What to eat Moscow (Москва)? culinary specialties and gastronomy

A proper meal in Russia will traditionally start with zakusky/закуски. These very varied appetizers include cold meat, cold cuts, mimosa eggs, salted or smoked fish (herring, salmon, sturgeon, etc.), fish roe (caviar or salmon roe), crustaceans and different types of salads based on tomatoes, cucumbers, cooked potatoes or carrots. Pickled vegetables and mushrooms are very popular, such as dill-flavoured pickles/малосольные or pickled tomatoes/солёные помидоры. These are often served on canapés of soft bread or blinis/блины.

Often associated with blinis, caviar/Икра is the archetype of Russian gastronomy. According to legislation, only sturgeon eggs are eligible for this designation. Extracted with delicacy, the eggs are then washed and salted to preserve it. If it is tempting to take Russian caviar back in your luggage, give up hope of finding an excellent product at a low price. Even in Russia, caviar is still a luxury item. A product that is too cheap could be made from salmon roe. The terms beluga/белуга, ossetrina/осётрина or sevruga/севрюга simply refer to different species of sturgeon. Beluga whales take up to 15 years to reproduce, hence their exceptional rarity and their high cost, about 10 000 €/kg.

Among the common starters in Russia, the Olivier salad/салат Оливье is named after Lucien Olivier, the Belgian chef of the famous Moscow restaurant L'Ermitage, who in the 1860s created this salad with potatoes, carrots, gherkins and peas with mayonnaise. Be careful, in Russia if you order vinegret/винегре́т, it is not a seasoning, but a salad, based on beets, potatoes and carrots. The very colourful "furry herring" or seledka pod chouboy/cельдь под шубой is a popular starter consisting of herring covered with many layers of vegetables (potatoes, beetroot, etc.), with the beetroot colouring the mayonnaise that coats this delicious dish in pink. Simpler, the herring with honey or seledka s modom/cеледка с мёдом marinates for a few hours with onions, salt, lemon and a hint of honey. Reserved for seasoned amateurs, the kholodets/холодец is a preparation better known in France under the name of aspic, made from cooked meat (usually pork or poultry) frozen with small vegetables in a rather large quantity of jelly. Often, the starters are accompanied by bread. Two kinds are generally proposed: the classic white wheat bread (belyy khleb/белый хлеб) and the black rye bread (tchiorny khleb/чёрный хлеб) often a little sour and slightly sweet at the same time.

As in other Eastern European countries, soups are very important. The best known of all Russian soups is probably borscht(Борщ). In the West we mainly know red borsch/красныйборщ based on beef broth, red cabbage and beetroot flavoured with a lot of aromatic herbs. But there are other varieties such as green borscht (shchavel/щавель), made from sorrel, without beetroot. A spoonful of sour cream or smetana(cметана) before tasting softens the borsch and makes it more creamy. Other soups include sour chtchi(Щи), based on sauerkraut, vegetables and meat, oroukha(Уха), based on fish and potatoes and flavoured with laurel. In summer, tryokrochka(Окрошка)

, a cold soup made with kefir, pre-cooked vegetables and ham, seasoned with dill.

Meat and fish dishes are accompanied by rice, boiled or fried potatoes, sometimes buckwheat. One example is the famous beef Stroganov(бефстроганов), a beef stew with mushrooms in a sauce with sour cream, mustard and paprika. Another meat dish, with distinctly oriental influences, chachlik(Шашлык) originated in the Caucasus and Central Asia, but has become a staple throughout Russia. These skewers, traditionally made of lamb, but also pork, beef or poultry, are delicately spiced. Finally, the hearty chicken Kiev or kotlety po kievski(Котлеты Котлеты-киевски)

is a recipe for chicken breast filled with herb butter, then breaded and fried. On the vegetables and starchy side, we can't miss the famous pelmeni(Пельмени) kinds of big ravioli traditionally steamed stuffed with mutton, pork, beef, mushrooms or potatoes. They are always topped with a dollop of sour cream just before serving. Pirojki(Пирожки) are shortcrust pastry fritters, usually stuffed with meat. Galoubtsy(Голубцы) are cabbage leaf rolls filled with a mixture of minced meat, onions and rice. The small packets thus obtained are steamed or cooked in a bain-marie and eaten with fresh cream.

To have tea, we often go for a few biscuits such as prianiki(Пряники), round gingerbread rolls filled with jam and covered with a sugar topping. Otherwise the Russians love pancakes and other syrniki(сырники), small very thick pancakes with cottage cheese that are often served with sour cream, jam or applesauce. They are sometimes topped with kissel(кисель)

, a red fruit juice slightly thickened with cornstarch.

