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 Faith

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 worked hard and achieved the American dream. Watch the TV News Segment about our incredible story. My parent’s 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. Our family attends Life Church Boise. 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 production, 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.

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 (warning: spammers will get hit in the face with unripe avocados).

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, although I try to post healthy-ish recipes, please talk to your Doctor or nutritionist for medical or dietary advice. I am not liable if you eat too many Cheeseburgers.

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Comments

  • Linda VanCitters
    February 1, 2025

    Natasha,
    I love your recipes because they don’t have complicated ingredients and your videos are so easy to follow. I know when I am looking for a recipe and I see your name, it is going to be exactly what I am looking for and will come out great. Thank you!

    Reply

    • NatashasKitchen.com
      February 2, 2025

      Hi Linda! That makes me very happy to hear. Thank you so much for the feedback.

      Reply

  • David L.
    February 1, 2025

    Natasha, you’re amazing and God bless you and your family. I can’t believe it! You love Jesus Christ. As much as I do, I gave my life last weekend at church at the Stone Church in Toronto, Canada. I just finished watching your shepherd’s pie recipe. Looking forward to making it and God bless you and your family again. God always blesses his children, especially the ones who love his creator. Have a great weekend. Enjoy the rest of this week

    Reply

    • Natasha
      February 1, 2025

      That is the sweetest message – thank you!! And I’m so happy for you!! Blessings over you.

      Reply

  • Sabiha
    February 1, 2025

    Thank you, Natasha, for sharing your story. I recently got married and am on a journey to keep me and my husband, especially because we are trying to have kids. I’ve always loved baking (your banana bread recipe is the only one I use), but cooking hasn’t always come naturally to me. Reading your story and how you also, in the beginning of your marriage, had frozen food and ate out, and seeing where you are today is so inspirational and encourages me. I love that your videos and recipes are easy to follow and always taste perfect. I hope you know that you really are changing peoples lives. Thank you ❤️

    Reply

  • Deb Arnold
    January 31, 2025

    Just wanted to say thank you. I didn’t start cooking till I retired in 2022. (At the age of 68). Your recipes have inspired me and ultimately gave me confidence in the kitchen. Thanks again.

    Reply

    • NatashasKitchen.com
      January 31, 2025

      Hi Deb! That means so much to me! I’m truly honored to be part of your cooking journey. Thank you for sharing that with me.

      Reply

  • Pamela
    January 29, 2025

    Hi. Don’t you have a WHITE cake recipe? No yellow but WHITE? Thank you

    Reply

    • Natasha's Kitchen
      January 29, 2025

      Hello! Feel free to browse my different Cake recipes so you can choose from the list.

      Reply

  • Stuart Borken
    January 29, 2025

    I just read your bio and understand why we connect. You are a nurse, I’m a doctor, you are from Ukraine, my mother was born in Kiev in 1908 and came to America with her brothers and sister and mother and father in 1910. I grew up with mother’s parents and mother and my dad in one house. I learned to cook from my mother and her mother. I have shared my grandmother’s Sweet and Sour Cabbage Borscht with a local restaurant and it has become the number one seller at the restaurant and they sell it frozen as well…Dr. Stu’s Cabbage Soup. I’m writing to you tonight because my wife asked me to make Shrimp with Asparagus Lemon and Garlic and pasta for dinner. IT WAS FANTASTIC, again!
    I am so happy for you. You have invented a wonderful blog and persona. Stuart Borken

    Reply

    • Natasha's Kitchen
      January 29, 2025

      Hello Stuart! Thank you for stopping and sharing that with us. Sounds like we have some similarities indeed! I hope you and your family will love all the recipes that you will try from my website and YouTube channel.

      Reply

  • mary grace zakowski
    January 28, 2025

    Is the crockpot chili recipe in your Natasha’s Kitchen Cookbook.

    Reply

    • NatashasKitchen.com
      January 28, 2025

      Hi Mary! My cookbook contains mainly new recipes that are not posted here on my blog, only a few are.

      Reply

  • Debbie
    January 27, 2025

    The recipe for Classic apple pie with the filling that taste like caramel is a hit in my house. It’s the only apple pie she will eat now. Also use your meatloaf recipe often. Enjoy trying so many of your recipes!!!

    Reply

    • NatashasKitchen.com
      January 27, 2025

      Thank you so much, Debbie! I’m happy to hear it was a hit!

      Reply

  • Dawn
    January 27, 2025

    Dear Natasha,
    I love watching your videos and trying them out. My favorite is the lemon bars. I love them! Thank you for sharing your recipes with us. My granddaughter likes it when your kids get to help you, as she likes to help me cook too. You you ever come across a recipe for warm Garman potato salad? If so can you show us how it is made. I grew up eating it and never knew how it was made lol. Keep me asking great videos for everyone to see.

