Cuisine of Western Ukraine (Carpathians): Hutsul national dishes

In Western Ukraine, there are several regions that compete with each other in the sophistication and originality of local cuisine. But Bukovina cuisine will never become similar to Hutsul: the first tends more to Polish, and the second-to Hungarian. Since once upon a time Bukovina and Moldova as a result of land redistribution went to Turkey, and then were under Hungary and Romania, their table traditions and cooking technologies have absorbed some of the culinary features of these countries.

Hutsul cuisine is simple and at the same time very original. The most common products in this area are corn groats and flour, beans, mushrooms (and they are here – apparently-invisible!!!), potatoes and local salty cheese, which the Hutsuls call "bryndzha". Despite the fact that the name of the cheese bears a resemblance to the well-known cheese, this fermented milk product from goat's milk has nothing in common with the store product.

The most popular dishes in the Carpathian cuisine is banosh, mushroom soup, Hutsul borsch and reunica.

Hutsul banosh is a high-calorie dish, corn porridge cooked with cream or water with sour cream and seasoned with bacon, cheese and mushrooms. A person who wants to lose weight should not even think about the real Hutsul banosh, but how it is loved by those who can afford to eat a killer amount of calories in one sitting!

"Mushroom yushka" Hutsuls called broth of porcini mushrooms in chicken broth, which is added herbs and homemade noodles .

Hutsul reunica is the local equivalent of kapusniak. Rosivnitsa is prepared from sauerkraut and corn groats, boiling them in a broth of pork.

Another first dish in the national Hutsul cuisine is borsch. Here it is customary to cook it on smoked pork using sauerkraut.

The most favorite porridge in the Hutsul region is Kulesha-a dish of corn groats, flavored with melted bacon. Sometimes Kulesha is prepared with grated potatoes and served with slices of cheese.

From sheep's milk Hutsuls make vurda-cheese with a peculiar taste and smell.

To prepare shupenya – another original Hutsul dishes – used beans or young beans.

Pastries are the most popular knishes and apanachi. The latter remotely resemble our cheesecake recipes.

As for the drinks, the Hutsuls prefer Gulenko – specific milk product.