Comments on: Le Cordon Jew: лапша да каша – пища наша

By: Shawn

Shawn — Sat, 26 Nov 2011 06:43:16 +0000

You can basically do what you want with Kasha varnishkes. And you certainly don’t have to be Jewish to enjoy it. Using butter is new to me. Normally this is a meat dish and some sort of chicken fat or stock is used at some point in the process.

I use the Israeli instant chicken soup mix from Osem for the stock and it adds a lot of flavor. They also have a parve version.

I am certain that there was no such thing as Farfelle in Poland. I have no proof of this but my guess is that kasha varnishkes is as American as apple pie.

By: Lsura

Lsura — Fri, 11 Feb 2011 21:48:10 +0000

I love this. So good reminds me of my rusian safta. Do u have a good kugel recipe that’s salty not sweet maybe ?

By: pamela

pamela — Fri, 10 Dec 2010 03:01:38 +0000

delicious!!!!!! just what I wanted, thank you. :) added one additional onion. husband and kids enjoyed addition of hot sauce as well.

By: Dee

Dee — Fri, 24 Sep 2010 00:30:00 +0000

Love your blog, the story is wonderful.
I just got back from FL. Each time I visit my parents, I make Kasha Varnishkas. My recipe is very similar to yours, but of course I have to use the pareve margarine, they eat it with a meat dinner. My dad wanted gravy, decided to use terriaki sauce! Quite unorthdox! Talk about fusion cuisine!
Each time I dread the work, but each time its quicker to prepare than I remembered.. If you use a large pot that won’t boil over and wipe the stove as you go, its very easy!
I cook tons and then baggie up for the freezer. They enjoy it for about a month after I go home. My dad boasts to the neighbors, doctors, even my sister about wht great kasha varnishkas I make.

By: Phyllis

Phyllis — Sat, 04 Sep 2010 17:49:44 +0000

It’s the holidays and my mouth is watering. I remember my grandmother coming to stay at various times with us and making all these wonderful but odd dishes. Unfortunately, no recipes were left. You mentioned apple cake, my grandmother also made a wonderful apple cake in an oblong pan. The dough was almost pie like with a lattice top and bottom crust, then it was filled with apples and spices and I believe plums or some type of plum jam. It was very moist and the syrup from the plums would be all over our plates. Again, no recipe just memories of her visiting and the wonderful food she would make for us. She was born in Austria. If you ever find a recipe that sounds like the one I just mentioned, please let me know.

By: Minka

Minka — Sun, 09 Aug 2009 03:36:48 +0000

Butter? It sounds yummy actually, but my mom made them with no butter since she was always serving them with meat. I have made my own vegetarian version in recent years; perhaps, next time I’ll try butter. Thanks for this great info!

By: tammy

tammy — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 18:46:58 +0000

Thank you. I only know one deli in MA selling it and I can never get there. I may try to make it now. Loved reading your step by step guide

By: James Kyser

James Kyser — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 03:49:54 +0000

I put butter and chopped parsley in the bow-tie pasta and garnish with sour cream. Yes it is yummy. The buckwheat tastes like ground beef, almost.

By: michael

michael — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 01:42:14 +0000

Perhaps my hypothesis was incorrect. Maybe I should amend it to say that you can’t appreciate kasha ‘less you been poor.

But yeah, I make a lot of kasha. It’s especially good when you can’t get to the grocery store often and don’t have many fresh ingredients on hand.

And yeah, I have all kinds of cast iron. I have an unexplained mistrust of Teflon. And there’s something comforting about ten solid pounds of grease-coated iron in your hand.

By: Huw

Huw — Sat, 31 May 2008 12:25:49 +0000

I confess this only makes me nostalgic for my college days at NYU c.1983 when all I could afford was the Kasha at Kiev. I don’t know if that indicates acquiring “a taste for kasha varnishkes as an adult”.

I had no idea that the recipe was at once so complex and yet easy.

You own a kitchen of cast iron, no?