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DISHES AND PRODUCTS

Mordovian cuisine

The Mordovian cuisine resembles ancient Russian cooking. Many old Russian dishes — unfortunately now lost — were likely of Mordovian origin or derived from the traditions of other Finno-Ugric tribes. Mordovian cuisine features many fish dishes prepared in various ways. One of the traditional methods was boiling a live sterlet to make fish soup without gutting it.
The Mordvins also possess a vast knowledge of mushroom preparation. They eat all kinds of mushrooms — edible and even poisonous ones. In Mordovia, people believe that if you know the secret of proper processing, mushrooms cannot be poisonous. Wild herbs are also widely used. For example, the soup called balanda (not to be confused with the prison gruel of the same name) is cooked in May from thistle and young orache leaves.
In Mordovian cooking, it is common to use different parts of an animal carcass or even the meat of several animals in one dish. Sometimes a single dish may include meat, fish, and poultry all together. One example is bear’s paws — cutlets made from beef and liver.

Pachat pancakes Pryakinet Pushal azt

Ofton lapat Balanda Panzhanay kurgonya

Ал

Egg

Арям

Aryam

A cooling drink made from sour milk diluted with cold water.

Бабань каша

Baban kasha

Ritual millet porridge

Баланда

Balanda

A soup made from herbs, vegetables and semolina boiled in milk.

Валдо якстере вий

Valdo yakstere vij

Beetroot salad with goat cheese

Велькс

Velks

Cream

Гала

Gala

Goose

Груди молодушки

Grudi molodushki

(literally, "bride's breasts") This is the name given to sweet buns filled with cottage cheese, similar to cheesecakes, in Mordvin cuisine. Young woman's breasts are considered a ritual dessert and are prepared for the groom the night before the wedding as a symbol that his wife will have breasts full of milk.

Дураккуяр

Durakkuyar

Pumpkin

Инзей

Inzey

Raspberry

Кал

Kal

Fish

Калонь салведь

Kalon salved

A cold soup made from finely chopped ingredients (vegetables and boiled fish), prepared on rye bread kvass..

Капста

Kapsta

Cabbage

Копёр

Kopyor

Dill

Курка

Kurka

Turkey

Куя

Kuya

Fat

Куяр

Kuyar

Cucumber

Кши

Kshi

Podovy bread is the most popular type of bread in Mordovian cuisine. This bread was baked without a pan, directly on the hearth floor of the oven (called pod ), which is where its name comes from. In Mordovian cooking, it is made from rye flour as well as wheat, spelt, or barley. Bread serves as the foundation of many Mordovian rituals.

Кшумань

Kshuman

Raddish

Лем

Lem

Fat

Ловсо, лофцо

Lovtso

Milk

Маци

Matsi

Goose

Медь

Med

Honey

Микче

Mikche

Quark

Модамарь

Modamar

Potato

Нумолонь пряча

Numolon pryacha

Dumplings with chopped hare.

Овтонь лапат или офтонь мадят

Ofton lapat

(literally “bear’s paw”) — a dish consisting of a large, juicy cutlet made from meat and liver, coated in breadcrumbs, and visually resembling an enormous bear’s paw.

Панга, панго

Panga

Machroom

Панжакай

Panzhakay

Open pies with potatoes and cottage cheese.

Пача

Pacha

Pancake

Пачат

Pachat

Thick pancakes made from millet flour.

Пейшурьхкя, Пейчурька, пенечурька

Peyshurkhya

Garlic

Пеште, пяште

Peshte

Nut

Пизёл

Pizyol

Rowan

Поза

Poza

An old traditional beverage. It is made from dried bread (pozakshi see below) mixed with water, sugar, and yeast. The result is a pleasant, mildly alcoholic drink of dark brown color, resembling kvass or beer.

Позакши

Pozakshi

Flat cakes made from sugar beets, used for preparing the traditional Mordovian drink poza.

Почт, почф

Pocht

Flour

Пряка

Pryaka

Pie

Прякинеть

Pryakinet

Dumplings with offal

Пуре

Pure

A low-alcohol drink made from honey and bee bread, similar to beer or wine. In ancient times, it was considered a ritual drink.

Пурька

Purka

Carrot

Пуштазь алт

Pushtaz alt

Baked eggs in the shell

Пъяньти

Pyanti

Beef stewed in sour cream sauce.

Реве

Reve

Sheep

Репс

Reps

Turnip

Сал

Sal

Salt

Сараз

Saraz

Chicken

Сараз ям

Saraz yam

Cabbage soup with chicken.

Селянка

Selyanka

A meat stew made from several types of meat and offal, cooked in a clay pot in an oven or stove. Selyanka is considered a festive dish because of its rich and hearty meat flavor. In Mordovia, it is usually served in the same pot in which it was cooked, accompanied by fresh bread and pickled cucumbers.

Сея, сява

Seya or Syava

Goat

Скал

Skal

Cow

Скалвай

Skalvay

Butter

Скалой

Skaloy

Butter

Сывель

Syvel

Meat

Сывель ям

Syvel yam

Cabbage soup with meat

Сярдо

Syardo

Dear and Elk

Тикла

Tikla

Pumpkin

Топо

Topo

Cottage cheese

Топонь оришкат

Topon orishkat

Sweet made from cottage cheese.

Туво

Tuvo

Pig

Умарь

Umar

Apple, berry

Цеманат

Tsemanat

Dumplings with minced pork and lard filling.

Чапамо ловса (шапама ловца)

Chapama lovtsa (Shapama lovtsa)

A very thick drink made from baked milk. It is usually served with sugar, berries, or fruit.

Чевгель

Chevgel

Viburnum (berry)

Шапарякс

Shaparyaks

Raddish

Шонгарям

Shongaryam

Millet porridge.

Шуж

Shuzh

Barley

Шурьба

Shurba

Fish soup made with double cooked fish boullion.

Эмеж

Emezh

Vegetable

Яксярго

Yaksargo

Duck

Якстерепс

Yakstereps

Beetroot

Ямкс

Yamks

Millet

I thank Oksana Elfimova and the Tourism Comitee of the Mordovian Republic for their help in preparing the material