Buzhenyna
Garlic-Studded Roast Pork (Buzhenyna)- Yield
- One 3 1/2- to 4-lb roast; serves 6 to 8 hot, or 10 to 12 as sliced cold meat
- Active
- 30 minutes
- Total
- 15 hours, including 12 hours marinating (add an overnight chill for thin cold slices)
- Difficulty
- Easy
The story
Buzhenyna is a whole piece of fresh pork, often from the leg, studded with garlic, rubbed with salt, pepper and mustard, and baked in the oven. It is not cured or smoked, which sets it apart from the hams that also appear on Easter tables. In Ukraine it is one of the meats that return after Lent. An Easter roundup on the Vikna news site lists buzhenyna beside homemade sausage, pork knuckle and kholodets as part of a table that is rich in meat. Vikna notes that Easter ends a very strict fast, after which the meat-eating season begins; in 2027 Ukrainian Easter falls on Sunday, May 2. UNIAN's recipe writers describe buzhenyna as a large piece of pork baked with herbs and spices that can be the centerpiece of any table, and Novyny.LIVE notes that it is eaten warm or chilled, sliced very thin for cold cuts and sandwiches. In Lviv, writer Ostap Kryvdyk described the Easter meal as paska with blessed butter, cheese and ham, followed by spring salads. Roast it a day ahead, chill it whole, and slice it thin with horseradish and mustard on the side.
Ingredients and method
The full recipe, with US and metric measures and stand-ins for hard-to-find ingredients, is part of the Easter edition. Buy it once and keep the PDF.
Want to try first? Frankfurter Grüne Soße is free to cook.