Ukrainian chef Olia Hercules on childhood memories, raising funds for her country, and her new book Home Food
To be honest, I wasn’t entirely sure where this book was going to end up when I started writing it, but by the time I finished it was obvious: it was about connection – about food, love, family and togetherness. I wanted it to be about every dish that had a big significance in my life – areflection of my life in food, from my grandmother’s stories to my own; from Ukraine to Cyprus, Italy and the UK.
I left Ukraine when I was 12, but my strongest memories are around food: my mother chopping cucumbers over a bowl, making a spring salad; the smell of tomatoes, cucumber, dill… that encapsulates my childhood. I come from the south, where it’s very flat. The horizon stretches on and on and you can really breathe; my mum always jokes that when she comes to the UK it’s like the clouds are hanging over your eyebrows. The sky in Ukraine is so huge. If there are clouds it’s dramatic and beautiful, very much like the Ukrainian flag – the sky and the wheat fields below.
Since the conflict began, my parents have had to leave their home in Karkhovka in the south of Ukraine. The town was surrounded, the mayor was forced to leave, and they received threats to hand over the keys to their businesses. My dad has Parkinson’s, but he and my mum drove for five days straight through Europe to northern Italy, where my aunt’s children have a house. It’s beautiful, but they just want to go home.
One of the most heartbreaking things is that my mum took all the photographs off the wall, and her embroideries, and packed them into a suitcase. Those details broke my heart, thinking of her going round the house, doing that.
My brother is still in Kyiv, in the army; he sends me a video every morning where he’s smiling and telling me he’s okay. But recently, I found out there was an explosion very close to him and that it was a miracle he was alive.
People here in the UK have been so kind; you’ll pass someone’s gate and see a Ukrainian flag. Some friends and I set up Cook for Ukraine [a global initiative to support Ukraine via Unicef UK] to increase awareness and raise funds, and the response has been incredible. People have been getting involved in so many different ways, from cooking a Ukrainian dish and posting it online with a hashtag to primary schools holding bake sales. More than 200 restaurants in London are involved. It’s become a global phenomenon that’s so far raised more than £696k – people’s kindness and generosity have been overwhelming.
To find out more about the Cook for Ukraine initiative and to make a donation, visit justgiving.com/fundraising/cookforukraine
