UkraineBowlDessert

Ukrainian Kutia

Name: Ukrainian Kutia
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 1 h 30 min
Total time: 1 h 45 min
Yield: 8 servings
Cuisine: Ukraine
Ingredients: 1 cup whole wheat berries, soaked overnight; 4 cups water; 1/2 cup poppy seeds; 1/3 cup honey, to taste; 1/2 cup walnuts, chopped; 1/3 cup raisins; warm water or dried-fruit compote (uzvar), to loosen, as needed

A sweet wheat berry pudding with poppy seed, honey, and walnuts, shared from one bowl to open the Christmas Eve meal.

prep: 15 min
cook: 1 h 30 min
total: 1 h 45 min
serves: 8
level: easy

Kutia opens Sviata Vecheria, the traditional Ukrainian Christmas Eve supper, as the first of twelve meatless dishes served in honor of the twelve apostles. It is a simple sweet pudding of cooked wheat berries bound with ground poppy seed, honey, and walnuts.

It is traditionally shared from a single bowl set in the middle of the table, with everyone taking a spoonful, a small ritual meant to mark the family's unity and remember those who came before.

method

Drain the soaked wheat berries and simmer in the water for 60-90 minutes, until tender and most of the liquid is absorbed. Top up with a little hot water if it dries out before the wheat is tender. Drain any excess liquid and cool.
Pour boiling water over the poppy seeds and let sit 10 minutes, then drain. Grind or pound the poppy seeds (a mortar and pestle or a clean coffee grinder works) until they turn into a paste and release a milky liquid.
Stir the poppy seed paste, honey, walnuts, and raisins through the cooked wheat.
Loosen with a splash of warm water or dried-fruit compote until it reaches a soft, spoonable consistency.
Serve at room temperature in a single shared bowl, as tradition calls for, to open the Christmas Eve meal.