By Lauren Gosnell

It’s savoury and crispy and juicy all at once. Well, at least patychky and nalysnyky are. Patychky are Ukrainian pork meat skewers. Nalysnyky are savoury crêpes filled with sauerkraut. These are two of the top Ukrainian favourites at Natalie’s Kitchen, a quaint store in Etobicoke run by Julie Hladun and named after her mother.

She opened the store to share her family’s cherished Ukrainian recipes with the community. Julie chooses well-marbled pork for the patychky so it stays juicy on the inside. The meat is cut into small cubes and marinated for 24 hours in lemon, mayonnaise, garlic and onion and a secret ingredient Julie will not divulge. The meat is then skewered, covered with breadcrumbs and fried before a final baking.

The result is succulent pork with a savoury crusty skin. Patychky are traditionally served with varenyky or Ukrainian perogies and lots of fried onions and sour cream.

The nalysnyky is a meatless option for hearty crêpe lovers. The main ingredient of the kapusta or filling is sauerkraut. The pickled cabbage, ubiquitous throughout Eastern Europe, is made by soaking shredded cabbage in brine which enables fermentation. Julie fries her kapusta with some mushrooms and just a little salt and pepper to season.

The kapusta filling is rolled up in a crêpe wrap, dipped in an egg and coated with breadcrumbs. The nalysnyky is fried just until the outer crêpe is golden brown and slightly crispy. But the interior remains a soft, spongy texture like a Ukrainian spring roll.

Delectable. And tastes even better if served with a little mushroom gravy and sour cream. If you’re hankering for some handy Ukrainian take-out, Natalie’s Kitchen is a good choice. It’s just like your baba would make.

Natalie's Kitchen (STORE CLOSED DOWN)
Catering contact 416-249-8773