About

Welcome to Natasha’s Kitchen! I’m Natasha Kravchuk, and together with my husband, Vadim, we’ve been passionately developing and sharing tried-and-true recipes since 2009. Over the years, we have created a trusted recipe resource beloved by millions.

In 2023, I published my debut cookbook – Natasha’s Kitchen Cookbook, which quickly became a New York Times Best-Seller for three consecutive weeks. The book is an extension of our blog with top-quality recipes you can trust.

I come from a family of fantastic cooks, and I’m here to share generations of recipes that are homey, fresh, healthy, family-friendly, authentic, and adventurous. Most importantly, our recipes are meticulously tested and guaranteed to be delicious and reliable.

Natasha holding a lasagna casserole

My Family and Heritage

My culinary journey is deeply rooted in my family’s story. My family came to the U.S. as refugees from Ukraine when I was 4 years old. They brought 5 tiny girls and had nothing but a stack of suitcases. They didn’t know the language, but they worked hard and achieved the American dream. Watch the TV News Segment about our incredible story. My parents’ resilience and passion for food inspire every recipe I create.

Natasha with family posing on steps next to a house
Natasha with her parents and 4 sisters (Natasha is the middle child)

Growing up, I was so shy that I thought no one would marry me until my husband came along and swept me off my feet (true story). Over 20 years ago, I married my wonderful husband, Vadim (who is also Ukrainian). We are blessed with two children. Every recipe that I develop is thoroughly tested and approved by each of us and is often critiqued by relatives and friends. We only post the recipes we love and make over and over.

We live in Idaho (famous for its potatoes), and we love the quieter pace of our beautiful state. We strive to walk in love and live our lives by the word of God and the life of Jesus.

Natasha and Vadim slicing vegetables in the kitchen

Professional Background

We’re so thankful to be full-time foodies and recipe developers. We’re living our dream because of you and I can’t thank you enough! My heritage and diverse professional background, including years in business and nursing, have uniquely equipped me to be the recipe developer, video creator, photographer, writer, and business owner that I am today. We set the bar high so you can expect great recipes and videos here.

The Resume

  • 2003-2007: I worked for 7 years as a business intern, which I consider my most valuable education. My boss and mentor taught me the importance of excellence in business and meticulous attention to detail, which has served me well.
  • 2007 Earned my Bachelor’s Degree in Business with a double major in human resource management
  • 2007-2012 – Worked as a Realtor for 4 years. Fun fact: it was during my realtor days that I learned about blogging (although blogging about real estate was undeniably more boring than food)
  • 2012 Earned my Bachelor’s Degree in Nursing and worked as a Registered Nurse in Telemetry. The courses I took in nutrition, as well as being in a caring profession, made for a natural transition into serving my audience with recipes and connections that nurture body and soul.
  • Blogging since 2009 – What started as a way to share my family’s recipes and culinary journey, has turned into a vibrant community of millions of home cooks.

To summarize all of the many hats I wear – I am a wife, mom, food blogger, cookbook author, recipe developer, video creator, photographer, writer, influencer, social media boss, and entrepreneur, and I love to sing in my church choir. If I were a sandwich, I’d be a Chicken Bacon Avocado on Focaccia.

Natasha with family serving food

How I Got Started Cooking

To be completely honest, I wasn’t always excited about cooking. When I got married in 2003, it became a necessity – “must eat to live” and Mom wasn’t doing the cooking anymore. We had a lot of frozen meals and ate-out too much in the first year of our marriage. I had a free summer (and decided I would improve my cooking skills so we could live and eat healthier.

I dove into cookbook after cookbook and plundered my mom’s recipe books. I was at the library all the time bringing home piles of cookbooks; I was hooked! I even read my mother’s cooking textbook from her college days (Mom completed her culinary program when we moved to the US). I had discovered the joy of cooking. Within a few months, my husband and I each lost weight just from cooking more at home. Now I can’t stop cooking and thinking about cooking and dreaming about cooking… I was born for this!

