Although Russia is not considered one of the world’s top food destinations, this country has lots of fantastic traditional dishes to offer. Tourists who come to Russia are often astonished by the diversity and flavors of the local cuisine. In this article, we’ll introduce you to the most famous Russian foods and give you some simple recipes that you can try wherever you are. 

Let’s start our journey into the world of Russian cuisine!

→ By the way, to learn more about the topic, you can visit our lesson titled How is the Russian Food?

Table of Contents

1. Must-Try Dishes in Russian Restaurants
2. Unique Russian Foods
3. Food-Related Vocabulary
4. How to Cook Russian Food at Home
5. Conclusion

1. Must-Try Dishes in Russian Restaurants

If you come to Russia and visit a local restaurant, you’ll probably find some traditional Russian foods on the menu. Depending on where you live, you may also be able to find variations of Russian cuisine in your home country! We highly recommend that you taste the following Russian dishes should you ever have the opportunity:

A- Borscht

Borscht is a beet soup that came to Russia from Ukraine many years ago. The main reason you should try borscht is to enjoy the unusual combination of meat and sauteed vegetables. It’s served either hot or cold, usually with a piece of rye bread and some sour cream on top.

B- Pirogi

Pirogi is just as important in Russian cuisine as pizza is in Italian cuisine. Russian pirogi are usually cooked with unsweetened dough, and they come with different stuffings, from meat to fruits. You’ll find the best version of this traditional Russian food not in a cafe, restaurant, or Russian food store, but rather as a guest in a Russian home.

C- Varenyky

Another Russian food you must try is varenyky, or dumplings filled with potatoes, cabbage, or cherries. You can find them in any Russian food store’s frozen food department. It’s a really cheap yet nourishing Russian dish.

D- Blini

Blini are Russian wheat pancakes. In most Russian restaurants, you can find plain blini, as well as blini with toppings. This dish is such an important part of Russian cuisine, that even the annual spring festival called Maslenitsa is celebrated with blini.

E- Beef Stroganoff

Beef stroganoff is a dish made with beef and served in a special delicate sauce. It has a really long history, and there are lots of variations in its cooking. Rice, pasta, or potatoes are usually good side dish options for beef stroganoff.

F- Kvass

Kvass is an ancient Russian drink. Initially, it was served as a light alcoholic drink; over time, Russians started to make it from roasted bread. We advise you to order kvass if you come to Russia in the summer, since it’s really refreshing. This drink is sold in every single Russian food store.

Borscht is one of the most internationally popular Russian foods ever!

2. Unique Russian Foods

There are some unique Russian foods which are extra-popular in Russia, but have no analogues outside of the country. If you’d like to try some really authentic Russian cuisine staples while visiting, look for the following items on the menu:

A- Olivier

This Russian salad was invented by M. Olivier, who owned a luxurious restaurant in Moscow in the 1860s. It consists of meat, peas, eggs, boiled vegetables, and mayonnaise. This is a very popular Russian food for New Year, in particular. 

B- Dressed Herring

This simple but delicious salad is the second-most famous meal in Russia, after Olivier. Its ingredients are layered: first comes the herring, then boiled potatoes, carrots, and red beets. Mayonnaise is used as the dressing.

C- Okroshka

Okroshka is a cold soup with small cubes of vegetables, pickles, meat, or fish. Before serving, Russians fill this dish with kvass and add some sour cream to it. It’s a great summer alternative to other soups.

D- Raznosoli

This is not one particular dish, but a general term for foods eaten during a cold season. Raznosoli include salted cucumbers, tomatoes, and mushrooms. Russian people mostly use them for cooking soups and second courses, but sometimes they’re served as separate meals.

Most Russian people love their Olivier and dressed herring enough to cook these dishes for any celebration.

3. Food-Related Vocabulary

Are you good and hungry for some traditional Russian cuisine and can’t wait to get a taste? 

