Not sweet+Belarusian cuisine

Belarusian Babka

Prep Time: 1 hr / Cook Time: 1 hr / Total Time: 2 hrs

The famous dish of Belarusian cuisine.

Author and photographs: Sergey

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This is a casserole of grated raw potatoes, with meat, fried onions, mushrooms, and other additives. Or, if you like, potato pudding. "Bulbyanaya" grandmother got its name in the 19th century, as an inheritance from the eponymous gentry Easter pastry made from rich dough. Maybe even with a touch of parody. The Jews called this dish "Kugel". And they considered it festive.

The same name of the grandmother - kugelis - has taken root in the Lithuanian language. Potato grandma belongs to several cuisines at once. Of course, to the Belarusian (as well as to the “Litvinskaya”). But also to Lithuanian, Jewish, to Polish.

From a Jewish point of view, the history of kugel begins almost from biblical times. Long before the arrival of the potato in the Old World, casseroles were made from finely chopped vegetables, flour, and beaten eggs. The composition of the vegetable mass could include, for example, zucchini, carrots, pumpkin, peppers, spinach, onions, garlic, and various greens. Kugel was baked in olive oil until golden brown. And when serving, it was sprinkled with lemon juice, and decorated with olives or capers. Jewish cuisine still has not only potato, but also carrot, pumpkin, and other kugel casseroles. But the Belarusians have firmly taken root only one option - from potatoes.

The classic potato babka used to be baked in cast iron pots in a Russian oven. This gave the finished dish a unique taste, aroma, and texture. Modern babkas are baked in the oven on deep baking sheets or pans, in clay pots.

In addition to meat, fried mushrooms are often used for filling.

Belarusian Babka

Yield: 10 Portions

Ingredients

Boletus mushroom - 200 gr
Dried boletus mushroom - 5 gr
Portobello or Royal Mushrooms - 400 gr
Potatoes - 1750 gr
Chicken - 900 gr
Onion - 350 gr
Butter - 150 gr
Salt, black pepper, and seasonings

Instructions

Peel the mushrooms and cut them into small pieces. Ideally, you should take portobello or royal mushrooms.

We're using frozen boletus mushrooms that's why we're missing them at that stage. But in case you have fresh ones (you're fortunate!) cut them as well at that stage.

As a next step, we're working with Onion. Peel it and cut it into half-rings.

Cut chicken (or any other meat you like) into small chunks. I'm using boneless chicken thighs.

Put a pan on the hot plate and add 30 g of butter. When it starts to melt, add all mushrooms (all together).

When there is no water left in the pan and add dried Boletus Mushrooms. Nowadays you buy them in huge supermarkets. But I'm buying them on Zhenski Basar. There is a woman, right in front of the shop with flowers, who is selling different spices and dried mushrooms.

The next step is onion. Once you removed the mushrooms you can put in the onion with 30 g of butter. Add black pepper and salt. I'm using Chilli Hills Salt and Spizing Sharena Salt because of its great taste! Mix it all together and let it fry.

Put chicken in a pan without any butter and fry it. When the chicken is almost ready add the spices you like. I'm using homemade Hmeli-Suneli spice.

When meat is ready add to the pan previously fried mushrooms and onion. Mix them all!

It is time to rub potatoes. The secret here is to rub 1 onion together with the potatoes. By doing that, you're preventing the potatoes to become brown and adding a light taste of the onion to the potatoes.