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| A perfect Russian lunch |
Anyone who's been following my instagram feed knows that I eat a lot of Russian food, especially in our cafeteria at lunch. And I'm a big fan of institutional food, with fond memories of chicken fried steak in the cafeteria at my elementary school. But Russian cafeterias are something else. First of all, pre-made frozen foods are just about unheard of. Every day, someone is peeling potatoes, grinding cuts of meat, and making soup from scratch. Then, there's the Russian meal structure. You start with a "salad", which can be anything from fresh cucumbers and tomatoes, to a mayonnaise-heavy potato salad, to boiled tongue. Next is the "first course": soup. In the summer, we have cold soups with kvass, but there are also hot soups. My favorite is solyanka, which has cured meats, pickles, and olives. Soup almost always has some sour cream as a garnish. Then, the "second course": the entree. Usually, some sort of meat. At our cafeteria, we have beef goulash, cutlets made from ground meat shaped into patties, or pieces of chicken or pork with cheese and tomato on top. And then you need a "garnish", the carb: potatoes, pasta, rice, or my favorite, buckwheat. Sometimes there are golubtsy, stuffed cabbage rolls, or stuffed peppers. Or an "omelet" which is just baked eggs. Then you need a drink: compote from berries, or tea, and something sweet: a pirozhok or some other baked good. The cafeterias are also very cheap, compared to cafes or restaurants, and really just as healthy and filling.
