Roman Kovbasniuk grew up steeped in Ukrainian traditions through his family and his surrounding community. Though he has mastered the creation of Holubtsi (stuffed cabbage leaves), the dish he makes in this episode, he actually only learned how to make it two years ago from his then 97 year-old grandmother. You can follow along and make Holubtsi with Kovbasniuk’s recipe below.
Some of the things we love most about this dish, as he discusses with Share Your Foodways host Carolina Moratti in this video, are Kovbasniuk’s ideas about “making do”: adapting your dish to what you have available, or to the preferences of those you’re feeding. As he explains, this dish can be vegetarian, with poultry, or any other combination of meats.
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Ukrainian Stuffed Cabbage Leaves
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