The sisters have been keeping in constant contact with their relatives and friends in Ukraine, who have refused to leave even in the face of deliberate Russian bombings of civilian population centres. “Our aunt Valya said to Olena at the end of our first conversation: ‘We are happy because we are at home, we are alive, and we can talk to you. But you have two children, and they need you, so don’t worry about us,’” Oksana shares. “It was typical selflessness but the most devastating thing to say.”

No less devastating are the images of Ukraine’s burning streets and pastoral landscapes torn apart by tank treads that are being disseminated to every corner of the globe, standing in stark contrast to Oksana’s recollections of her childhood in her home country. The sisters were born in the central Ukrainian city of Berdichev and grew up in a large and close-knit family—the kind “where we call our third cousin our sister”, says Oksana.

In 2005, the 22-year-old Olena moved halfway across the world to join her husband in Hong Kong, with Oksana making the same move three years later. Spotting a gap in the market for Slavic produce, they founded Xytorok, an online store selling everything from fresh sour cream, to cheeses, cakes and Russian pelmeni dumplings.

Dacha opened in 2015 with Oksana heading the kitchen and Olena manning the front-of-house; soon, the restaurant’s offerings of traditional Ukrainian and Russian delicacies—homemade kielbasa sausage, shuba salad (more memorably referred to as “herring under a fur coat”), cabbage rolls and chicken Kyiv—attracted a regular coterie of homesick Ukrainian and Russian expats, as well as local Hongkongers curious about the cuisine of this far-flung former Soviet state. The sisters themselves last visited Ukraine in 2019, prior to the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Related: Food In A Time Of Unrest At Club Rangoon

As Russian forces advanced further into Ukrainian territory over the first few days of the war, the West acted swiftly, first to condemn, and later enacting sanctions on Russia and delivering financial aid and weaponry to the Ukrainian military to bolster their hugely outnumbered ranks. On a more grassroots level, however, something else was brewing.

In London, two food writers, Ukrainian expat Olia Hercules and Russian native Alissa Timoshkina, both directed their feelings of defiance into the #CookForUkraine hashtag of Instagram, building on their experience running #CookForSyria during the Russian incursion into the Syrian civil war, which subsequently raised over £1 million for UNICEF through supper clubs, bake sales and recipe books. In #CookForUkraine, they would do much the same, this time collating Ukrainian and Eastern European recipes and stories to support the Ukrainian war effort through community-based fundraisers.

On hearing about the growing online movement, Oksana and Olena felt “an intense influx of energy. We have decided to act by doing what we do best—cooking. By supporting the #cookforukraine movement, we were able to channel our energy into helping raise money for people in desperate need, both those who are fleeing their homes in Ukraine and also those who need life-saving support inside the country.”

The object of their efforts? Dacha’s signature medovik, a traditional honey cake that consists of 12 layers of honey, smetana sour cream, condensed milk and pastry. The sisters are baking the cake “around the clock and providing all the ingredients, time and passion towards this cause for free,” with all proceeds going directly towards UNICEF Ukraine, Red Cross Ukraine and various volunteers via their PayPal accounts, supporting children and families in the process.

Priced at HK$650 per cake, the fundraiser has long surpassed its initial goal, raising a sum of HK$166,000 in the space of 20 days, with one customer offering to pay HK$10,000 alone for a single cake. “We are speechless and delighted from the wave of love, solidarity and outpouring support from our customers,” she says, while urging more chefs to participate in the #CookForUkraine movement.

Don't miss: Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants Announces its 51-100 List for 2022

The reception of Dacha’s medovik cakes mirrors the united response of Hong Kong’s Ukrainian and Russian communities, with the Russian Business Club of Hong Kong urging its members to sign an anti-war petition addressed to the Russian Consulate. “[China marketing specialist and Russian native] Ashley Galina Dudarenok is leading the movement, despite prosecution possibly upon crossing the Russian border. Truly amazing to see the proof of humanity wins no matter where you have come from,” observes Oksana.

As the war in Ukraine crosses the one-month mark, Dacha has plans for many more fundraisers in the future, centred around food as a powerful medium for hope and resistance. For Oksana, this is a battle waged with a whisk in one hand and flour as ammunition, with stakes no less consequential than the survival of her culture and homeland. “Words can’t express how grateful we are for the spirit of solidarity and kindness. Let’s cook for peace, for freedom, for truth, for common sense, for rational thoughts and love!”

Dacha, 40 Hollywood Road, Central, Hong Kong; +852 2420 3555, reservations@dacha.com.hk

NOW READ

Tatler Dining's Off Menu At Home Brings Four-Hands Dinners to Your Kitchen Table

Dinner Ban to End, Bars to Reopen From April 21 as Government Signals Shift in Restrictive Covid-19 Policies

The Best Places for Lunch in Central