Russian Food???

[-DEADLY SUSHI-]

Hey, I have a woman that I want to make my girlfriend! 8)
She is from Russia (moved here 2 years ago) and I want to cook her something from where she comes from. I cant think of ANYTHING. :?

Can someone give me a few suggestions?

 

[scott123]

Russia is a huge country. Each region has their own foods. If you are striving to make her some "home" cooking, I highly recommend finding out where in Russia she's from.

 

[-DEADLY SUSHI-]

rats.... ok

 

[ramydam]

Houston is fortunate to have such a large expat community that we have not one but two Russian grocery stores. I like to keep pelmeni (sp?) in the freezer for quick meals. Sort of like Russian tortellini. Fantastic with nothing but a little sour cream.

 

[scott123]

Are you not able to find out where's she's from?

I don't want to blow any wind out of your sails. Even if you don't match the foods she's used to eating you might get some credit for trying.

Here are some links to Russian recipes:

http://www.recipesource.com/ethnic/europe/russian/indexall.html

I'm not a huge fan of recipesource but it should give you an idea of the classic dishes to make. I'd look for the actual recipes elsewhere.

http://www.online-cookbook.com/goto/cook/rpage/000A74

I've eaten enough pierogies to fill warehouses This recipe looks right on the money.

And here are a few more that I found that look authentic:

http://www.natashascafe.com/html/menu.html
http://www.ruscuisine.com/
http://www.russianlegacy.com/en/go_to/culture/russian_cuisine/russian_cuisine.htm

 

[Bangbang]

I would make stuffed cabbage. Easy and most people like it. Try to find a recipe that uses sour cream.

 

[GB]

Borscht is always a good one, especially in the summer!

 

[Bangbang]

You may want to go to a Russian Grocery if you can find one. This would give you some ideas. You still need to know if she likes meats,fish,poultry,veggies. This will help get you started. A pasta dish would be easy. Why don't you just ask her to help you cook up a russian dish together. My wife is German Arabic. Her mother was raised in Nazi Germany....and her father was from Lebonon. We had great fun makin stuffed grape leaves, kibbee, pita bread,potatoe dumplings,Syrian Chicken and Rice. Its a great way to get to know each other.

 

[velochic]

As a person with a degree in Slavic Linguistics and a former resident of Moscow, I'll give you a nice "Russian" recipe. Not Soviet, not Siberian, just plain old Russian. It's called "Myaso po Derevinsky" or "Meat Village-Style". I make it occasionally to remind myself of the days in Russia.

1lb. Sirloin Steak, cut into bite-sized pieces

2-3 medium potatoes, sliced into medallions

1 green pepper, sliced

1 large onion, sliced

1/4 lb. shredded cheese (I use cheddar, but in Russia, it probably is something more like Feta... all I remember is that they called the cheese "horoshy" or "good" cheese"... not much of a name, admittedly but it was white and creamy like a good French Feta)

A pinch each of: dried oregano, coriander, thyme, basil and sweet paprika.

Mayo to slather on potatoes and meat.

Place meat into greased casserole. Season with above seasoning except paprika. Brush with mayo, add onion, peppers. Toss some grated cheese on top. Sprinkle with paprika. Stack potatoes on top, overlapping like roofing shingles. Brush with more mayo. Sprinke with rest of cheese, then paprika. Bake at 375 F or about 200 degrees celcius for about 30 minutes covered. Bake an additional 20 minutes or so uncovered until meat and potatoes are tender.

Sorry the recipe is so vague. A Russian friend taught it to me many moons ago when I lived in Moscow, so the measurements aren't exact. Good luck with your Russian friend.

 

[middie]

chicken kiev

 

[GB]

I am pretty sure that Chicken Kiev is actually an American dish.

 

[velochic]

GB - right, and even if it were a namesake dish of Kiev, that's in Ukraine, not Russia.

 

[Claire]

When I cook for people from other countries, I rarely try to make anything from their homeland! I'm bound to suffer in comparison. I go the other way, make my very best specialties, THEN (and here is where you can get close to your hopeful paramour) you ask, gee, I'd love to learn how to cook a Russian meal; will you come over and show me?