My recipe collection continues to grow. I love to try new recipes and will share my favorites with you (like our internet-famous Meatloaf and beloved Banana Bread Recipe). I hope you enjoy this blog and find recipes that will become your family favorites as well.

Natasha with mom and daughter making pierogi

Natasha’s Kitchen Today

I started this food and family blog in 2009 as a way to share favorite recipes and events with family and friends. It has grown much larger than I could have imagined with about 1,300 recipes and about 19 million hungry visitors per month. In 2024, we passed 3,500,000 subscribers on YouTube and our channel is growing fast. We’ve been featured on:

  • Forbes
  • Good Morning America
  • ABC News
  • New York Times
  • Associated Press
  • USA Today
  • And hundreds more (see Press page for more)

My goal with Natasha’s Kitchen is for you to really discover and fall in love with cooking and find many new favorite recipes your family will love. The ingredients we use are simple and easily accessible, not overly hoity-toity. My motto: if you can read (a well-written, tested, and trusted recipe), you can cook.

Most of the recipes I share come from my mom and mother-in-law, family, friends, and my own experience in the kitchen. I am so thankful to have such amazing people in my life who generously share their rich knowledge of cooking.

It Takes a Village! I’m so blessed to partner with an incredible group of specialists who share their talents to support Natasha’s Kitchen. Whether it’s social media, email marketing, content editing, or video editing, their expertise helps everything run smoothly so I can focus on creating delicious recipes and fun videos for you. I’m so grateful for their contributions and for YOU, our amazing readers, who make it all possible.

Natasha's family prepping food in the kitchen

Natasha’s Kitchen Recipes

It’s very important to me to share trusted recipes that are reliable and work well in every kitchen and for every cooking skill level. This is why I develop and perfect all of my recipes through careful research and several rounds of testing in my own Kitchen in Idaho (elevation about 2,600 feet).

Every recipe is tested and approved by my family, and often friends, relatives, and even neighbors. All of the photography is done by myself, and I’m the one showing up in our videos. My husband edits the photos and videos (and he’s the videographer, single-handedly running 3 cameras at once).

Get Featured: If you would like your recipe featured on this site, email it to me by clicking here.

Community Guidelines: I love how this food blog has grown into a supportive cooking community – your comments, questions, tips, and success stories make every recipe better. Review my Comment Policy, then join the conversation.

Disclaimer: Per my Nutrition Disclaimer, this blog includes only my own opinions and is not professional advice. It is not intended to be dietary advice or a diet plan. Please talk to your Doctor or nutritionist for medical or dietary advice. I am not liable if you eat too many Hamburgers.

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Comments

  • Rita
    July 29, 2014

    Natasha,
    I stumbled upon your website while looking for recipes containing peaches. Wow – what a find. Your recipes are easy to follow and all look so good. I am looking forward to trying as many as possible. May the Lord richly bless you as you continue cooking, posting and helping people cook healthy.

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      July 29, 2014

      You’re so sweet; as many as possible eh? 🙂 God bless you too Rita for your sweet words 🙂

      Reply

  • Olga
    April 18, 2014

    Hello Natasha
    Do you know If I could buy a Kitchen Aid Mixer in Lviv or better still in Ivano Frankivsk. I would prefer to buy the the one that takes 1.7 kgs of yeast mixture. Can you give me contact details for retailer. My family lives in Ivano Frankivsk. Thankyou and hoping to hear from you. Olha

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      April 18, 2014

      I have no idea what retailers are in that part of the world. I could really only suggest Amazon (I have a link in the “Shop” tab on my blog (at the top)). I hope that helps!

      Reply

  • Natalia из Шарлотта, Северная Каролина
    April 8, 2014

    Привет Наташенька,
    Как дела?
    Как же приятно было наткнуться на твой blog на Американской земле!
    Сегодня сделала картошечку по твоему рецепту. Сейчас печёться в духовке. Очень надеюсь что получится.
    Пусть Бог благословит тебя и укрепит тебя!

