Common Meals in Manitoba

Manitoba meals are plain, filling, and built around what grows or is raised on the prairie. Most homes eat the same dishes on ordinary days. Ukrainian, Mennonite, and farm cooking still shape the table.

Perogies

• Soft dough pockets filled with potato and cheese, or with cabbage.
• Boiled, then fried in butter with onions.
• Served with sour cream and bacon bits.
• Made in big batches and frozen for the week.
• A weekday supper or a potluck staple.

Cabbage rolls

• Cabbage leaves wrapped around rice and ground meat.
• Baked in tomato sauce until soft.
• Often made on the weekend and eaten through the week.
• Served with bread and butter.
• Leftovers taste better the next day.

Farmer’s sausage and hash browns

• Smoked farmer’s sausage grilled or pan-fried.
• Served with crispy hash brown potatoes.
• Common for breakfast or a quick supper.
• Sometimes with eggs or a side of beans.
• Sold at every small-town store.

Pickerel or whitefish

• Fresh or frozen fish from the lakes, breaded and pan-fried.
• Served with potatoes and corn.
• More common in summer or near the lakes.
• Some families still smoke their own.
• A Saturday night meal in many homes.

Bannock or fresh bread

• Simple flatbread or white bread baked at home.
• Eaten with butter, jam, or alongside stew.
• Made when the oven is already on.
• Children still learn the recipe.
• Goes with almost every meal.

Pie

• Saskatoon berry, apple, or pumpkin pie for dessert.
• Often baked on Sunday and finished through the week.
• Served with ice cream or just as it is.
• Brought to potlucks and funerals.
• A regular ending to a meal, not only for holidays.