#vareniky

[mariukus-blog]

Wild Garlic Vareniky

[freundian-sip]

Varenik(ool)i

This weekend, my grandmother and I went to a little Russian café and we straight feasted. We started off our meal with drinking mors, a fruit drink made of berries. I like this because it is not too sweet and it is very refreshing. We were also given Russian black bread which is pleasantly sour.

We were then given pickled cabbage (Sauerkraut), tomatoes and cucumbers. Pickling vegetables is common in Russia because since it is so cold, it is hard to keep fresh vegetables. These pickles are simple and crisp and we could not stop eating them. We ordered lox with dill which is smoked salmon and this came with some delicious garlicky potatoes.

Now, for the star of the show: vareniki. Vareniki are Russian dumplings that can be filled with meat, cabbage, potatoes, mushrooms, and even cheese. At first you may be apprehensive to try these because you’ve never had non-Asian dumplings but these are so addicting. We ordered vareniki filled with cabbage and mushrooms and they were served with a creamy mushroom sauce and golden fried onions. The word “Vareniki” derives from the Ukrainian word that means to “boil water” because the vareniki are cooked by boiling them. In Poland, they are known as pierogi and they were originally a peasant food but gained popularity between all social classes throughout the years. There are different shapes used during Christmas and Easter.

You should definitely go and get some vareniki if you totally want to just cheat your diet. It will be worth it.