Kutia or kutya ( ; ; ) is a ceremonial grain dish with sweet gravy traditionally served mostly by Eastern Orthodox Christians and some Catholic Christians predominantly in

Belarus Belarus, officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Russia to the east and northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Belarus spans an a ...

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

, but also in parts of

Lithuania Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, P ...

and

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

during the

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a Religion, religious and Culture, cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by coun ...

– Feast of Jordan holiday season or as part of a funeral feast. The word with a descriptor is also used to describe the eves of Christmas, New Year, and Feast of Jordan days.

Etymology

The word ''kutia'' is a borrowing from the Greek language ('bean') or ('grain').

In Ukraine

kutіa is one of the two essential ritual dishes at the Ukrainian Christmas Eve supper (also known as ''Svyata vecherya''). The ritual significance of kutia, as well as uzvar, is quite ancient. Ukrainian ethnographer Fedir Vovk traces the origins of these dishes to the Neolithic era. Before dinner, the kutia is placed in the icon corner ("kut") , the most honorable place in the house where religious icons or images are placed. The pot with the kutia was to stand there in a designated spot from Rizdvo (Christmas on December 25) to January 1, New Year's Day (formerly January 6 to the Old New Year in January 14). There is also a custom of sending children with kutia to relatives, usually grandparents and godparents. After dinner, the kutia is left on the table for the whole night with spoons for the dead ancestors, "so that our relatives would have dinner and not be angry with us." The religious nature of the dish is emphasized by an ancient custom, when the head of the family approached the window or went out into the yard with a spoonful of kutia and, addressing the frost, invited him three times to take part in dinner with the family. When the frost does not appear, he is advised not to appear, not to do harm to crops, etc.: "Frost, frost, come to us to eat kutia, and if you don't come, don't come for the rye, wheat and other crops."''Чубинский П. П.'' Календарь народных обычаев и обрядов. — Київ: Музична Україна, 1993.''Хведір Вовк''. Студії з української етнографії й антропології. — Прага: Український громадський видавничий фонд, б/р. — С. 183. Kutia is the first out of twelve dishes served for Svyata vecherya to be tasted. The head of the family takes the first spoon of the kutia, raises it up and calls out to the souls of departed family members to join them on this night. He then tastes the kutia, and throws the rest of the spoonful up to the ceiling. In rural towns, as many kernels of grain as stick to the ceiling, there should be swarms of bees and newborn cattle in the coming year. In the same vein, if there are many poppy seeds that remain on the ceiling, there would be a chance for more hen should lay as many eggs in the coming year than usual. In cities the same would imply a prosperous new year for the family and also a show of remembrance for their rural roots. Everyone present eats a spoonful of kutia, after which the other dishes are brought out and eaten. The main ingredients used to make traditional kutia are wheatberries,

poppy seed Poppy seed is an oilseed obtained from the poppy plant (''Papaver somniferum''). The tiny, kidney-shaped seeds have been harvested from dried seed pods by various civilizations for thousands of years. It is still widely used in many countries, ...

s and

honey Honey is a sweet and viscous substance made by several species of bees, the best-known of which are honey bees. Honey is made and stored to nourish bee colonies. Bees produce honey by gathering and then refining the sugary secretions of pl ...

. At times,

walnut A walnut is the edible seed of any tree of the genus '' Juglans'' (family Juglandaceae), particularly the Persian or English walnut, '' Juglans regia''. They are accessory fruit because the outer covering of the fruit is technically an i ...

dried fruit Dried fruit is fruit from which the majority of the original water content has been removed prior to cooking or being eaten on its own. Drying may occur either naturally, by sun, through the use of industrial dehydrators, or by freeze drying. ...

and

raisin A raisin is a Dried fruit, dried grape. Raisins are produced in many regions of the world and may be eaten raw or used in cooking, baking, and brewing. In the United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland, Ireland, New Zealand, Australia and South Afri ...