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      April 8, 2014

      Natalia thank you so much for your sweet words 🙂 God bless you also and I hope you love everything you try on my blog! 🙂

      Reply

  • Natalie
    April 7, 2014

    Hi
    I just wanted to say that your blog is fantastic!!! It took me several tries to find the perfect cupcake recipe and finally when I tried yours I hit the jackpot. Yours are fluffy, moist and don’t require butter which is fantastic for us. I make cupcakes for fundraising to donate to Dog Rescues in the area and now that I found your recipe I will no longer be using boxed cake mix!! Yipee. Looking forward to testing out more of your recipes, they all look so delicious and your pictures and descriptions are so easy to follow. Excellent Job 🙂

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      April 7, 2014

      Natalie, your comment is music to my ears :D, thank you so much for such a great review.

      Reply

  • grechka bonu
    March 25, 2014

    hi natasha/natalia! you’re awsome! i love your blog n your style in every video recipe!

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      March 25, 2014

      Thank you for such a sweet comment, music to my ears :).

      Reply

  • Natalie
    March 15, 2014

    Hi Natasha, I found your website when searching for Russian recipes for my daughters. I am in Australia and am from a Russian/Ukrainian background. Born in Australia though and my name is the reverse of yours. Called Natasha after my babushka at birth and chose Natalie in grade school, and yes the confusion never ends. Thank you for posting your recipes, your vegetable canning ones are very much like what my mother used to do. Will definitely be giving it a try. Gods continued blessings to you and your family.

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      March 15, 2014

      Thank you so much! God bless you as well in all of your culinary adventures. I hope you find many new favorites that remind you of your Mothers cooking 🙂

      Reply

  • sally
    March 2, 2014

    Hi Natalia! i found your blog while searching for some ukranian inspired dishes. our church has a sister church Bela Tserkov. our daughter goes there every year to help with a children’s mission. she adores the people of the ukraine and our hearts break for what is happening there now. we are praying fervently!! LOVE your blog! will be trying out recipes!

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      March 2, 2014

      I know it! I sure hope all the chaos settles soon. Definitely praying for Ukraine as well. We still have family there… Thanks for your sweet words 🙂

      Reply

  • Kaiu
    February 28, 2014

    Hi Natasha,

    While browsing in Pinterest for something nice to cook for the next day I came across a picture of a lovely looking meatball soup. All I could think of was “aww.. that looks like home.. “And surely, once I made it to your blog, I realised it wasn’t too far off from home. I’m originally from Estonia so its cuisine is largely be based on Slavic kitchen. Unfortunately, trying to introduce those wonders to the western audience can often be complicated and seemingly lost cause. Therefore I just wanted to say a big thank you for your work in promoting this amazing world of taste and flavour with lovely appetising pictures and well written recipes and instructions in English, showing to everybody it is well worth to be discovered.

    Kind regards,

    Kaiu

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      February 28, 2014

      Definitely and it’s so encouraging to read your comment. It’s one of my goals to make Russian and Ukrainian food popular and loved by all. It’s definitely worth making 🙂

      Reply

  • Viktoriia Urmach
    February 21, 2014

    Hi! My name is Vika. I’m from Ukraine, I just discovered your site today and really enjoyed it! Do you speak Russian?
    We live in California now, and I also like to cook)))

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      February 22, 2014

      It’s so nice to meet you! I look forward to checking out more of your blog. I speak a mix of Russian Ukrainian. 🙂

      Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      February 22, 2014

      Welcome to the site Viktoria :), I do speak Ukrainian/Russian or something in between. What part of CA are you in?

      Reply

      • Viktoriia Urmach
        February 22, 2014

        Мне трудно пока что писать на английском, поэтому я спросила)) Мы живем в Emeryville, недалеко от Сан-Франциско)Очень рада познакомится, какая ты умничка, какой блог шикарный, столько рецептов и фотографии чудесные!!! уже подписалась, но если можно я буду писать на русском комментарии?

