mom's golubtsi
cabbage rolls in red sauce & in my feels about my russian roots
every time I post a recipe I grew up on, I’m always so surprised to see how interested people are in learning more about it. I figured the foods that sparked nostalgia in me wouldn’t really evoke anything in others. I guess I was just worried no one could connect with that food since they probably haven’t tried it or wouldn’t want to.
but wrong was I! and what a whack outlook to have on your culture!! in part, I think because eastern european cuisine is so underrepresented in the food scene it’s always felt like no one really cares for it. meanwhile, many people just don’t know about it!!!
in the last 2 years of being a full time recipe developer/content creator, I’ve always tried finding my “edge” or my “speciality” and while I still don’t think I have one over arching “thing”, I’ve come to realize something I want to start incorporating more of are my russian roots. I think in part, it’s because I don’t want to lose touch with my culture as I grow older. both of my parents are from belarus and came to the USA in their early 20’s so by now, they’re very fluent in english and we speak predominantly so. or at least I answer them in english and they ask me why I don’t reply in russian lol. I can obviously still communicate/read/write-ishhhh but it feels withering.
then the other piece of the puzzle is food. my mom was always the cook in our family growing up. my sister and I would come home from elementary school every day to a hot meal on the stove, sometimes several dishes to choose from as she prepped for the next few days. most of these meals were traditionally russian - mashed potatoes and katleti, borscht, kasha and chicken etc. but as we got older, a lot of the food we ate at home became more westernized and less traditional.
then fast forward to my sister and I leaving the nest around college, and my mom really leaned into her girl boss energy. she previously worked in real estate here and there, but mostly cared for us. I still remember her tucking me into bed one night when I was like 7, telling me she’s thinking of going to night school for nursing and I started hysterically cried asking her who was going to scratch my back every night and cook for me after school then. oh the sacrifices my mom made to make sure I had my back scratches, I could cry!! well, she didn’t end up going to nursing school but she did go full time real estate (natalia zukhovich, hit her up if you live in staten island purrr)
now, as we got into covid, there was a big switch in the house. my dad now got into cooking and my mom took the backseat (literally, because she’s the worst helicopter in the kitchen) so every visit back home my sister and I would request our favorite meals we never get to eat anymore - because not only is russian food so underrepresented in the nyc food scene, but we also wouldn’t even know where to begin cooking them at home. so now weekends consisted of my dad’s craziest feasts of uzbek + russian food, making plof, lagman, borscht, kebabs etc.
and so, fast forward to present day when I think back on all my childhood memories revolving around food, and the way these meals make me feel in adulthood now when my dad makes them - I want to be able to do the same for my own kids one day. and to do so, I have to learn how to make them, document them here so I don’t forget them and I guess practice my russian lol.
so here we are - with my mom’s golubtsi recipe! they’re so comforting and satisfying. the cabbage releases its juices throughout cooking and creates it’s own broth mixed with the red sauce. it may take a little bit of time to assemble sure, but this recipe feeds a villageeeee! I hope you try them <3