s are added as well. Kutia is a

Lent Lent (, 'Fortieth') is the solemn Christianity, Christian religious moveable feast#Lent, observance in the liturgical year in preparation for Easter. It echoes the 40 days Jesus spent fasting in the desert and enduring Temptation of Christ, t ...

en dish and no milk or egg products can be used in this – since December 24 is a paramony – strict fasting and abstinence – day in the Eastern Orthodox Church and in Byzantine Rite Catholics. There are known kutia recipes that use

pearl barley Pearl barley, or pearled barley, is barley that has been processed to remove its fibrous outer hull and polished to remove some or all of the bran Bran, also known as miller's bran, is the component of a Cereal, cereal grain consisting o ...

or millet instead of wheatberries. Kolyvo is a Ukrainian ritual dish similar to kutia, but includes no poppy seeds. Kolyvo is served at remembrance services.

In Poland

Kutya is known in Poland as () and (), and it can be served as part of the

Twelve-dish Christmas Eve supper A twelve-dish Christmas Eve supper is traditionally prepared to commemorate Jesus' twelve disciples in Central, Northern and Eastern European cultures, especially those that were formerly part of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and neighbo ...

, though its origins predate Christianity in Poland and can be traced back to customs of the

Slavic Native Faith The Slavic Native Faith, commonly known as Rodnovery and sometimes as Slavic Neopaganism, is a modern Paganism, modern Pagan religion. Classified as a new religious movement, its practitioners hearken back to the Slavic paganism, historica ...

. However, it is eaten primarily (though not exclusively) in the eastern regions of Podlasie, the Lublin area, and Subcarpathia, near the borders with Belarus and Ukraine. It can also be commonly found among Bug River Poles and other generations with ancestry in the Eastern Borderlands, who are scattered across all of Poland. Besides Wigilia, kutia is also served on

New Year's Eve In the Gregorian calendar, New Year's Eve refers to the evening, or commonly the entire day, of the last day of the year, 31 December, also known as Old Year's Day. In many countries, New Year's Eve is celebrated with dancing, eating, drinkin ...

and other special occasions, such as wakes. Traditional old Polish kutia is made using wheat, poppy seeds (ground in a special pot called ''makutra''), honey, raisins, walnuts or hazelnuts, almonds, and vanilla; some recipes also include milk or ''śmietana''. Kutia is sometimes prepared using rice or kasha instead of wheat. A number of customs and rituals in Polish tradition, such as fortune telling, are associated with kutia. This is particularly true for older generations and rural areas of eastern Poland, as well as their descendants who can be found across all regions of Poland. Kutia is also eaten among the Ukrainian and Belarusian minorities living in Poland.

Other countries

Ukrainian Orthodox Christmas in Poland - Kutia - Didukh

A dish of boiled grains (usually wheat berries) mixed with honey, nuts, spices, and a few other ingredients is traditional in other countriesGoldstein, Darra 2015, ''The Oxford Companion to Sugar and Sweets'', Oxford University Press, Oxford as well: *

Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...

– kolivo *

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

– koliva *

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

Palestine Palestine, officially the State of Palestine, is a country in West Asia. Recognized by International recognition of Palestine, 147 of the UN's 193 member states, it encompasses the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and th ...

and

Jordan Jordan, officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is a country in the Southern Levant region of West Asia. Jordan is bordered by Syria to the north, Iraq to the east, Saudi Arabia to the south, and Israel and the occupied Palestinian ter ...

– ameh masslouk or snuniye *

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

– colivă *

– (also) sochivo *

Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image_map = , map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...

– koljivo (to wit: sacrifice), or simply: žito (ie, wheat) *

Sicily Sicily (Italian language, Italian and ), officially the Sicilian Region (), is an island in the central Mediterranean Sea, south of the Italian Peninsula in continental Europe and is one of the 20 regions of Italy, regions of Italy. With 4. ...

– cuccìa *

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

– sliha or burbara (for Eid il-Bur-bara, St. Barbara's Feast throughout the

Middle East The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq. The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...

) Somewhat similar, but with a different origin, and somewhat different ingredients, is the Islamic, especially Turkish, sweet dish of Ashure.

References

External links