The Authentic Ukrainian Kitchen: Recipes from a Native Chef

by Yevhen Klopotenko

Celebrate Ukraine’s independent spirit in this cookbook sharing the nation’s unique traditions and culture in 100 recipes crafted by Ukraine’s most prominent chef. 

Now, more than ever, Ukrainian cuisine and culture deserve to be known around the world. In  The Authentic Ukrainian Kitchen,  Ievgen Klopotenko shares the true food of Ukraine—the way it is really cooked today—with modern recipes for familiar and forgotten dishes.

Klopotenko is Ukraine’s most internationally celebrated chef, appearing on the cover of  TIME  magazine and on CBS Sunday Morning. A top restaurateur in Kyiv, winner of Ukraine’s MasterChef, and an activist promoting Ukrainian food around the world, he has also worked with First Lady Olena Zelenska to revamp the country’s school lunch program and campaigned for the United Nations to recognize the heritage of borshch.
 
The recipes he collects in this book are the result of years of research into regional Ukrainian cooking. After training as a chef in France and cooking professionally in the US and elsewhere, he returned to Ukraine with a desire to catalog and promote his own national cuisine—free of influence from Soviet-era propaganda. 
 
These dishes form a Ukrainian cuisine all its own, shaped by tradition, geography, and agriculture. Known as the “breadbasket of Europe,” Ukraine’s beloved national dishes include  
American cooks will find fresh ideas about how to use common vegetables, new approaches to fermentation and pickling, the delight of dumplings and simple baked goods, hearty braises, and the pleasure of desserts such as Kyiv Candied Fruit. But this cookbook is about more than the It stands for the preservation of a culture under threat and the independence of people under attack.

Genres: Cookbooks, Food, Nonfiction, Ukraine, Cooking

288 pages, Hardcover

Published May 14, 2024

Reviews

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

I will be adding this one to my collection at some point. The recipes are well laid out. The instructions are easy to follow and detailed enough. The cooking times from start to finish are accurate. The food is amazing!

[Weatherly Webb · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although I probably wouldn't make any of these recipes, this book is incredibly well written. The potato pancakes, borchst, and knishes, were very similar to the Jewish recipes I grew up with. Recently I found out that the village my family came from, was in what is the Ukraine now.

[Theresa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Simple Tasty Recipes

Very simple easy recipes which I can't wait to try out. I have bookmarked quite a few and will write a review on Amazon once I have made them.

[Dawn-Lorraine · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lot of really good recipes here, so many that I remember from childhood.

[Trina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely photos and one has to applaud the author’s love for his country and desire to preserve and promote his cultural heritage. Occasionally the instructions left me with questions and I feel like a few of the ingredients might be more challenging to come by in a basic American grocery store but I enjoyed learning more about the cuisine of this region of the world.

[Yulia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've been watching Yevhen Klopotenko's YouTube videos for a couple of years now. I like his personality and the fact that he really champions not only Ukrainian cuisine generally, but also local/regional dishes. He is a man on a mission to reclaim Ukrainian culinary identity.
I absolutely love this book. It features many of my favourite dishes, the ones I grew up with and still make regularly in my own kitchen. I was also glad to discover new recipes to try. Definitely recommend.

[Sylvia Snowe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful cookbook, good instructions and illustrations of methods and steps.

This is peasant food, down to earth, basic ingredients, unfussy preparation. Occasionally a little off--why preheat the oven before even boiling and cooling potatoes?

If you've never eaten or made East and Central European cooking, but like potatoes in any form, you will enjoy this. If you are already a fan of this cooking, you will like it even better.

[Sara · Rating 2 out of 5]

The recipes look incredible and I want to make so many. I wish it didn’t come with so much political activism. That kills it for me. At some point, he just comes across as bitter and angry. To me, it takes away from the power of his recipes. Unfortunately, this is not a win for me.

[emyrose8 · Rating 5 out of 5]

A picture with every recipe, how long it takes to make, well organized ingredient lists/instructions, and a surprising amount of recipes I want to try. Drinks especially, both alcohol and non alcoholic.