He's bringing back the real food of Ukraine

Boston Globe

11-03-2025

In 2019, he opened the restaurant 100 rokiv tomu vpered ('100 years ahead') in Kyiv, 'to show people,' he explains on his
Advertisement
Last year, on a trip to Ukraine, former secretary of state Anthony Blinken
When Klopotenko opened Inshi Bistro in Lviv with entrepreneur
Klopotenko has the same exuberance on his YouTube channel as the British chef
Advertisement
In 'Ukrainian Kitchen,' a recipe for borscht is made with pork ribs, beets, carrot, potatoes, white beans, cabbage, and smoked pears (or dried pears with smoked paprika). A vegetarian borscht simmers with lekvar, a kind of plum jam. He also offers a green borscht with
Mushroom dip, made with button mushrooms and cognac, is meant to replicate the taste of wild mushrooms foraged in the
He teaches readers how to make sauerkraut, and thin crepes filled with farmer cheese, dumplings with sour cherries, potato pancakes, and an intriguing recipe for Lazy Holubsti, a riff on stuffed cabbage rolls.
The recipe isn't exactly lazy, since there's a lot of chopping to do, but you don't have to submerge a head of cabbage in water to peel off the layers because the filling isn't wrapped. Sauteed cabbage, onion, and carrot are mixed with ground meat and cooked medium-grain rice, formed into ovals, and baked with tomatoes without being wrapped in cabbage leaves. It's a wonderful dish.
In a
Klopotenko is passionate about his craft. He's traveled all over the country talking to cooks who kept the old traditions in the kitchen. 'We are fighting for our identity, and food is part of our identity,' he told secretary Blinken.
Advertisement
Sheryl Julian can be reached at