Summer: cold soups
Okroshka, botvinya with greens and cold beetroot soup made with kvass. Cook the base in the evening and add the kvass just before lunch.
Seasonal
Seasonal ideas
Fermentation cooking has its own calendar. In summer, cold kvass and soups made with it come to the rescue; autumn is the time for bread and pickling; winter calls for hot spiced drinks; and holidays bring everything together on one table.
In summer kvass cools the table, in winter sbiten warms it. Both traditions grew from the same pantry.
How this section works: an idea is included if it is easiest to make at a particular time of year, from ingredients that are easiest to find then.
All year round
Five seasonal directions with links to the detailed sections.
Summer: your own kvass
In hot weather kvass ferments faster, so taste it more often and chill it sooner.
Autumn: bread and pickling
New-season rye flour, sauerkraut and braised dishes with a tang. A good time to start a sourdough starter.
Winter: hot drinks
Sbiten made with honey and spices, and hot berry mors. They are quick to make, and the aroma fills the whole house.
The festive table
Scalded rye bread, honey cakes with malt, a jug of mors and one beer dish for adult guests next to an alcohol-free version.
What to keep on hand in summer
- Two or three bottles of unsweetened kvass in the fridge for okroshka and marinades.
- A jar of dark rye rusks for the next batch of kvass.
- Boiled potatoes and eggs, chilled in advance.
- Fresh cucumbers, radishes, spring onions, dill.
- Mustard and sour cream for dressing.
A winter pantry for hot drinks
- Honey, the base of sbiten.
- Cinnamon, cloves, ginger, cardamom and bay leaves.
- Frozen cranberries, lingonberries or currants for mors.
- Rye malt for honey cakes and dark bread for the holidays.
See also
- Recipes
Kvass okroshka, rye bread with malt and beef braised in beer, with an alcohol-free alternative.
- Drinks
Bread kvass, mors, sbiten and alcohol-free malt drinks; beer only as a pairing with food.
- Techniques
Scalding malt, rye starter, fermenting kvass, batter and braising, with safety notes.
- Tips
Short practical tips on sourdough, kvass and baking, plus our article catalogue.
- Ingredients
Rye and barley malt, hops, rusks, sourdough starter and yeast: how to choose, store and use them.
- Questions
Answers to questions about kvass, malt, sourdough and how to cook dishes with beer safely.
What we rely on
- cookery reference books and traditional Russian recipes
- GOST 31494-2012 (kvass)
Fermentation and baking times in the recipes are approximate: they depend on your kitchen temperature, the flour, the rusks and how active the starter is. Go by taste, smell and look, not just the clock.