Ukrainian uzvar
Ukrainians treasure their traditions and pass family recipes from grandmother to granddaughter. It is especially true for the western part of the country, where cooking loads of ukrainian uzvar on holidays is a favorite pastime. No joking, there shouldn’t be any free space on the festive table.
Ukrainians still follow the Julian calendar, which means that Christmas is celebrated on 7th January. But Christmas Eve— or Holy Supper—the night before is just as important. It is also far more symbolical and enshrined in mystery. The majority of the below-listed dishes are served on 6th January. The exceptions are meat-based versions since Holy Supper is always lean. The contemporary kutia has a plethora of variations, though. Its taste becomes richer owing to prunes, raisins, and other dried fruit and berries, as well as various nuts.
By tradition, kutia is the first dish to start Christmas Eve dinner. The first spoon should be consumed by the head of the household. On Christmas Eve, it is quite popular to play the varenyky game: a housewife puts a pinch of pepper in the first varenyk, a lump of sugar in the second one, and a coin in the third one. Quite widely spread across the post-Soviet territories, this red beet soup contains shredded cabbage, beans, and tomatoes as well as some vinegar for acidity. Interestingly, there’s no one and only recipe of borshch as each cook is said to have her own secret ingredients she’s not supposed to unveil. Although the ingredients are pretty simple—boiled cabbage, rice, onions and carrots, and meat—the dish can compete with high cuisine, especially when topped with mushrooms in tomato sauce. There are multiple variations of other ingredients, the most common ones being carrots, boiled eggs, and peas.
Decorated with a snip of parsley, it is served cold. Instead, she would prepare the herring on her own, adding onions, lemon, and oil. The dish is usually decorated with a snip of dill and pieces of tomatoes. It makes a perfect match with pepper horilka, a strong spirit.
On Christmas Eve, it is most common to have potatoes baked as unpeeled wedges, sprinkled with sunflower oil, and seasoned with dried parsley, garlic, or dill. Absurdly simple, it is always the best match for pickled tomatoes, cabbage, and cucumbers, which are also a must on the festive table. Pampushky make a perfect marriage with uzvar and are pretty dangerous if you’re on a diet. If their stuffing wasn’t enough, they are topped with sugar powder to look even more seductive. I have not met a single person who would say no to pampushky, honestly. They say you cannot just get away with a portion of Olivier—you need to prepare a tub full of it and then try to finish that within a week.
