Kasha Varnishke
Ingredients:
1/4 cup of minced carrot (usually about 3 large carrots)
1/4 cup of minced celery (usually about 2 - 3 stalks)
1/4 cup of minced onion (usually about 1/2 of a large onion, you can use white or yellow onions!)
1 cup of coarse grain Kasha (this is the most accessible brand that I like!)
2 cups of chicken stock
2 tsp of chicken consume (this is my preferred brand)
Salt & pepper (a generous pinch of each)
1 box of cooked (al dente… if it says to cook for 10 minutes, cook for 8) pasta of your choice (I prefer bowties or shells!)
6 tablespoons of unsalted butter; separated by tablespoons
In a medium sized pot that comes with a lid, melt 2 tbsp of butter and saute all of your veggies (carrots, celery and onions) for about 5 minutes or until the onions become opaqe.
Add in the kasha grains, and stir into the sautéed veggies. Add in your chicken stock, consume and salt/pepper. Stir together.
Bring the kasha to a boil and then reduce the heat, cover, and cook for about 10 minutes. Don’t stir the kasha while it is simmering. You want the kasha to still have a bite and not be mushy. Ideally, you also want the liquid to be absorbed but if it doesn’t fully absorb, do not worry! We can drain the liquid and save it for later. Do not keep cooking your kasha until the liquid absorbs, it will become a savory oatmeal.
If liquid is fully absorbed: take it off the heat, fluff with a fork and set aside.
If the liquid is not fully absorbed: take it off the heat, drain the liquid out over a bowl (save the liquid) and set aside.
You want the kasha to be dry and not soggy or water logged.
Cook the pasta al dente (so about 2 minutes under what it says on the box). Drain (saving a cup of pasta water) and put back in the large pot you cooked the pasta in. Toss the cooked pasta with the additional 4 tbsps of butter and add back in the kasha to the pasta.
Mix the kasha mixture and pasta together and use the reserved pasta water OR the drained kasha liquid in and mix well. You don’t want the kasha varnishke to be bone dry but you don’t want any extra liquid gathering at the bottom of your pot.
Serve warm!
Notes:
This is the ultimate comfort food for me! It reminds me of Jewish holidays and Friday nights.
Kasha varnishke is a perfect dish for a sauce/gravy heat meat main, such as brisket, short ribs or a juicy roast chicken.
In my opinion, the best part of kasha varnishke are the leftovers. Fry up your leftover kasha varnishke in some butter so it gets nice and crispy. Top with a fried egg and enjoy for lunch the next day!
