Russian Far North

Reading my post on Arkhangelsk a couple months back, you might’ve been wondering: “What the hell is he doing in that sh**hole?” Especially for someone who’s been all over Russia dozens of…

If you’re an assiduous reader of this blog, you might remember my first recipe for ukha, the traditional Russian fish soup: a yellow perch ukha with perch fritters and perch roe croutons.…

When my partner, tasked with finding a Russian-ish dessert recipe for me for a recent quarantine weekend, unearthed a rye bread cake in Joyce Toomre’s English translation of Elena Molokhovets’ A Gift…

In my last post, I talked about my trip to the wilderness of Lake Lacha, outdoor adventures in the surrounding woods and swamps, and meals at the Kolokol tour base – burbot…

Limiting one’s trip to the Russian Far North to its major cities (Murmansk, Arkhangelsk, Petrozavodsk) would be a little bit like going to a beach or ski resort and never leaving your…

In my recent post on Pomor cuisine, I mentioned that the Pomors were known as “cod eaters” because they consumed codfish, in various ways, with impressive regularity. At the Arkhangelsk market, the…

In my last post, I introduced you to the Pomor people and reviewed Pochtovaya Kontora, a restaurant in Arkhangelsk that serves its own interpretation of the local cuisine. One of the dishes…

As I continue my series on the Great Russian North, it might be natural to wonder: in a country so vast and varied, how did people come to freeze their butts by…

Having recently returned from a trip to the region of Arkhangelsk, I am ready to resume my series on the Great Russian North. And just as with any good meal, I’d like…

As I mentioned in my last post, if you want to fully appreciate the complexity of the plant and berry blend that is Karelian balsam, you should drink it on its own,…