Kutia is a traditional Slavic Christmas Eve dish. It contains whole wheat berries, poppy seeds and honey as well as a selection of nuts and dried fruit. This Christmas Eve dessert is simple to make though requires a bit of preparation time.

Wheat berries, nuts and raisins mixture with spoon in black bowl, with raisins, nuts, fruit and white bowls stacked in background.

Kutia (or ‘kutya’) is a traditional Christmas Eve dish popular in Ukraine, Belarus, Russia and Poland. The Polish version of this dish originated in the eastern part of Poland, and was popularised throughout the country after WWII when the eastern borders changed and many Poles had to move west. Among them were my great grandparents, and so in my family, as in many others, the tradition of serving kutia for Christmas has survived to this day.

As with other traditional and popular dishes, such as borscht or potato salad, countless versions of kutia exist, varying from one family to the next. This kutia recipe is a combination of childhood memories and personal preference. You can add or omit certain ingredients to suit your taste as long as you include the 3 essential ones: wheat berries, poppy seeds and honey.

Kutia ingredients and preparation

Wheat berries form the basis of every kutia. Wheat berry is a whole wheat kernel which has a dark yellow-brownish colour and is available in health food stores, occasionally supermarkets as well as Polish shops (especially around Christmas time).

Cooking times may vary ranging from 1 to 3 hours depending on whether it’s a soft processed or hard grain (most of the time it will be the former). So check the label of your product as well as use your own judgment.

I recommend soaking the berries overnight, rinsing, then cooking them gently in 1.5 cups of water. They are ready when most of the water has been absorbed, the wheat has expanded and is tender.

Wheat berries with water in purple bowl.

Poppy seeds are another essential kutia ingredient. Methods of preparation can vary from one recipe to the next. While some people prefer to soak and cook the poppy seeds others recommend just soaking them in hot water.

You can also cook (or soak) the poppy seeds in either water or milk, with or without sugar. The seeds need to then be turned into a sticky paste, which you can achieve by grinding them in a coffee grinder or pushing through a food grinder. But I am using an easier and quicker method.

I recommend rinsing then soaking the poppy seeds overnight. The next day rinse them again and cover with 1 cup of boiling water. Drain after 30 minutes, rinse again, combine with the cream and blitz until creamy (but still grainy). I used a stick blender to do this.

Other kutia ingredients include dried fruit and nuts, but you can mix and match and simply use your favourite. Traditional dried fruit used to make kutia are raisins but some recipes also recommend chopped apricots and/or dates. I’ve stuck to tradition (more or less) and used sultanas, as they have a nice tang that offsets the sweetness in this recipe.

As for nuts blanched almonds, hazelnuts and walnuts are all popular. I chose to add chopped almonds and hazelnuts to my kutia.

How to make Polish kutia: step-by-step

1.Rinse the wheat berries, place in a bowl, add 2 cups of water and soak overnight. Rinse the poppy seeds through a fine mesh sieve, place in another bowl, add 1-1.5 cup of water and soak overnight.

2. The following day drain and rinse the wheat berries again, place in a pot, add 1.5 cups of water, cover and bring to the boil. Lower the heat and simmer for at least 1 hour or until most of the water has been absorbed, the berries have increased in volume and are tender. Drain and set aside to cool.

Wheat berries in water in pot with steam coming out, with lid in top right.

3. Meanwhile prepare the dried fruit by combining it with the orange juice and soaking for at least an hour. Stir the mixture occasionally.

Raisins in bowl with spoon and orange half in background.

4. Prepare the poppy seeds by rinsing again, then soaking in 1 cup of boiling water for 30 minutes. Drain, rinse again and combine with the cream. Puree the mixture (I used a hand blender to do this) until it thickens and becomes creamy but is still a little grainy.

Creamy poppy seed mixture with end of stick blender in tall cup.

5. In a mixing bowl combine the wheat berries (once cooled), the poppy seed mixture, raisins along with the juice, honey, chopped almonds and hazelnuts, 2 tablespoons of lemon juice and orange zest.

Kutia ingredients including wheat berries, creamy poppy seed mixture, raisins and nuts in mixing bowl with spoon.

6. Stir thoroughly, cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours (or overnight). Remove from the fridge 30 minutes before serving.

Wheat, poppy seed, nut and raisin mixture in mixing bowl with spoon.

Top tips

Cooking time for the wheat berries can range from 1 to 3 hours. They are ready when they’ve absorbed most of the water, have increased in volume and are tender but still a little chewy.
Dried fruit: Use raisins, sultanas, apricots or dates. You can soak them in water (cold or hot) instead of orange juice if you prefer.
Nuts: Use hazelnuts, almonds and/or walnuts. Chop them up as finely as you like before adding into the dish.
Make it dairy free: You can use any non-dairy milk (almond or hazelnut would work well).
Keep refrigerated (for up to 3 days) and chill for at least 4 hours before serving. Kutia is traditionally eaten as Christmas Eve dessert. Serve in small bowls (this dessert is quite filling).

Fruit, wheat and nut kutia mixture in black bowl with spoon, blue-and-white stripy cloth to the right, white dish with spoons and grains and nuts in background.

Keep in touch!

If you make this Christmas kutia recipe I’d love to know how it turned out for you. Let me know in the comments below, thanks!

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