Kachka: A Return to Russian Cooking by Bonnie Frumkin Morales with Deena Prichep; photography by Leela Cyd (Flatiron)

“The last time I was in Portland I ate at Kachka twice in 24 hours. It’s everything you want from a dining experience: a table covered end to end with cocktails, caviar, pickles, piroshki, and dumplings. It’s so immediately and obviously wonderful that you want every night to unfold the same way. With this book, it feels possible.”  ―Danny Bowien

“‘Where should we eat in Portland?’ my visiting friends often ask; ‘Kachka!’ I invariably answer. Bonnie and Israel have created an amazing restaurant where zakuski fills the table, Soviet pop music fills the air and horseradish vodka washes it all down. This book captures the vibrancy and history of the food, the excitement of the restaurant and the generosity of the culture. Essential!”  ―Andy Ricker

“With Kachka, Bonnie Morales has done something amazing: thoroughly update and modernize Russian cuisine while steadfastly holding to its traditions and spirit. Thank you comrade!”  ―Alton Brown

“Kachka tastes like a feisty Russian babushka’s cooking―with Pussy Riot crashing the dinner table.”
―Portland Monthly, “Cuisine of the Year 2014”

“If ever there was a moment for Russian cuisine to ascend into American mainstream culture, this is it. The curing and pickling crazes from recent years have primed our palates for northern Eurasian flavors. Affordable caviar and electric orange salmon roe are now ubiquitous garnishes on restaurant plates. And who doesn’t want to spend a few happy moments with a bowl of silken dumplings?”
―Eater National, “Blinis are the New Black at Portland’s Kachka”

As the first-generation American daughter of Belarusian immigrants, chef Bonnie Frumkin Morales has a unique view on the culture and food of the former Soviet Union. Bonnie honed her skills in several of New York and Chicago’s Michelin starred restaurants. Bonnie and her husband Israel opened Kachka to much critical acclaim in 2014, receiving accolades from publications such as Bon Appétit, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, GQ, Elle, Zagat’s, and Food & Wine. Bonnie lives in Portland, Oregon.

Journalist and co-author Deena Prichep cut her teeth on pickled green tomatoes in her grandfather’s New York deli, and has covered topics ranging from Ramadan recipes to gefilte fish for NPR, PRI’s TheWorld, Bon Appétit, and Marketplace.