Los Angeles Russian Restaurants

Shchi (Russian: щи, Russian pronunciation: [ɕ:i]) is a soup with cabbage as the primary ingredient. It is very popular in Russia. Generally it is made with either cabbage or sauerkraut and other winter vegetables, although meat can be added. Shchi made with sauerkraut has a sour taste and is called sour shchi. A summer sorrel soup, also popular in pre-Revolutionary and today’s Russia, is known as green shchi (Russian: Зелёные щи, zelyonye shchi). Usually smetana is added into shchi before serving.

Shchi can be made with meat or without it–with sauerkraut or with cabbage or with both. The only thing all cooks seem to agree on is that it should sit and cure for as long as possible, up to a day or two, before eating. This particular recipe is meatless–and can be vegetarian if you use water or vegetable stock instead of beef stock–but it is unusually rich and hearty, full of flavor and textures, using both sauerkraut and cabbage. Serve hot as a meal to 6-8 people, with lots of pumpernickel or rye bread and butter on hand.

Shchi (russ.: щи) is one of the most typical dishes of the Russian cuisine. It can be cooked in different ways. There are three main variations of shchi: ‘green shchi’ with fresh cabbage (russ.: щи свежие), ‘sour shchi’ with sauerkraut (russ.: щи кислые) and vegetarian shchi (russ.: щи постные).

You can find authentic Russian Shchi on many Russian Restaurants in Los Angeles.

A stew is a combination of solid food ingredients that have been cooked in liquid and served in the resultant gravy.

Ingredients in a stew can include any combination of vegetables (such as carrots, potatoes, beans, peppers and tomatoes etc.), meat, poultry, sausages and seafood. While water can be used as the stew-cooking liquid, wine, stock, and beer are also common. Seasoning and flavourings may also be added. Stews are typically cooked at a relatively low temperature (simmered, not boiled), to allow flavors to combine.

Stewing is suitable for the least tender cuts of meat that become tender and juicy with the slow moist heat method. This makes it popular in low-cost cooking. Cuts having a certain amount of marbling and gelatinous connective tissue give moist, juicy stews, while lean meat may easily become dry.

Stews may be thickened by reduction or thickened with flour, either by coating pieces of meat with flour before searing, or by using a roux or beurre manié, a dough consisting of equal parts of butter and flour. Thickeners like cornstarch or arrowroot may also be used.

You can find authentic Russian Stew on many Russian Restaurants in Los Angeles.

Okroshka (Russian: окрошка) is a cold Russian national soup. The name probably originates from “kroshit’” (крошить) which means to chop or break into small pieces.

The classic soup is a mix of mostly raw vegetables (like cucumbers and spring onions), boiled potatoes, eggs and cooked beef or veal (or cooked sausages or ham) with kvass, the so-called bread drink, which is a mildly alcoholic beverage made from fermented black or rye bread. Okroshka is usually garnished with sour cream. Later versions that appeared in Soviet times use light or diluted kefir, mineral water, or even beer instead of kvass.

The ingredients are diced and then mixed with kvass just before eating; the ratio of chopped food to kvass is similar to that of cereal to milk. This allows the vegetables to retain their texture. For that same reason, even though the ingredients are similar to those in a Russian salad, the taste of okroshka is quite different from that of the salad.
Okroshka is sometimes served in summer because the soup combines the refreshing taste of kvass and the lightness of a salad. Salt and sugar can be added according to taste.

You can find authentic Russian Okroshka on many Russian Restaurants in Los Angeles.

Kvass or kvas (borrowed in the 16th century from Russian квас (kvas)), sometimes translated into English as bread drink, is a fermented mildly alcoholic beverage made from black rye or rye bread (which attributes to its light or dark colour). It is popular in Russia, Belarus, Ukraine, Lithuania, Poland and other Eastern and Central European countries as well as in all ex-Soviet states, like Uzbekistan, where one can see many kvass vendors in the streets. Its origins go back 5,000 years to the beginnings of beer production.

The alcohol content is so low (0.05-1.44%) that it is considered acceptable for consumption by children. It is often flavoured with fruits or herbs such as strawberries or mint. Kvass is also used for preparing a summer cold soup, okroshka.

Kvass has been a common drink in Eastern Europe since ancient times. It was first mentioned in Old Russian Chronicles under the year 989. In Russia, under Peter the Great, it was the most common non-alcoholic drink in every class of society. Later, in the 19th century, it was reported to be consumed in excess by peasants, low-class citizens, and monks; it was, it is sometimes said, usual for them to drink more kvass than water. It has been both a commercial product and homemade. It used to be consumed widely in most Slavic countries, where in almost every city there are kvass vendors on the street. Today it forms the basis of a multimillion-dollar industry. Kvass was once sold during the summer only, but is now produced, packaged, and sold year-round.

You can find authentic Russian Kvass on many Russian Restaurants in Los Angeles

Pierogi are a dish of Slavic origin, consisting of boiled dumplings of unleavened dough stuffed with varying ingredients. They are usually semicircular, but are square in some cuisines.

In English, the word pierogi and its variants (perogi, perogy, pirohi, piroghi, pirogi, pirogen, pierogy, pirohy, pyrohy) are pronounced with a stress on the letter “o”.

