Zaterta kapusta

What it is

Zaterta kapusta is a thick dish made from fermented cabbage and mashed potatoes in a meat broth with ribs. Its uniqueness comes from the dressing — zatirka: steamed millet, bacon, and garlic with coriander, ground in a mortar to a paste. This grinding process gave the dish its name.

Boil the potatoes and mash them with a pestle, add finely chopped fermented cabbage, a sauté of fresh bacon and onion, and the zatirka. Cook everything together for a few minutes, stirring, until the dish thickens, and let it sit before serving.

The recipe originates from the village of Ivanky, which no longer exists on the map. It is preserved by former residents and their descendants: zaterta kapusta is prepared every year for the memorial service for the village and is offered to all who come.

Ivanky was located in the northern part of Lviv region, far from the Carpathians. We included the dish in the 'Carpathian Cuisine' as part of the Galician tradition.

History and name

Ivanky was situated on the border of the former Zhovkva and Sokal districts, near the village of Dibrivka; now this place belongs to the Kariv community. On August 28, 1944, the village was burned down by NKVD units because local residents supported the UPA; over 300 people lost their homes, and rebuilding the village was prohibited. Today, there is a memorial park with a chapel and a mass grave in its place.

The tradition of preparing zaterta kapusta for the memorial service was initiated by a former resident of Ivanky, Stepan Ivaseyko, and later continued by his daughter-in-law. The history of the recipe was researched by Oksana Kizyma, a teacher at the Uhniv Agricultural and Construction College; in the autumn of 2026, her student Hanna Martyniuk presented the dish at the regional competition 'Authentic Dishes of Ukraine' and took third place.

Ingredients and allergens

SauerkrautShredded cabbage, fermented with salt in a barrel; a winter supply for every mountain family.

PotatoIn the mountains, potatoes are called bulba, ripa, bandurky, or kompyr — the basis for riplianka, deruny, and pies.

Porkribs — for the brothMeat for bograch, holubtsi, and homemade sausages.

Milletfor the zatirkaGrain from millet; in Rakhiv region, they bake Christmas stuffed cabbage with millet and mushrooms.

Pork fat (salo)fresh bacon — for the zatirka and sautéSalted pork lard; used to layer holubtsi and to start cooking bograch.

Garlicfor the zatirkaA seasoning for bograch, kiselytsia, sausages, and trout.

Also: coriander (for the zatirka), onion (for the sauté), salt (to taste)

Contains allergens: none of the 14 major allergens in the traditional recipe
Diet: gluten-free

Ingredients of the traditional recipe; every cook and every place may do it differently — please ask when ordering. We cannot guarantee the absence of allergens or traces.

How it is traditionally made

• Sauerkraut
• Potato
• Pork — ribs — for the broth
• Millet — for the zatirka
• Pork fat (salo) — fresh bacon — for the zatirka and sauté
• Garlic — for the zatirka
• Coriander — for the zatirka
• Onion — for the sauté
• Salt — to taste

1. Cook a meat broth using pork ribs.
2. Rinse the millet and steam it with boiling water. Finely chop fresh bacon with garlic and grind it in a mortar together with the millet and coriander to a paste — this is the zatirka.
3. Boil the potatoes and mash them with a pestle.
4. Sauté the onion in fresh bacon.
5. Add finely chopped fermented cabbage, the sauté, and the zatirka to the potatoes, and cook for 10–15 minutes, stirring, until the dish thickens.
6. Remove from heat and let it sit before serving.

How it is served

Hot. At the memorial service for Ivanky, it is offered to all present.

Variants

Exact proportions are not specified in sources: each hostess determines them by eye. Once, bacon with garlic was chopped by hand, but now it is often minced with a blender, although the zatirka is still ground in a mortar.

The traditional method as described by our sources; every family does it its own way. We have not tested this recipe in a professional kitchen.

Where it is eaten

The area is approximate and based on the sources below. The dish is cooked outside it too, and ethnographic borders are blurred.

The former village of Ivanky in the northern part of Lviv region, on the border of the former Zhovkva and Sokal districts; now it is the Kariv community in Sheptytskyi district. This is not the mountains or foothills of the Carpathians, but a Galician tradition that we present alongside.

When it is eaten

In tradition

Zaterta kapusta is part of the memory of the burned village. Every year at the memorial service for Ivanky, former residents and their families prepare it and offer it to those present. Thus, the dish that was once cooked in the village has become a memorial dish and preserves the memory of a community that no longer exists.

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