Chesnok: Cooking from My Corner of the Diaspora: Recipes from Eastern Europe, the Caucasus, and Central Asia by Polina Chesnakova

  • Cultured baked milk (Ryazhenka) (page 36)

    from Chesnok: Cooking from My Corner of the Diaspora: Recipes from Eastern Europe, the Caucasus, and Central Asia Chesnok by Polina Chesnakova

    • Categories: Fermenting; Breakfast / brunch; Dessert; Snacks; Cooking ahead; Ukrainian; Vegetarian
    • Ingredients: whole milk; sour cream
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Notes about this book

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Notes about Recipes in this book

  • Georgian flaky cheese bread (Penovani khachapuri)

    • rebeka_eveksv on May 07, 2026

      Made with basic mozzarella but skipped the ricotta. Really good outcome!

  • Kefir pancakes (Apple oladushki)

    • jessncanfield on January 19, 2026

      These were DELICIOUS. Will absolutely make again. Like the best cross between a pancake and an apple donut. Served with Greek yogurt and maple syrup.

  • Borsch

    • caresan on February 02, 2026

      Super comforting soup. I've made this a few times now and you need to take your time when making the zazharka to let all the flavors shine. I've been able to convert some people who aren't a fan of beets, to love them with this soup. This also freezes well too.

  • Mushroom and buckwheat chicken soup

    • Lepa on May 03, 2026

      This is a really tasty and comforting soup. We ate it with sour cream, as recommended, and loved it. Note: this made an extraordinary leftover. I can't remember any soup in recent memory that I have enjoyed this much. Highly recommend.

  • Georgian vegetable pâté with beet (Pkhali 1)

    • friendlytoast on February 12, 2026

      I love this! Great as a dip with crackers or pita, but I’ve also been eating it as a sandwich spread (a generous layer in a pita pocket with melted fresh mozzarella and spinach).

  • Georgian vegetable pâté with spinach (Pkhali 2)

    • babyapricot on April 13, 2026

      Tasted way better after sitting, some people raved - I thought it was good but not necessarily outstanding. Very easy though and beautiful presentation with the puck shaping and pomegranate seeds.

  • Russian potato salad (Olivier salad)

    • meginyeg on May 03, 2026

      This was good. Would make again.

  • Cabbage, beet, and apple salad (Vitamin salat)

    • caresan on March 04, 2026

      Love this salad and has been on rotation for my lunches during the week.

  • Tabaka-style adjika chicken

    • Lepa on December 15, 2025

      I thought I had adjika and I didn't so I used the suggested chili garlic sauce as a substitute (yes, the Chinese one). I'm not sure how different it would be with adjika but the chicken I made was wonderful. I marinated it over night and it was one of the juiciest chickens I have ever roasted. I had to cook the chicken an extra five minutes but otherwise the recipe was perfect. I am going to get some adjika and make this again!

    • friendlytoast on February 12, 2026

      I only had time for the alternate quick room temperature marination time, but it was superb. Can’t wait to try it again and marinate it overnight.

    • natasha_rsa4gj on March 04, 2026

      It was tasty but my chicken took an extra 20 min to cook this maybe due to elevation in Utah. Not impressive. I won’t be making this again.

  • Beef Stroganoff

    • Lepa on December 06, 2025

      This was really satisfying. It was nice with sirloin. I was careful to avoid overcooking the meat and it was really tender and delicious.

  • Mama's cutlets (Mama's kotleti)

    • caresan on February 02, 2026

      These were delicious and will on rotation in my house. I opted to do a mixture of pork and chicken (instead of pork and turkey). The hardest part was finding a good adjika paste. These also freeze well.

  • Lamb and rice pilaf (Uzbek plov)

    • caresan on February 02, 2026

      This recipe was good but I think I used too much water to cook the rice. I want to try it again because the flavors overall were great. I will also try with beef instead of lamb.

  • Honey cake (Medovik)

    • caresan on February 02, 2026

      Everything about this recipe turned out perfectly! I was a bit intimidated by the picture but once reading through the recipe and watching a few videos, this cake wasn't difficult to put together. Highly recommend you use a light honey (as stated in the recipe) or else the honey flavor will be too strong. I used an orange blossom honey from Portugal and I liked the taste but my friend from Lithuania said it was very good but the honey flavor was on the stronger side.

  • Mint cookies (Mint pryaniki)

    • babyapricot on April 13, 2026

      More of a tea cake than a cookie in my mind, but tasty!

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Reviews about this book

  • Eat Your Books by Jenny Hartin

    Eastern European cookbooks are a passion of mine. They remind me of my heritage and how important it is to remember our roots. Polina’s latest offering is definitely a keeper.

    Full review
  • ISBN 10 1958417580
  • ISBN 13 9781958417584
  • Published Sep 16 2025
  • Format eBook
  • Page Count 240
  • Language English
  • Countries United States
  • Publisher Hardie Grant North America

Publishers Text

Chesnok is Polina Chesnakova’s third cookbook, a love letter to the food of her childhood. Born in Ukraine to Russian and Armenian parents from the Republic of Georgia, she grew up cooking and eating at the hip of her mother and aunts.

From Georgian tkemali (sour plum sauce) and Armenian dolma (stuffed grape leaves) to Ukrainian varenyky (dumplings) and Russian okroshka (cold yogurt soup) and medovik (honey cake), Chesnok showcases over 110 vibrant regional recipes. Essays, stories, and profiles of the amazing cooks in her life are peppered amongst recipes as diverse as the communities from which they blossomed and the immigrant experience they were subsequently passed down in.

Chesnok paints a picture of the Soviet diaspora through food, and is for the children of that diaspora, but it is also for anyone looking to expand their palate and pantry and learn the rich history of a people through their most cherished recipes and traditions.

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