The origins of pierogi are difficult to trace. While dumplings as such are found throughout Eurasia, the specific name pierogi, with its Proto-Slavic root “pir” (festivity) and its various cognates in the West and East Slavic languages, shows the dish’s common Slavic origins, predating the modern nation states and their standardized languages. The East Slavic Belarusians, Russians and Ukranians, the West Slavic Poles and Slovaks, and the Baltic Latvians and Lithuanians all consume this dish, although sometimes under a different name (e.g., kalduny in Belarus and Lithuania). In some East European languages, variants of this dish are known by names derived from the root of the word “to boil” (Russian: варить, varit’, Ukrainian: варити, varyty). These include the Belarusian vareniki (варэнiкi), Latvian vareņiki, Russian vareniki (варе́ники), Ukrainian varenyky (варе́ники) (literally “boiled things”, from the adjective form varenyy).

There is a definite similarity to Italian ravioli and tortellini or Jewish kreplach. In Turkey, Transcaucasus, and Central Asia round pockets of dough with a meat filling are called manti, khinkali, or chuchvara. In East Asia, similar foods are served, such as Chinese wonton and jiaozi, Japanese gyoza, Mongolian buuz, Nepalese/Tibetan momo, Afghani mantu, and Korean mandu.

In Russian cuisine, the closest analogue to pierogi are vareniki. Pelmeni, which are meat filled, are also similar.

Russians like authentic beverages, like vodka or mors (a berry drink). Also, coffee and tea (with sugar and lemon) are popular. Kvas – the bread based sweet beverage. The most popular original beverage in Russia. Medovuha – the honey based sweet alcohol beverage Kompot – boiled water with fruits and sugar, served cold Prostokvasha – the milk based acid beverage, served cold Samogon – home made vodka, with the strong smell Vodka – most popular Russian brand Beer – Russian beer in general a bit acid

Sauerkraut is finely shredded cabbage that has been fermented by various lactic acid bacteria, including Leuconostoc, Lactobacillus, and Pediococcus. It has a long shelf-life and a distinctive sour flavor, both of which result from the lactic acid that forms when the bacteria ferment the sugars in the cabbage. It is therefore not to be confused with coleslaw, which receives its acidic taste from vinegar.

The word comes directly from the German language, which literally translates to sour cabbage. Sauerkraut is traditional in German, Austrian, Slovenian, Croatian, Slovak, Polish (Kiszona Kapusta), Czech, Dutch (zuurkool), Estonian (hapukapsas), Latvian (skābi kāposti), Lithuanian (rauginti kopūstai), Danish (surkål), Romanian (varza murata), Serbian, Bulgarian (кисело зеле kiselo zele), Russian, Ukrainian, Hungarian, and Belarusian cuisines. It is also part of the native cuisine of Friuli-Venezia Giulia and Trentino (capuzi garbi and crauti) in Northern Italy, and Alsace Lorraine in North Eastern France (choucroute). Finally, it is also popular in many parts of Northeast China, Northern China, the USA, Chile (chucrut), and Canada.

Dressed Herring or Herring Under Fur Coat is layered salad composed of diced salted herring covered with layers of grated boiled vegetables (potatoes, carrots, beet roots), chopped onions and mayonnaise. Some variations of salad include a layer of fresh grated apple and some don’t .

Grated boiled beet roots covered with mayonnaise as last layer gives the salad rich purple color. Often Dressed Herring salad is decorated with grated boiled eggs (whites or yolks or both).

Herring Under Fur Coat Salad is very popular in Russia, Ukraine and other countries of former USSR.  It is one of the traditional dishes served on New Year and Christmas celebrations

The Russian cuisine is first of all associated all over the world with vodka, caviar, beetroot salad and pies. It should be noted, however, that vodka was brought to Russia from Italy only in the 15th century. And it was not before the 19th century that salads were borrowed from European cuisine. Caviar has always been festive rather than daily food.

Throughout its long history the Russian cuisine has accumulated and inventively transformed various traditions – both Eastern and Western – from Mongolian to French ones – thus becoming one of the richest cuisines in the world. Yet, originally the daily meal of the Russians used to be quite modest: based on cereals and vegetables, it was enriched with fish, mushrooms and milk products. Meat was rarely used, as there were a great number of lent days.

Syrniki are fried quark cheese pancakes, garnished with sour cream, jam, honey, or apple sauce. The cheese mixture may contain raisins for extra flavor. In Russia they are also known as tvorozhniki

Syrniki are made from full-fat, creamy cottage cheese, mixed with flour, egg, and sugar, sometimes adding vanilla essence. The soft mixture is shaped into cakes, which are fried, generally in vegetable oil. The outsides become crispy, and the center is warm and creamy. They are sweet and served for breakfast or dessert. Their simplicity and relative lack of expensive ingredients makes them very popular in Eastern Europe.

The name syrniki is derived from the word сыр in Russian or сир in Ukrainian (transliteration: syr), meaning “cheese” in both languages. Although the modern meaning of the word сыр (syr) in Russian is hard yellow cheese, the original word in Slavic languages stood for soft white cheese (similar to today’s quark cheese, which is still called сир in Ukrainian but metamorphosed into творог, tvorog in Russian). Thus, the word syrniki, derived from the old meaning of syr, came to designate pancakes made from soft white cheese.