        Reply

        • Natasha
          natashaskitchen
          February 22, 2014

          Приятно познакомится с тобой тоже. Спасибо за комплименты :), можеш писать на русском без проблем. Я посещаю Калифорнию несколько раз в год, семья моего мужа проживает в Сакраменто.

          Reply

          • Viktoriia Urmach
            February 22, 2014

            Мы в Калифорнии недавно совсем, меньше года.йф В 2010 еще год жили в Нью-Йорке потом вернулись в Украину. И снова приехали. Случайно нашла твой блог, искала где можно купить вафельные коржи для торта со сгущенкой)))

          • Natasha
            natashaskitchen
            February 22, 2014

            Я тоже купила коржи для этого торта в нашем европейском магазине :).

  • Roger
    February 14, 2014

    I have used some of your great recipes. Thanks for sharing. I just need to say this: Vadim truly married a “trophy wife”! Smart, talented and oh so pretty. What a lucky man.

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      February 14, 2014

      You’re so nice. 🙂 Thank you for your sweet compliment! I’m also a lucky girl 😉

      Reply

  • Maryna
    February 8, 2014

    Hello, Natasha 🙂 My name is Maryna and I am from Ukraine too. I live in Virginia since 2008. Love your blog :))) Which part of Ukraine you are from?

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      February 8, 2014

      I am from Krivoy Rog. You?

      Reply

  • Tristin
    February 3, 2014

    I was going to do my clinical paperwork tonight but instead I decided to look at all your yummy food!!! Great blog and recipes!! And you are a great nurse!!! Glad I got to meet you!

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      February 4, 2014

      Thank you!! Now I feel like a bad influence; I hope your clinical paperwork got done eventually! 😉 lol

      Reply

  • Nataliya Karplyuk
    January 23, 2014

    Hi:) I am glad I found your site. Any Ukrainian or Russian cookbooks I find are not very helpfull. I especially that you have many healthier recipes as well. Thank you:)

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      January 24, 2014

      I’m so glad you’re enjoying the site and recipes. Thank you for your awesome feedback 🙂

      Reply

  • Lizette
    January 20, 2014

    Hello,
    What an awesome blog! Love your recipies and an added bonus to learn you are a lover of the Word of God:)
    Thanks! Keep up the great blog:)
    Lizette

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      January 20, 2014

      Thank you Lizette and welcome to the blog :).

      Reply

  • Mayvelyn
    January 20, 2014

    Hi Natasha!

    I just recently found your website because I am looking for a new recipe to cook for my family. As I was looking on your recipes, I found many new recipes to cook and I am excited to make it. Thank you for sharing your recipes and I will let you know how my cook came out.

    Sincerely,

    Mayvelyn

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      January 20, 2014

      Welcome to the site Mayvelyn :), I hope you’ll find many new favorites.

      Reply

  • Gulyana
    January 16, 2014

    Natasha, I enjoy making your recipes, especially your “the bomb” Spartak cake! 🙂 Want to ask, do you make galushki? I was reading a book the other day and galushki were mentioned and I instantly craved them, although I’ve never tried real Ukrainian galushkis. I have an idea what they are and I used to eat galushki back in my childhood, but they were chechenskie galushki. They were made with pieces of dough boiled in broth, and the meat layered on top of them. They would also add lots of garlic and black pepper to a portion of the broth and put it in a bowl in the middle of the dish. You would dip the galushki and meat in the garlicky broth and eat it, it was very good! I suspect that the recipe for Ukrainian galushkis would be somewhat different and wonder if your family makes them. Thank you for the great work you do!

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      January 16, 2014

      My mom made soup with galushki in the past, its already on my list of recipes to make :).

