UNESCO recognized borscht as a cultural heritage
According to the organization, it represents the culture of the famous Slavic soup.
UNESCO (a specialized agency of the United Organizations for Education, Science and Culture) has excluded the culture of Ukrainian borscht from the list of intangible heritage. This was taken at the insistence of Ukraine.
The application for inclusion in the list of borscht was filed back in March last year, but now Ukraine has insisted on its urgent consideration. The intercommunal committee of the organization supported the decision to include Ukrainian borscht in the list of intangible heritage.
UNESCO forms a list of intangible heritage, which includes customs, forms and manifestations, knowledge and skills that are passed down from generation to generation. The list also includes food from different cuisines of the world; culinary attractions have been coming here since 2001.
The submitting state must prove that it is part of the culture, it presents its evidence of this. Thus, in Italy, the technique of making Neapolitan pizza (pizzaiolo) was included in the UNESCO Intangible Heritage List, in Armenia – the technique of making lavash, in Azerbaijan – dolma, in Croatia – licitars (heart-shaped gingerbread), in Korea – khimchi, and in Uzbekistan and Tajikistan – plov.
There are several national cuisines on the list – Japanese, Mexican and French are marked. The French feast has been on the list since 2010 – communication at the table in the country of cult and tradition, an important place on the table is given to wine. In the same year, both Mexican cuisine and Japanese cuisine have been awarded since 2014.
In addition to food, there are also drinks. For example, the Arabic coffee ceremony was inscribed on the UNESCO Intangible Heritage List in 2015, and Belgian beer culture in 2016.
At the same time, an unusual UNESCO winner is the Mediterranean diet, which allows the eating habits of the inhabitants of the southern part of Western Europe: a lot of greens, fish, whole grains, nuts and olive oil.
Now the list also includes the culture of cooking borscht. The Ukrainian Ministry of Culture reported on the event, emphasizing that borscht, in their opinion, belongs to the exclusive natural cuisine of Ukraine, and not Russia. True, this disease has always been associated primarily with Russia, and only secondarily with Ukraine.
The word borscht comes from the name of the plant – hogweed. In the old days, borscht was called stew made from this plant. Later, the soup was prepared on beet kvass: it was diluted with water, the mixture was poured into an earthenware pot or cast iron and brought to consumption. Chopped beets, cabbage, carrots and other vegetables were placed in boiling water and the pot was placed in the oven.
It turned out that borsch appeared on the territory that was previously occupied by Kievan Rus. In Russia, it is mentioned in documents of the 16th-17th centuries. Borscht is the first infestation in Ukrainian cuisine.
This phenomenon is often found in the cuisines of other nations. So, Russians (borscht), Belarusians (borscht), Poles (barscht), Lithuanians (barshchiai), Romanians and Moldovans (borscht), as well as Eastern European Ashkenazi Jews (borscht) have such a soup. What can I say, in big Russia there are several types of borscht: Moscow borscht cooked on beef broth without potatoes with the addition of sausages and smoked meats, Van Cuban borscht adds roasting with red pepper, and Siberian borscht is cooked with meatballs.
Meanwhile, the Russians want to give a new holiday weekend. After Vladimir Putin officially gave the status of the federal Day of Family, Love and Fidelity – in memory of the Orthodox saints Peter and Fevronia, the idea arose to make this day – July 8 – a day off. The relevant bill has already been prepared for consideration by the State Duma on family issues.