9 Traditional Ukrainian Dishes You’ll Love (And One You Probably Won’t) (3 of 3)

Stuffed cabbage rolls

When I lived with a Ukrainian host family for three months in 2002, I marveled at my host mom’s ability to prepare holubtsi on an almost daily basis. The thing is, this minced meat with rice wrapped in a cabbage leaf is very time-consuming and requires serious cooking skills because the taste and consistency of the cabbage can be way off if it isn’t prepared properly. It’s got to be topped off with — you guessed it — smetana. This is always on the menu whenever you’re celebrating a Ukrainian holiday.

Syrniki

If you’re all about eating something sweet for breakfast, you can’t go wrong with syrniki. It consists of salty (!!!) cottage cheese, flour, eggs and sugar that is mixed together and fried in a pan. If you haven’t gotten enough of a sugar rush, adding some strawberry jaw should do the trick. Oh, and don’t forget the smetana because of course!

Holodets

It’s time for a confession: although I spent a decade living in Ukraine, not once did I try holodets. Like most foreigners, I just couldn’t get myself to consume salty Jello with pieces of meat or fish inside. Don’t be like me; keep an open mind and just do it. A lot of Ukrainians — although not all — really dig it. In fact, during the cooking process, the smell spreads all over the apartment and remains there for all eternity.