have humble cooking skills, Ukrainian food recipes are easy and accessible to anyone.
In this article, you can find eleven famous Ukrainian food recipes to recreate at home.
Best Ukrainian Breakfast Ideas
Ukrainian breakfast recipes can be made quite quickly and without much effort. The famous Ukrainian food recipes include such:
- Nalysniki
The best Ukrainian food is quite easy to make. If you are familiar with French crepes, you can already imagine what Ukrainian nalysniki are like.
They are thin pancakes that are fried on the pan and can be eaten any time of the day, but especially for breakfast.
There is even a Maslenitsa week in Ukraine during which it is traditional to cook and eat nalysniki. The filling of nalysniki is up to you.
The most popular and simplest filling in Ukraine for nalysniki is sweetened cottage cheese. But, it is also possible to make them with meat, caviar, or fish.
- Lazy Dumplings
Linyvi varenyky, or lazy dumplings in English, are the most easy-to-make version of Ukrainian varenyky. As typical homemade varenyky can take quite a bit of time to make, Ukrainians decided to put a twist on the standard recipe and make it easier.
These lazy dumplings are made by simply mixing cottage cheese with some flour, sugar, and an egg. The obtained mass is then cut into pieces and boiled for several minutes.
In this way, you get almost instant dumplings and you can serve them with anything you like — honey, sour cream, jam, etc.
Cook These Ukrainian Lunch Recipes
Ukrainian lunch can look completely different depending on a family or specific person, but some popular recipes include:
- Green Borscht
If you are looking for a hot and healthy meal for your lunch, consider green borscht. While everyone knows the red version of borscht, which is made with beetroot, green borscht is a different story.
This soup is made with vegetables (carrots, potatoes, onions) and the main ingredient that makes it green is sorrel. The leaves of sorrel can be difficult to find for some, which is why they are frequently replaced by spinach and lemon juice.
If you skip meat, you can easily make this borscht vegan or vegetarian.
- Pyrizhky
If you like pastry for lunch, Ukrainian pyrizhky is definitely the way to go. They are boat-shaped or round pastries made from yeast dough and filled with all kinds of ingredients depending on your taste.
Savory pyrizhky are commonly made with meat, cabbage, and mushrooms. As for the sweet ones, Ukrainians choose berries, cherries, and apples as the most beloved fillings for this national dish.
You can eat pyrizhky as a main or a side dish for lunch for a quick lunch if you bake them beforehand.
- Vinaigrette
Those who want a healthy salad for lunch can look no further, as vinaigrette will be ideal for this purpose. The salad has such a variety of vegetables that it’s definitely filled with vitamins.
For the salad, you need to boil potatoes, beets, and carrots. Once the vegetables are cut into cubes, you should add some onion, peas, and either sauerkraut or pickles.
The latter ingredients provide the needed zest to this dish. The salad is dressed is commonly dressed with oil, pepper, and salt.
Try These Ukrainian Main Course Recipes
When it comes to main dish dinner options, Ukrainian cuisine also has a lot to offer. Some of the top options include:
- Chicken Kyiv
Those who like to eat meat for dinner may want to try a Ukrainian-style patty called Chicken Kyiv.
While different Eastern European countries have their recipes of meat patties, Chicken Kyiv is truly special. Just as the name suggests, this delicious patty is made from chicken meat but the most important thing is how it is made.
Patties are made from chicken fillets in which it is necessary to put a piece of butter with herbs. The petty is then covered in bread crumbles and fried on a pan.
- Lazy Holybtsi
Holybtisy are extremely popular in Ukrainian cuisine but they can also take quite some time to make. If you have a slow cooker, you may enjoy this twist on the traditional recipe.
The standard recipe of holybtsi require you to prepare the filling of meat, spices, and rice, which is then rolled into cabbage leaves.
With a slow cooker, you can make the same filling but then simply cut up cabbage leaves and put it in layers. In this way, you don’t have to form holybtsi but get the same results.
- Buzhenina
Whether it is a holiday or just a dinner, buzhenina will definitely bring it to the next level.
Buzhenina is a piece of roasted pork that is generously covered in different herbs and garlic to give it its mouth-watering aroma and taste.
For this recipe, you should use pork tenderloin and make sure that you let it sit in spices for a bit before roasting it in the oven until it is tender and soft. It should remain juicy so it’s important that you keep an eye on it.
- Deruny
Who doesn’t like potato patties? Deruny are a truly beloved dish in Ukraine, as they are incredibly tasty and also easy to make whether for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.
To make deruny, you should simply grate peeled potatoes, add an egg, sprinkle a bit of flour, and then fry them on the pan the way you would any other patties.
Deruny get crispy on the outside and stay tender in the middle — a perfect combination. They are often served with sour cream but you can also eat them with any sauce you like.
Ukrainian Sides that Will Elevate Your Meal
You can also find a side dish after your heart in Ukrainian cuisine:
- Dill potatoes
The best spring side dish for those who love potatoes is making them the common Ukrainian way. For this recipe, all you should do is boil halved or quartered potatoes (if they are large).
Next, you should drain them and season them with some sunflower oil, garlic, and chopped dill. Sunflower oil is the most common oil used in Ukraine and it gives this dish its special flavor.
- Holodets
A lot of people who are new to Ukrainian cuisine are particularly confused about this recipe. But, it is so amazing that you should definitely give it a go if you eat meat.
Holodets is basically frozen meat broth with pieces of meat in it. It is similar to jelly in its texture, which is achieved by simmering pieces of meat with bones for several hours.
This broth is spices and salted to achieve its signature taste.
Enjoy Ukrainian Recipes for Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner
Ukrainian food traditions have formed over many years and have a lot to offer. You can find recipes for any meal of the day while modern twists allow you to make them super fast.
It is great that Ukrainian cuisine not only tastes incredible but it also has plenty of space for creativity, as you can substitute ingredients, choose your fillings, and make these recipes truly your own.