There are more complex cakes such as the Napoleon(Наполеон) a kind of mille-feuilles or the very light ptichye moloko (птичье молоко) which consists of a sponge cake covered with a meringue cream, all topped with dark chocolate. The medovik(mедовик) is a cake composed of many layers of honey biscuit and whipped cream. Finally, the muraveinik(mуравейник)

is a dessert composed of cookie chips agglomerated with a caramel cream and moulded in the shape of a cone. A cake of the lower classes, it is now found in bakeries.

Easter is a very important period for the 60 million Russian Orthodox people. Two very popular desserts are eaten here. The paskha(пасха) is known for its shape generally resembling a truncated pyramid. It is a dessert composed mainly of farmhouse cheese (tvorog), thick cream, butter, vanilla flavoured and generously topped with candied fruit and raisins. Finally, koulitch(кули́ч)

is a kind of high brioche baked in a cylindrical mould. It is flavoured with rum and saffron, before candied fruit and almonds are added. Once baked, it is crowned with a white glaze.

And to taste all these desserts, there is a hot drink that the Russians have a real cult for. Tea(Чай)

has a major place in Russian society and the country is one of the biggest consumers in the world. It appeared in the country in the 16th century and only became accessible in the 19th century thanks to the development of the railways. At the beginning of the 20th century, the Wissotzky company, founded in Moscow, was the largest tea manufacturer in the world. Tea in Russia is traditionally prepared in a samovar, a kind of double kettle where the tea is brewed for a long time in a teapot placed above a heated vat where the water always remains at the right temperature. The term "Russian tea" has a double meaning. In France, it refers to a black tea flavoured with bergamot, but the appellation also has a geographical reality, as Russia produces tea - in a very localised way - on the Black Sea coast. And if today 90% of the tea consumed in Russia comes from India or Sri Lanka, one can still buy real Russian tea from this region, in specialized shops such as the Maison Perlov in Moscow, inaugurated in 1893, with its spectacular Chinese-inspired decoration. Alternatively, you can enjoy tea - and excellent coffees - in some of the Russian capital's must-see addresses, such as Café Pushkin,housed in an 18th century mansion, or Café Bosco, located in the Goum department store on Red Square. Not forgetting Coffeemania located at 2 rue Malyy Cherkasskiy Pereulok* with its Art Deco interiors. In Russia, the term chaikhana refers to tea houses of oriental inspiration with colourful decoration.

If there is one alcohol that everyone associates with Russia, it is vodka (Водка). This alcohol made from wheat or potatoes is traditionally an inexpensive alcohol. It is not a digestive or aperitif, but is usually drunk throughout the meal. Vodka also provides one of the Russians' favourite cocktails: it is made with macerating fruits (blackcurrant, lemon, etc.) that give the drink a fragrant taste. Vladimir's vodka, made under the brand name Silver Prince, is delicately scented and very pleasant. Stolitchnaya and Moskovskaya are in principle the purest, although it is necessary to be sure of their origin. The must remains Beluga, produced in the town of Mariinsk, in the heart of Siberia.

Beer (Пиво), if it does not dethrone vodka, especially at the table, is very widespread and Russia is the fourth largest beer consumer in the world. The country's biggest breweries are Tinkoff and Baltika, and Russians often prefer lager beers even if there are some good quality brown or white beers. Wine (Вино) is increasingly being consumed in Russia, especially in trendy places. The south-western part of the country on the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea offers a suitable climate for wine-growing. Thus the wines of Georgia (Khvanchkara - хваншкара - and Kinzmaraouli - кинзмараули -, the favourites of Joseph Stalin) are the most popular in Russia. All things considered, wine is still quite expensive in Russia and too cheap, possibly adulterated wines may leave you with bad memories when you wake up. Finally, for special occasions, Russia has its "Soviet" champagne (Sovetskoye champanskoye/Советское Шампанское), a kind of sparkling wine whose low price partly explains its popularity. Served for special occasions (birthdays, anniversaries, parties, etc.) it is quite acceptable and its sweet version goes very well with pastries.

Among the low or non-alcoholic drinks we can mention the kvas(квас) made from the fermentation of rye bread, which gives a very light fresh drink with less than 2% alcohol, often flavoured with fruit and mint in summer. The bit (морс), is a preparation based on cranberry juice with lemon juice. Despite its name, kompot (компот) is the name given to the water used to cook fruit (apples, strawberries, peaches, etc.) that is served well chilled, although it also refers to fruit that is simply cooked. Medovukha (медовуха) is made by fermenting honey. Although it is usually about 5%, it can be as high as 15%. Finally, ryazhenka (ряженка) and varenets (варенец) are two drinks made from fermented milk that are very popular in Russia.