      Reply

  • Natalie
    January 5, 2014

    Natasha, what cook wear do you use? What brand? I want to buy a set of stainless steel cook wear and of course don’t want to be disappointed. I stopped on Calphalon, but can’t decide what collection to get- tri ply, accucore- which is 5 layers with a copper layer inside, or contemporary tri ply- brushed still exterior. All clad is a little bit pricy and I am not a very experienced cook to get all the advantages from it. Maybe you have an advice to share or give me your opinion.
    Is there a post in your blog about your kitchen stuff? It would be interesting to see what you use when cooking. Maybe I am missing something! 🙂

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      January 5, 2014

      My large set is Kirkland signature. My small set of non stick pans are circulon. I do have a list in the “shop” tab at the top of the blog.

      Reply

      • Natalie
        January 5, 2014

        How do you like your Kirkland set? The price difference with what I was about to buy today is significant. The set I was looking at has a 5ply technology from rim to rim with a copper core. But do I really need that quality? Probably just a sick bottom and stainless steel sides is enough. 5 ply by itself won’t make the food to taste better. What do you think about your set? Do you have in mind to replace it? Are there any cons?
        I have just ordered a circulon pan! Thank you for the advice!

        Reply

        • Natasha
          natashaskitchen
          January 6, 2014

          It’s a very good sturdy set and i love the heavy bottoms but they are VERY heavy and you need two hands to move most of the pots. Maybe I’m weak sauce, but I think they are heavy. Get something with a thick/heavy bottom to it and you will have more even cooking and your pots won’t wear out and get ugly as quickly.

          Reply

  • Doreenka
    January 5, 2014

    Wow, my husband & I are so glad I found your site. His sister always makes pierogi for the holidays and we decided to make them again, ha only 2 weeks after Christmas;-) (along with my specialty golumpki)….we just couldn’t wait until next Christmas to have the pierogi. Of course we used his sister’s recipe for cabbage filled pierogi, but I wanted to have my Grandma’s favorite plum pierogi and found it on your site.They tasted just as I remember Grandma’s had. My husband is Polish and I’m Czech-Slovak & of course sure Ukrainian is in there somewhere as Grandpa’s village is but 4 mi from the Ukrainian border. I just love Eastern European food and whenever we visit family in Cz Republic or Slovakia I am always getting a long treasured recipe from one relative or another.
    So just wanted to let you know the plum pierogi were a big hit when we served them as desert and although our dinner guest were stuffed from the
    golumpki & cabbage pierogi they made room for the Plum and said they were the best desert ever. I can’t wait to try all of your recipes.
    Thank you/спасибі/děkuji/vďaka!

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      January 5, 2014

      I’m so glad you liked the recipe and that it reminded you of your grandmas. 🙂 thanks for a wonderful review!

      Reply

  • katerina
    January 3, 2014

    best wishes for creative new year, natasha, from greece/ i was looking for piroshki recipies and got me here!!!/ unique blog, so positive energy flowing here that made me replay- i never do-./ i definately gonna cook a lot of your recipes, they look so great! i’ll let you know the results./ thanks

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      January 3, 2014

      I hope you love everything you try!! 🙂 Welcome to the blog. It’s so cool when I meet people from around the world through my little corner of the web. 🙂

      Reply

      • katerina
        January 3, 2014

        Well, dear Natasha, my family and i just enjoyed the potato piroshki and parsley rice. !! Wonderful! Next time i’ll try variations for the potato filling, maybe some mint, or anith, oregano, feta cheese will be great as well. We thank you Natasha. Now i ‘ll walk around your blog to see…hmm…what to cook tomorrow!!!

        Reply

        • Natasha
          natashaskitchen
          January 3, 2014

          You are welcome Katerina, I hope you’ll find some new favorites :).

          Reply

  • Lisa
    December 29, 2013

    Hi Natasha! I am very glad to have come across your blog. I am a generation removed from Ukraine and my grandmother made many Ukrainian recipes growing up. I am looking forward to introducing more Ukrainian recipes into my family!

    Reply

    • Natasha
      natashaskitchen
      December 29, 2013

      I hope you find tons of new favorites!! 🙂 Welcome to the blog 🙂

      Reply

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