Old Moscow Сuisine, History of Russian Сuisine

From the 17th century Russian cuisine was divided according to stratification. Before the table of nobles differed from commoners’ only by the number of dishes. After that Russian nobility introduced a number of foreign meals and culinary techniques. Rich people’s tables had roast meat, poultry and game. Beef was used for corned beef; pork was turned into roasted ham, it was also fried and stewed; mutton, poultry and game were put into hotpot.

Russian soups as they are appeared in the 17th century: solyanka, rassolnik containing brines, lemons and olives.

It was in this period that such well-known delicacies as black caviar, salted and jellied fish appeared.

In the 16th century Kazan and Astrakhan Khanates along with Bashkiria and Siberia were annexed to Russia. New people added to Russian cuisine new food products such as raisins (grapes), dried apricots, figs, melons, watermelons, lemons and tea. The variety of desserts was also expanded thanks various cookies, sweet pies, candied fruit, apple marshmallow sticks, numerous jams. The 17th century market the highest development of Russian cuisine that had already been extremely diverse. Peasant food on the contrary was getting more and more simple is and unpretentious.