🇺🇦 SLAVA UKRAINI 🇺🇦

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This is Part Three in our multi-part series on Ukrainian Cuisine! Find Part One (Borshch) here, and Part Two (Varenyky) here!

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If you haven't tried Ukrainian cuisine, you're missing out

Ukraine is home to gorgeous architecture, centuries-old cathedrals, rugged coastlines, and a rich agricultural tradition that’s earned Ukraine the nickname, “the bread basket of Europe”.

The first Ukrainian dish that comes to mind when you think of traditional Ukrainian food is without a doubt borshch. After all, it is the national dish of Ukraine. This beloved red beetroot soup is one of things that you literally cannot not eat when you're in Ukraine, and it would be criminal not to! Just like not eating sushi in Japan, or ordering a pastrami sandwich in New York. It's just something you have to do. So today I'd like to cover the best thing that goes with borshch. Salo!

Salo: Ukraine's Greasy National Symbol

Salo

“Ukraine is not dead yet – while there is salo,” sang Ukraine’s future President Volodymyr Zelenskyy – clad in tight leather and sporting high heels – in a satirical music video shot in 2014 when he led District 95, a comedy troupe whose immense popularity propelled him to the presidency five years later.

Dol’ki Kabana

Another humorous trend is to portray salo as something fashionable and cool. A viral meme described salo as “Dol’ki Kabana” (slices of hog) in a reference to the Dolce & Gabbana fashion company.

Salo and drinking:

In Ukraine, the emphasis is not on the drink, but on the communal experience — being with friends, telling stories, celebrating. Food is essential to the proceedings. It would be unthinkable to drink shots of horilka without chasing them with delicacies like pickles or salo,

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Budmo!

Salo can be served raw salted or smoked. It can be cooked as cracklings that are eaten with bread, potato or added as pie fillings. Such dishes as meat with potato stew, rissoles larded with garlic, buzhenyna (baked ham) stewed with cabbage, kruchenyky (pork or beef rolls with various stuffings) can’t go without such vital product of the Ukrainian cuisine as salo. Salo is also used to lard the meat and make it more juicy.

The uniqueness of pork lard lies in the fact that it can’t be oversalted. No matter how much salt you’ll put on a piece of salo, it’ll take as much as it needs, no more and no less.

Recipe:

• Lard — 1 kilogram;
• Salt — 200 grams;
• Garlic — 2 heads;
• Spices (bay leaves, pepper, marjoram, cumin, hot pepper) — to taste.

The cooking process:

The main secret of delicious salo is the quality of the lard. When buying lard, pay attention to its color. A quality product will have a snow-white color, without yellow streaks or spots. It is good if the lard has a thin layer of meat.

1. Peel the garlic and cut it into thin slices.
2. Make diamond-shaped incisions up to 1 cm deep on the washed and dried lard. Carefully place the garlic slices in these holes.
3. Rub the lard with a mixture of chopped spices. Put the lard on parchment paper and generously cover with salt. Now wrap the lard tightly in paper and refrigerate for 7 days.
4. Free the finished dish from excess salt and spices. Store in the refrigerator or freezer.

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CHARITY LIST!

u/Jesterboyd is a mod in r/ukraine and local to Kyiv. He has been spending his days helping get supplies to people. All of the mod team can vouch for the work he has done so far. Link to donation

If you feel like donating to another charity, here are some others!

• United24: This site was launched by President Zelenskyy as the main venue for collecting charitable donations in support of Ukraine. Funds will be allocated to cover the most pressing needs facing Ukraine.
• Come Back Alive: This NGO crowdfunds non-lethal military equipment, such as thermal vision scopes & supplies it to the front lines. It also provides training for Ukrainian soldiers, as well as researching troops’ needs and the social reintegration of veterans.
• Aerorozvidka: An NGO specializing in providing support and equipment for unmanned aerial vehicles (ISR), situational awareness, cybersecurity for armed forces.
• Hospitallers: This is a medical battalion that unites volunteer paramedics and doctors to save the lives of soldiers on the frontline. They crowdfund their vehicle repairs, fuel, and medical equipment.
• Phenix: A volunteer organization helping armed forces with various needs.
• Kyiv Territorial Defense: This fundraiser is to support the regional territorial defense group. It is organized by a known journalist and a producer of the acclaimed "Winter on Fire" documentary, which can temporarily be watched for free HERE.
• Happy Paw: Charity dedicated to solving the problems of animals in Ukraine. Happy Paw helps more than 60 animal shelters throughout Ukraine.
• Kharkiv With You and associated Help Army Kharkiv: Supporting the defenders of Kharkiv with everything from night-vision goggles to food and medicine.