Beyond Borscht: Old-World Recipes from Eastern Europe: Ukraine, Russia, Poland & More

by Tatyana Nesteruk

Authentic Recipes for the Hearty, Comforting Foods of Eastern Europe

Bring the warming, fresh and savory flavors of Ukraine, Russia, Poland and beyond into your kitchen with this beautiful and personal collection of family recipes passed down through generations. From growing up in a close-knit Slavic community that gathered daily to celebrate food, Tatyana Nesteruk learned the art of honoring tradition while also making the recipes accessible for the modern home cook. Her simple instructions and treasure chest of time-honored dishes will have you flawlessly re-creating the food you love—or have yet to discover!

Capturing the classic tastes of Eastern Europe is easy no matter where you live, thanks to Tatyana’s nifty cooking hacks, such as rinsing cottage cheese to quickly transform it into the beloved Russian tvorog (farmer’s cheese). Dive into timeless recipes like Beef and Cheese Piroshki (hand pies), Smoked Salmon and Caviar Blini and Classic Beef Borscht. Whip up epic main dishes like Shashliki (Shish Kebabs), Plov (Beef and Garlic Rice Pilaf) and Potato Latkes with Chicken, and pair them with delicious sides like Mushroom Buckwheat and Olivier Potato Salad for a truly unbeatable spread. With desserts like Sweet Cherry Pierogi, Russian Tea Cookies and Poppy Seed Roll, you’ll be transported back to the old world by the end of the night. If you grew up eating this incredible cuisine, visited this part of the world and can’t stop dreaming of the food, or are trying these authentic dishes for the first time, the unique, comforting and nostalgic flavors packed into Tatyana’s recipes will send your taste buds on an unforgettable journey.

Genres: Cookbooks, Cooking, Nonfiction, Poland, Food

309 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 1, 2020

Reviews

[Jeffrey Caston · Rating 4 out of 5]

I took a look at it because I wanted some Ukrainian and Polish recipes. I know the piroshky dough recipe works. So I'm excited to try some dishes from this cookbook. The recipes look straightforward and pretty clear. The pictures are REALLY well done. It doesn't look pretentious.

On to the split pea soup recipe!

UPDATE 3/10/24:
The Ukrainian split pea soup was really good. I'm not sure what, if anything, actually makes this recipe Ukrainian, but that's what the recipe said, so I'm going with it.

[Ilya Scheidwasser · Rating 5 out of 5]

I grew up in the U.S. since age 4 after my family moved here from Russia, so I've had my share of Russian cooking as an expat. I've had this book for a few months and have cooked or tried numerous recipes from it at this point, and I have nothing but good things to say about it. The recipes are delicious, beautifully photographed, and have clear instructions. The book also has nice descriptions of how the author came to know these recipes and what they mean to her.

As a casual home cook (or rather, a co-cook with my fiancee), I like recipes with accessible ingredients which are not too convoluted to make, and this book definitely delivers on that front. Its recipes are generally (although not exclusively) straightforward both in their composition and in their preparation. The book is not incredibly long, so you won't find every famous Slavic recipe in it, but you'll find a good deal of them.

Special shout-outs to the braised cabbage and mushroom piroshki, the sprat and tomato tea sandwiches, the golubtsi (beef and mushroom cabbage rolls, which impressed the hell out of my parents when we served them), and the mind-blowing dill and garlic potatoes.

[Aaron Thomas · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is fine, but it's not very exciting. Particularly by the book's end Beyond Borscht seems to wear itself out with more than a few pages of stuff that I'd barely consider recipes (two or three ingredients, almost no preparation, etc.). I wish, too, that this had been organized a bit more cleverly, perhaps by key ingredients. Anyway, this is fine, but I'll be on the lookout for something a little more thorough and rich that covers the same type of cuisine.

[Nadia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I grew up in a Ukrainian household, so most of these recipes are familiar to me as this is the food of my childhood and almost exclusively what my mother still cooks. It's nice to see these recipes printed for a wider audience and for more people to enjoy, as Russian/Ukrainian cuisine is so good and deserves wider recognition!

[Honest Mabel · Rating 5 out of 5]

i want to make this entire cookbook

I will. I borrowed this first from the library and as I scrolled I realized just how tantalizing and relatively easy each dish is. There are a few fish ones I am going to skip. But when I would say I will be frequently making at least 85% of this book I am coming back to buy it.

[Гергана · Rating 3 out of 5]

Очаквах нещо повече.

[Richard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good Eastern European recipes. Some are reminiscent of meals at my grandparents.

[Christina Philbert · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful pictures and accessible recipes.

[Erica · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great, flavorful, traditional eastern European recipes! I love how most of the ingredients are affordable or easy to find. Many of the entree and salad dishes are very healthy, too. I am glad the author thought of compiling these recipes so that the rest of the world can enjoy Slavic cuisine. I put together a list of the top recipes from this book that appealed to me and I'm so looking forward to trying them!

[Jewlsbookblog · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has sooo many delicious recipes!! My favorites to fix have been the Beef and Cheese Piroshki, the Cheese Piroshki, and the Pelmeni. Now the pelmeni took some time, but were well worth it! I also love the layout of this cookbook! Gorgeous close-up of the dishes, easy to follow recipes along with quick tips, and simple ingredients that can be found at your local grocery story! Win-win:)

[Holly · Rating 5 out of 5]

I JUST NEED SOMEONE TO COME TO MY HOUSE AND COOK EVERYTHING FOR ME. PLS