10 Eastern European Food Bloggers Worth Following
Culinary bloggers from Western Europe and America enjoy immense popularity worldwide, amassing millions of followers on their channels. But how many famous YouTube chefs do you know from Poland or Ukraine? It turns out they exist, and there are many. Moreover, Eastern European food bloggers often rival their Western counterparts in culinary expression, creativity, and skill.
All you need to do to appreciate these culinary enthusiasts from Eastern Europe is to give them a chance by watching a couple of their videos. But we warn you: this content can quickly induce an incurable culinary addiction, so proceed at your own risk...
Tomasz Strzelczyk
In his humble youth, Polish native Tomasz Strzelczyk was forced to move to Denmark to earn a living at a local sawmill. However, he never stopped dreaming about his true passion – cooking. This led him to participate in the Polish version of "MasterChef," where he didn't win but discovered his own capabilities.
Investing in video equipment, he launched the culinary channel ODDASZFARTUCHA, initially struggling to gain traction. Encouragement from his son, who repeatedly assured him that his channel would eventually take off, kept him from giving up. Today, Strzelczyk's channel boasts 1.34 million subscribers and nearly 8 million monthly views, ranking first on Polish YouTube.
Szoky konyhája
With over 400,000 subscribers, Szokolay Zoltán is a giant in Hungarian culinary YouTube. Szoky's recipe for success is straightforward – he seeks out unique recipes from all corners of the country, such as potato patties or egg dumplings, and presents their often intricate preparation in a cozy, homey manner.
From fish and meat dishes to bread and ice cream, under Szoky's guidance, you'll learn to cook anything, even if previously you could only manage a basic sausage and cheese sandwich. Start exploring Hungarian culinary creativity with his playlist featuring videos with English subtitles.
Ievgen Klopotenko
In 2015, Ievgen Klopotenko won the Ukrainian "MasterChef," followed by training at the French culinary school "Le Cordon Bleu" and a return to Kyiv to revolutionize Ukraine's food culture long dominated by Soviet-era influences. Klopotenko made significant changes to school cafeteria menus and successfully argued on a global stage that "borscht" is a Ukrainian dish.
The so-called "borscht war" concluded with UNESCO inscribing Ukrainian borscht on the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity list in summer 2022. Today, Klopotenko continues to promote Ukrainian cuisine globally, sharing authentic and modernized national recipes on his YouTube channel, which boasts nearly half a million subscribers.
Laura Laurentiu
Romanian Laura Laurentiu is a vivid example of how an ordinary homemaker, if she loves to experiment rather than cook the same standard dishes every day, can become a true national cultural phenomenon. Starting her culinary blog in 2009, Laurentiu earned a chef's diploma in 2015 and began cooking for events with over 100 guests.
Today, her channel has a quarter-million subscribers and a plethora of recipes from Romanian cuisine, such as Romanian chicken with potatoes or spinach soup with garlic and milk.
Helena Vybíralová
When it comes to culinary adventures in the Czech Republic, most think of the opportunity to sample countless varieties of tasty beer. However, Helena Vybíralová showcases on her YouTube channel that baking is as much a unique Czech superpower as the ability to source 800,000 artillery shells for friendly Ukrainians while Kyiv's more powerful allies drag their feet with military aid, as if they don't understand that those barbaric hordes from Moscow swamps won't stop in Ukraine.
Today, Helena Vybíralová is the author of 17 baking books and the host of a popular Czech YouTube channel, where you can learn to make stunning nut rolls with caramel cream, marzipan shells, honey crescents, and a myriad of other treats.
Alina FooDee
With the appearance of a Disney princess, the voice of a cartoon chipmunk, and boundless love for kitchen experiments, Ukrainian Alina FooDee created a culinary channel that has surpassed 3 million subscribers. After the full-scale invasion, Alina was forced to leave her native Kharkiv but found the strength to return by 2023.
Today, Russian war criminals shell residential neighborhoods of Kharkiv with ballistic missiles almost daily, claiming there are Nazis there. Watch a video where Alina teaches how to make homemade mozzarella or Ukrainian borscht and honestly ask yourself: does this lively and smiling petite woman resemble Goebbels, Göring, or Hitler?
Ivan Zvezdev
Bulgaria is not just the homeland of famous prophets whose predictions never come true. Over its more than thousand-year history, this Balkan country has created a culinary tradition like no other. Chef Ivan Zvezdev, with over 25 years of experience in professional kitchens, launched a YouTube channel to teach eager learners about Bulgarian culinary masterpieces.
Consider these mouth-watering appetizing names: panagyurishte-style eggs, wine kebabs, tarator soup, mish-mash omelette, or the legendary Shopska cheese in a casserole...
Anatoly Dobrovolsky
For those whose greatest culinary achievement is quickly cooking noodles and neatly slicing sausage, haute cuisine resembles something akin to magic. But in reality, it's just sleight of hand and no cheating – plus knowledge of effective and secret life hacks. Anatoly Dobrovolsky, a Ukrainian, eagerly shares these hacks on his popular YouTube channel.
How to squeeze lemon juice using meat tongs? How to peel garlic with an air bulb? How to poach an egg in a sieve? And how to instantly open a packet of spaghetti with one hand? Considering Anatoly has amassed nearly 350,000 subscribers on his channel, one-handed individuals in the world are far, far more numerous than one might think...
Robert Makłowicz
Robert Makłowicz is a renowned Polish TV presenter, journalist, traveler, and culinary critic. In his homeland, he's a cult figure and authority, even a hero of numerous national memes whom the common folk dream of seeing as president someday. Since 2020, Robert has been hosting a YouTube channel dedicated to intriguing historical, travel, and culinary explorations.
Currently, he has over half a million subscribers and a dedicated playlist "Robert Makłowicz cooks," where the Polish superstar teaches people to cook over a hundred dishes from around the world.
Liza Glinskaya
Before becoming a professional pastry chef, Ukrainian Liza Glinskaya worked in the restaurant business, learned to play the piano, mastered professions like makeup artist, art director, and training manager. However, victory in the second season of "MasterChef" helped her finally find her life's calling. Liza became passionate about creating signature desserts, founded a pastry school, wrote two recipe books (and is preparing to release a third), and ramped up her YouTube channel to 745,000 subscribers.
Raspberry cinnamon buns, colorful zephyrs, aromatic cheesecakes, snow-white raffaello balls, mirror-mousse tartlets, airy meringues, crispy croissants, watermelon jellies, and coffee cookies – if your doctor has forbidden you from consuming sweets, steer clear of Liza Glinskaya's YouTube channel as much as possible, because resisting won't be possible...