    Reply

  • Carol
    January 27, 2025

    Natasha I can’t thank enough for sharing your incredible talent in the kitchen with us, you’re the best Sweetie ❤️ ♥️ to u and again thank U soo much…Blessings

    Reply

    • Natasha
      January 27, 2025

      HI Carol, thank you so much for your kind and encouraging message. I appreciate you so much!

      Reply

  • Mary Jo Spyrow
    January 26, 2025

    Hi Natasha… sorry to ask basically the same question 🤷🏻‍♀️ but, on day 5, 6, and 7, I fed with wheat flour. I haven’t had any more hooch but very little rise and basically no bubbles. I failed to mention in my first question on Jan 24th that our elevation is approximately 5,500 feet thus, I was wondering if that may be playing a part in slowing the process?

    Thank you! Mary Jo

    Reply

    • NatashasKitchen.com
      January 27, 2025

      Hi Mary Jo! Yes, based on my research, elevation does play a role. High elevation can slow down fermentation and it may take a little longer to get it going. Keep at it, if your starter looks dry or too thick, you may need to increase the hydration level. Also, it would be helpful to stir it more often (every 12-24hrs).

      Reply

      • Mary Jo Spyrow
        January 27, 2025

        Thank you for you help! I greatly appreciate it. I will hang in there and see if I can get this starter going 🤞🙏🤞

        Reply

  • Katia
    January 25, 2025

    Hi Natasha! I’m a big fan of yours. I’ve been using your website for over 10 years. I think I’ve tried most of the recipes over the years. Everything always comes out so great and the best part is that it’s easy!!! People think I’m a great cook but it’s all because of your recipes. I’ve been meaning to write a thank you note for years now, finally got to it. Thank you Natasha. You are the best at what you do.

    Reply

  • Olga Makarova
    January 25, 2025

    Hi Natasha! Do you still live in Idaho? I just moved here! Do you know of any good Russian or Ukrainian restaurants?

    Thanks!

    Reply

    • Natasha
      January 25, 2025

      Hi Olga, there is a Russian restaurant in Boise. I think it’s the only one if you google it

      Reply

  • Mary Jo Spyrow
    January 24, 2025

    Have loved reading your story! Big question at this point is about sourdough starter. I have followed your directions but on day five mine became very watery on top. I stirred it, discarded and feed but now on day six, it kinda looks the same, watery on top. I am thinking this isn’t right and planned on tossing and starting over but thought I would reach out first. Thank you! Mary Jo

    Reply

    • NatashasKitchen.com
      January 24, 2025

      Hi Mary Jo! Don’t toss it just yet. Sourdough starter is very forgiving and it may just need a few adjustments. The watery layer is hooch, it means your starter is hungry and ready for a feeding. Check your room temperature, it could be fermenting too fast and running out of food if your room is too warm. If so, it would need a more frequent feeding schedule (8-12hrs). You can move it to a cooler spot, an ideal temperature is between 70 and 75°. It may also be your climate and it could be too hydrated. You could try reducing the water just a tad bit to make a thicker paste. You could also try a few feedings with rye/whole wheat flour since they are more nutrient dense and encourage activity. I hope that helps.

      Reply

      • Mary Jo Spyrow
        January 24, 2025

        THANK YOU! Going to feed it right now with wheat flour.

        Reply

  • John
    January 23, 2025

    I’m American, traveled after perestroika, married in Lutugino, Ukraine in 1993. My wife makes awesome pancakes using plain Kefir cooked on sunflower oil. Most moist and tasty I’ve ever had. Try it if you haven’t already. No syrup needed.
    Johnsky, she calls me.

    Reply

  • Ruth
    January 21, 2025

    Hi, I just met you at the airport. You are such an inspiration and so sweet in person. Keep being awesome! (Your sister in-law too!)

    Reply

  • Ana
    January 19, 2025

    Natasha you are a pleasure and so much fun to follow!

    Reply

  • Terry
    January 18, 2025

    I am excited to try some of your recipes. I’m much older now 84) and only cook for me but am fascinated with recipes. Some I try some I just drool over but am glad I found you on instagram

    Reply

    • NatashasKitchen.com
      January 19, 2025

      Hi Terry! I’m so glad you found my channel. I hope you love the recipes.

      Reply

  • Jen
    January 17, 2025

    I absolutely love your family story and need I say im addicted to your amazing website. My story is similar in that I too come from a family of great cooks. My mom was a wonderful cook and teacher. I’ve tried so many recipes from your collection and they are always spot on. Keep up the great work! I wish you continued success!!

    Reply

  • Fanny Green
    January 15, 2025

    Can I use Cod or Catfish instead of talipia

    Reply

    • Natasha's Kitchen
      January 15, 2025

      Hi Fanny! Can you please post this question in the fish recipe? We have different fish recipes so we can determine how to answer your question. Thanks.

      Reply

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