Unfortunately, not all Russian people know English well, so you’d better learn some food-related phrases before going to Russia and visiting local cafes and restaurants. These ten phrases will be really helpful:

Russian	Romanization	English
Где-нибудь поблизости можно попробовать русскую еду?	Gde-nibud’ poblizosti mozhno poprobovat’ russkuyu yedu?	“Is there any Russian food near me?”
Я хочу есть/пить.	Ya hochu yest’/pit’.	“I am hungry/thirsty.”
У вас есть меню на английском?	U vas yest’ menyu na angliyskom?	“Do you have a menu in English?”
Дайте меню, пожалуйста?	Dayte menyu, pozhaluysta?	“Could I have the menu, please?”
Я возьму это.	Ya voz’mu eto.	“I’ll have this.”
Стакан чая/кофе, пожалуйста.	Stakan chaya/kofe, pozhaluysta.	“A cup of tea/coffee, please.”
Больше ничего, спасибо.	Bol’she nichego, spasibo.	“That’s all, thank you.”
Счёт, пожалуйста?	Schyot, pozhaluysta?	“Could I get the check, please?”
Приятного аппетита!	Priyatnogo appetita!	“Enjoy your meal!”
Было очень вкусно, спасибо!	Bylo ochen’ vkusno, spasibo!	“It was delicious, thank you!”

If you’re a RussianPod101 member, you can learn even more useful phrases in our Restaurant lesson series:

★ Restaurant 1
★ Restaurant 2
★ Restaurant 3
★ Restaurant 4

This is how some Russian restaurants serve their borscht—in a bread bowl!

4. How to Cook Russian Food at Home

What if you don’t have access to a Russian restaurant and can’t visit the country anytime soon? You’re still in luck!

Below, we’ve outlined two Russian food recipes that don’t take much time or effort. You can try them at home and have amazing Russian food for dinner!

→ Don’t forget to check out our lesson on Cooking-Related Actions so you can get used to reading recipes in Russian! 

A- Pelmeni

Pelmeni are Russian dumplings which have much in common with varenyky. The main difference is that pelmeni are made from meat or sometimes fish. This dish is quite popular in Russia due to its convenience: large batches of it may be frozen and then swiftly boiled for dinner another day.

Ingredients

Dough

• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon of salt
• 3 cups of flour

Filling

• 18 ounces of ground beef
• 1 onion
• ½ of a tablespoon of cold water
• 1 tablespoon of salt
• 1 pepper

Directions

1.  Mix the first three ingredients for the dough in a measuring cup. Add water to fill the cup. Pour everything into a bowl and add some flour. Start mixing the dough till it becomes smooth and elastic. Leave it for 30 minutes in a warm place.

2.  Take the bowl and mix ground beef with onion and pepper. Add some water and salt. Mix everything one more time using your hand or a fork.

3.  Flour your table surface and roll the dough thin. Cut it into small circles. While doing this, keep the rest of your dough under the towel, otherwise it will dry out. Put ½ of the teaspoon with filling on one side of the prepared circle and form a crescent. Join the ends.

4.  Flour your baking sheet and put the half-done pelmeni on it. Keep them in your freezer for 30 minutes to keep them from sticking together.

5.  Take a pot, pour water in it, salt it, and then bring it to boil. Put pelmeni into your pot and cook them for 5-10 minutes, depending on their size.

6.  Serve the dish with ketchup, mayonnaise, sour cream, or any other sauce you like.

Russians love pelmeni from early childhood.

B- Shchi

Shchi is a good example of traditional Russian food for lunch. This popular cabbage soup is also known as “green shchi.” It can be cooked with or without meat. The recipe below is meatless, but you can always add your favorite kind of meat into it. By the way, this is one of the easiest Russian food recipes!

Ingredients

• 250 g. of white cabbage
• 150 g. of beans
• 3 potatoes
• 1 onion
• 1 carrot
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 3 tablespoons of tomato paste
• 3 tablespoons of vegetable oil
• 1 bay leaf
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1.  Soak beans. If you do it two hours before cooking, the taste will be amazing.

2.  Cut potatoes and cabbage. Grate carrots and garlic.

3.  Fill a pan with water. Put the soaked beans into it. As soon as the water begins to boil, add potatoes.

4.  In the meantime, heat the pan. Put some vegetable oil in the pan. Fry onions with carrots and tomato paste.

5.  When the fried vegetables are ready, place them into the pan. Add cabbage. Add salt to taste.

6.  Cook the soup for 15-20 minutes. Right before the end of cooking, add garlic and bay leaf.

Shchi is very similar to borscht, but not the same.

5. Conclusion

In this Russian food guide, we’ve introduced you to only the most famous Russian foods. Of course, there are many more Russian recipes worth knowing. 

If you’d like to learn more Russian cooking words or even become an expert in Russian cuisine, create a Premium PLUS account to use RussianPod101’s MyTeacher service. Your native Russian tutor will help you learn more vocabulary and also help you get better acquainted with the cuisine and culture of Russia. 

If this article made your mouth water, then it’s time to taste some traditional Russian dishes yourself. If you could cook any Russian meal right now, what would it be? Share your favorite Russian food in the comments!