 

[Uncle Sasha]

As a person with a degree in Slavic Linguistics and a former resident of Moscow, I'll give you a nice "Russian" recipe. Not Soviet, not Siberian, just plain old Russian. It's called "Myaso po Derevinsky" or "Meat Village-Style". I make it occasionally to remind myself of the days in Russia.

Hi,

I'm not sure anybody can call it "Russian". As I know, this dish is called "Myaso po-francuzski" or "French-style meat" throughout Russia.

If somebody wants to cook something really russian, I'd suggest to try this: http://www.russianfoods.com/recipes/item0010B/default.asp.

2 velochic: if you didn't try something like this when you were in Russia, then you missed something important.

Alexander.

 

[wasabi woman]

Uncle Sasha, the Zharkoye sounds wonderful, I'm sure going to try it!
What cut of beef would you recommend for this dish?

 

[Uncle Sasha]

What cut of beef would you recommend for this dish?

Any.

Seriously, that doesn't matter to me. I would better increase the time of stewing (up to 1 hour or even more); just ensure that the temperature in the oven is about 150-180 degrees (C). This will make the beef a bit softer.

Also, you may try to replace beef with chicken -- in this case 45 minutes in the oven would be quite enough.

Simplified version of "Zharkoe" (just beef, potatos, and spices) is also OK.

Alexander.

 

[wasabi woman]

Spasibo balshoye Uncle Sasha!

 

[Uncle Sasha]

Spasibo balshoye Uncle Sasha!

Ne za chto.

 

[velochic]

Well Uncle Sasha, my neighbor next door to me, on the 14th floor of the Olympyskaya Derevyna taught me this recipe and when I asked her where she got it, she said it was an old Russian recipe she learned from her mother growing up in a village near Moscow, Alexandrov. She never mentioned that it was French, and besides, this doesn't sound much like a French dish to me. I respect the fact that you are Russian, but it's a big country... and this dish is authentic from its source.

 

[debthecook]

From the now closed famous Russian Tea Room, a restaurant I used to dine in many times in Manhattan, with my favorite, BLINI with CAVIAR:

Buckwheat Blinis with Sevruga Caviar & Tobermory Scottish Smoked Salmon

Serves: 6

INGREDIENTS:

4 ounces Sevruga Caviar

6 ounces Tobermory Scottish Smoked Salmon (sliced thinly)

1/2 c. sour cream

1/4 c. clarified butter

BLINI MIX: (Yields 1/2 quart)

8 oz. buckwheat flour

4 oz. all purpose flour

3 1/2 oz. sugar

3 1/4 c. milk

3 eggs, slightly beaten

2 oz. butter, melted

1/4 tsp. yeast

STEP 1: In a bowl, combine the buckwheat flour with the all purpose flour and sugar and set aside. In a saucepan, combine the milk, eggs, butter and yeast and heat to 105 degrees. Remove from heat. Whisk the dry ingredients with the liquid, mixing well. Strain through a china cap. Let the blini mix stand at room temperature for one hour. Refrigerate.

TO MAKE BLINI: Preheat a pancake griddle or large non-stick frying pan to 325 degrees. Lightly brush the surface with a small amount of melted butter. Stir down the batter and spoon about 3 tablespoons of blini mix unto the griddle forming 4" diameter blini. Cook for one minute or until the top is bubbly and the bottom golden. Flip with a spatula and cook an additional 30 seconds or until golden. Remove from heat and reserve warm.

TO ROLL BLINI: Place a few drops of clarified butter onto a warm serving plate. With a fork lay the blini topside down onto the plate. With the back of a spoon spread 1 teaspoon of sour cream evenly onto each blini. Place the smoked salmon onto one blini and a dollop of caviar onto the other. With a fork pierce the side of the blini and turn over to form a neat roll. Serve warm.

WINE NOTE: This dish is delicious when served with ice cold Vodka.