Ukrainian Food: 12 Traditional Dishes You Should Know

👉 Ukrainian food is generous, warming and full of flavour: beetroot and cabbage, potatoes and buckwheat, sour cream and fresh dill, and bread at the heart of every meal. Shaped by the fertile black soil of the steppe and by centuries of family traditions, it is the kind of cooking that turns a simple bowl of soup into a feast. Here are 12 traditional Ukrainian dishes you should know – with recipes for many of them.

🍲 1. Borscht

The national soup: beetroot, cabbage, potatoes and beans simmered in a rich meat broth, served with sour cream and garlic bread. In 2022 UNESCO added the culture of Ukrainian borscht cooking to its list of intangible cultural heritage in need of urgent safeguarding. 👉 Red borscht recipe

🧄 2. Pampushky

Soft, fluffy little bread rolls brushed with garlic, oil and dill – the classic partner for a bowl of borscht.

🥟 3. Varenyky (Vareniki)

Boiled half-moon dumplings filled with potato, cabbage, farmer’s cheese or sour cherries, topped with butter, fried onions and sour cream. 👉 Vareniki recipe

🥬 4. Holubtsi

Cabbage leaves rolled around meat and rice and baked slowly in tomato sauce – the dish of weddings and family Sundays. 👉 Holubtsi recipe

🌿 5. Green Borscht

A bright spring soup made with sorrel, potatoes and boiled egg – tangy, light and very refreshing. 👉 Green borscht recipe

🥔 6. Deruny

Crispy potato pancakes made from grated potato, onion and egg, fried until golden and served with sour cream or mushroom sauce.

🥞 7. Syrnyky (Syrniki)

Golden cottage-cheese pancakes, crisp outside and soft inside – a favourite breakfast with sour cream, honey or jam. 👉 Syrniki recipe

🍗 8. Chicken Kyiv

Chicken breast wrapped around cold garlic-herb butter, breaded and fried so the butter bursts out when you cut it. 👉 Chicken Kiev recipe

🥓 9. Salo

Cured pork fat seasoned with salt, garlic and pepper, sliced thinly and eaten on dark rye bread – a true symbol of Ukrainian hospitality.

🌽 10. Banosh

A Carpathian dish of cornmeal cooked in sour cream and topped with salty bryndza cheese, mushrooms or crispy cracklings – a cousin of Georgian elarji.

🌾 11. Kutia

A sweet pudding of wheat berries, poppy seeds, honey and nuts – the first and most important of the twelve dishes on Christmas Eve. 👉 Kutia recipe

🍑 12. Uzvar

A smoky, naturally sweet drink made by simmering dried apples, pears, plums and other fruit – served with kutia at the Christmas Eve supper and enjoyed all winter.

🎄 Food at Ukrainian Celebrations

The most important meal of the year is Sviata Vecheria, the Holy Supper on Christmas Eve, when families share twelve meatless dishes – from kutia and borscht to varenyky and holubtsi. Easter brings paska bread and decorated eggs, and no wedding is complete without a tall, decorated korovai loaf. 👉 Read about the 12 dishes of Christmas Eve

🌿 The Flavours of Ukrainian Cooking

• Beetroot, cabbage and potatoes – the backbone of soups, salads and fillings.
• Sour cream (smetana) – spooned onto almost everything.
• Fresh dill and garlic – the signature seasonings.
• Grains – wheat, buckwheat and rye for bread, porridge and kutia.
• Pickling and preserving – sauerkraut, pickled cucumbers and dried fruit for the long winter.

❓ FAQ

What is the national dish of Ukraine?
Borscht is considered the national dish. Varenyky are a close second in many people’s hearts.

Is Ukrainian food spicy?
No. Ukrainian cooking is hearty and savoury, seasoned with garlic, dill, black pepper and a touch of sourness rather than chilli.

What is the difference between Ukrainian and Russian food?
The two kitchens share many dishes, but Ukrainian cooking has its own regional traditions, names and recipes – for example its own style of borscht, varenyky, deruny and pampushky.

👉 Keep exploring: Eastern European comfort food, dumplings around the world and Christmas foods around the world.