Bukovinian cuisine

Dishes of Bukovina: mamalyga, Easter breads from Ukraine’s heritage list, holubtsi, beets, plachyndy. Ingredients, allergens and customs.

Lenten variantBanoshPorridges and corn dishes · Hutsul regionThick corn porridge with sour cream, which is stirred for a long time until the butter appears. It is served with Bryndza, cracklings, or mushrooms.

Lenten variantKuleshaPorridges and corn dishes · Hutsul regionThick cornmeal porridge boiled in water: it is turned out onto a board, cut with a thread, and eaten with bryndza, butter, or sour milk.

LentenCarpathian herbal teasSoft drinks · Hutsul regionDaily drink of the Carpathian villages: thyme, motherwort, St. John's wort, mint, linden blossom, leaves of blueberries and raspberries, dried from summer.

LentenUzvarSoft drinks · Hutsul regionA drink made from dried apples, pears, and plums that concludes the Christmas Eve dinner. In Hutsul villages, it is simply called 'var'.

Intangible heritage of UkraineLenten variantBukovynian paska (Easter bread)Baking and ritual bread · BukovinaEaster breads of Bukovyna: large paska 'dora', 'horned' paska with dough figures, babkas, and 'kukutsi' cookies. Included in the National List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Ukraine since 2026.

LentenBirch sapSoft drinks · Hutsul regionSpring birch sap is clear and slightly sweet. Hutsuls drink it as a vitamin beverage, while in Bukovina, they add it to homemade kvass.

LentenCarpathian honeyPreserves · TranscarpathiaHoney from the mountain meadows, forests, and gardens of the Carpathians, collected by local Carpathian bees. Spring, summer, and autumn varieties have different tastes and colors.

Intangible heritage of UkraineBukovynian bryndzaCheeses · BukovinaCheese from the pastures of Putyl and Vyzhnytsia made from cow's and sheep's milk: aged Budz is mixed with salt and stored in wooden berbenytsia.

LentenBeet kvassSoft drinks · Boyko regionBeet kvass, fermented in water: a ruby kvass that was consumed and used to make borscht without vinegar. The Boykos called it 'fermented borscht.'

LentenHomemade kvassSoft drinks · Hutsul regionA slightly sour fermented drink: made from grain or bread, with birch sap and berries, and among the Hutsuls — also apple, with rowan.

18+Kalhanivka (tormentil bitters)Alcohol (18+) · Hutsul regionBitter tincture made from the root of tormentil — Potentilla erecta. Known throughout Ukraine, especially among the Hutsuls of Bukovina. 18+.

18+Horikhivka (green walnut liqueur)Alcohol (18+) · Hutsul regionA dark homemade liqueur made from green walnuts, known among the Hutsuls of Kosiv and Verkhovyna, as well as in Bukovina. No recipe. 18+.

Intangible heritage of UkraineLenten variantBukovynian borshchSoups · BukovinaBorscht made with fermented beetroot, beans, and smoked ribs: a tanginess without vinegar and tomato, and a spoonful of thick sour cream served in the bowl.

Gefilte fish (stuffed carp)Main dishes · Bukovinian cuisine (Chernivtsi and lowland Bukovina)A festive dish from Chernivtsi with Ashkenazi roots: the flesh of carp is ground with onion and bread, returned to the skin, and boiled or baked.

LentenBukovynian mashed beansMain dishes · BukovinaLenten Christmas Eve dish of Bukovyna: boiled beans are mashed into a thick puree and seasoned with fried onions and garlic.