The well-known Ukrainian food blogger Emilia Yevtushenko told a lifestyle project Wave RBC.UA in a blitz interview how working in the food industry changed her view on food, which dishes she considers the taste of childhood, and what she categorically never orders at restaurants. In her words, food has long ceased to be just food for her: now she sees a new recipe and an opportunity for experimentation in every dish.
Food as a Job: A Professional's Perspective
Yevtushenko admits that her attitude toward food changed once it became her profession. "Before, food was just food: you'd cook it and eat it. Now I look at it in a completely different way," the blogger says. She explains that she constantly thinks about what can be changed in a dish, how to make it tastier, simpler, and more beautiful, and how to film it. Even at a restaurant, she can sit there and break a dish down into its ingredients. At the same time, her love for food, she says, hasn't disappeared anywhere — on the contrary, she has come to appreciate ordinary home cooking even more.
The Taste of Childhood: Segedin Goulash
Among her favorite childhood and home flavors, Yevtushenko names Segedin goulash. "Sauerkraut, meat, sour cream — it seems like nothing unusual, but it's exactly these simple home dishes that stick in your memory the most," she explains. The blogger adds that even now, when she cooks this dish, it's not just food for her, but "some kind of very warm return to childhood."
What's Always in the Fridge
In her list of products without which she can't imagine her fridge are eggs, butter, good cheese, cottage cheese, sour cream, herbs, and some vegetables. In addition, her freezer almost always has something prepared in it, because she loves meal prep. "With three kids, this is no longer a cooking trend but a way of surviving," Yevtushenko notes.
What She Never Orders at Restaurants
When asked about dishes she never orders at restaurants, the blogger answers: "Probably pancakes or syrniki (cheese cakes)." She emphasizes that it's not because they're bad, but because at home she makes exactly the kind she loves. "I feel sorry for the restaurant bill for something I can make myself in 15 minutes — and even make it tastier for me," she explains. She separately singles out what she doesn't like in general: most "super Instagrammable" desserts with a huge amount of decor. "They may look incredible, but when there are ten textures, five creams, glaze, chocolate, flowers, and something else on top — I already lose the actual taste of the dessert," Yevtushenko says.
Professional Deformation and Oysters
Among her surprising gastronomic habits, she mentions that she can try something at a restaurant and already be thinking on the way home about how to recreate it and what to change. "Sometimes a single spoonful of some dish triggers a whole recipe in my head. I think it's professional deformation," the blogger admits. As for the dish that she simply doesn't like yet — oysters: "I honestly tried to understand why there's so much excitement around them, but for now it's more of a beautiful restaurant ritual for me than food I actually want to eat."
