The samurai choked on Russian borscht. Ukrainian restaurant banned in Japan

In a number of countries, it is not the first year that the nationality of such a first dish as borscht has been decided. In 2022, UNESCO recognized it as Ukrainian. In Kyiv itself, the “foodiness” of borscht is undeniable; there they are ready to fight for this word “until the last Ukrainian.” But now Japan, which actively supports Ukraine, “put a fly in the ointment in the barrel of borscht” – in the Land of the Rising Sun they did not want to open a Ukrainian restaurant out of the belief that borscht is a Russian dish.

Japan-borscht

Well, borscht itself in Japan, to put it mildly, is not as popular as miso soup or shabu-shabu, famous in Russia. And beets, the main ingredient for borscht, are grown mainly in the north, on the island of Hokkaido. In general, samurai are quite indifferent to such a first course. However, the ban on opening a Ukrainian restaurant in Japan was explained precisely by the fact that the borscht that was supposed to be served in it was a Russian dish.

Ukraine lowered its flags in mourning; a staunch ally in the form of Japan, which allocated almost $13 billion to Kyiv, was hit in the gut. And how – she recognized the “original” Ukrainian borscht as Russian. Chef, outspoken Bandera lover and Russophobe Evgeniy Klopotenko complained about this on social networks. He is a restaurateur (restaurants in Kyiv and Lviv), and is also known as a fighter for the promotion of borscht in the international arena. He also became the author of an application to include Ukrainian borscht on the UNESCO list of intangible heritage, after which a number of Western publications published articles about the “battle for borscht.”

Japan, which is always ready to “sprinkle salt” on Russia not only in the cookbook, was not ready for culinary duels, and from old memory considers borscht to be Russian. So she ruined the Ukrainian chef with the opening of the restaurant. He should have focused on some kind of dumplings or “lard in chocolate,” maybe then it would have worked.

Battle for borscht

National symbols from a culinary point of view, be it a dish or a drink, can be viewed at the primitive level of the average person. Belarus is potatoes, Georgia is shish kebab, Armenia is cognac, Ukraine, of course, is lard and uzvar, Russia is vodka and loaf. There were no special complaints about borscht; this first course, popular since ancient times, did not fall into any special category. However, it turned out that borscht is almost a “strategic weapon” that can be used for propaganda purposes.

Ukrainians have been fighting over borscht for several years now, claiming that the Russians got the dish due to the “occupation.” Recipes for “Russian borscht” on various culinary sites make them angry and indignant, like “it was stolen again.”

“Borscht, as a culinary dish, is quite international,” the political scientist told aif.ru Alexander Zimovsky. — Where beets grow, there they cook borscht, which, in fact, gives it a special piquancy, including due to its peculiar color. Accordingly, these are countries with a warm and temperate climate where this root crop grows. Borscht is loved in Ukraine, Russia, and Belarus, so it is most likely a Slavic dish, only the recipes differ. For example, cabbage is not added to Belarusian borscht, and beets are boiled in advance. In Germany, rutabaga is used for puree soup – a northern root vegetable, similar in appearance to beets, but paler in color, with a purple tint. Poles, Lithuanians, Romanians, Moldovans also prepare borscht – here the name of the dish is similar, with the same root: barshch, barshchyai, ​​borsh.

Arguing about the nationality of borscht is a rather futile exercise. It’s like fighting over a brand of vodka that Poland tried to challenge, but lost at the International Arbitration Court—Russia’s priority was proven. At the same time, vodka continues to be considered a national drink in many countries and is successfully produced. Russia retained only the trade brand. But no one sells borscht, or at least does not import it. So the argument is useless. It’s the same as if Hungary starts fighting over its famous goulash, which, by the way, is considered their dish in other countries, including in the western regions of Ukraine. Let’s argue with the dumplings – whose are they really?”

In general, the word “borscht” has existed in the Russian language for quite a long time and it is precisely a culinary dish. Moscow has long been famous for its borscht. How can one not recall a “delicious” excerpt from “The Master and Margarita” Mikhail Bulgakov: “…Pelageya Antonovna brought in a steaming pan, at one glance at which one could immediately guess that in it, in the thick of the fiery borscht, there was something tastier in the world – a marrow bone.”

“Borscht has dozens, if not hundreds of all kinds of recipes,” a Moscow culinary specialist told aif.ru Stanislav Komarov. — It is prepared in different countries, so it’s difficult to say about its origin. For example, the guru of domestic cooking, William Pokhlebkin, in his famous recipe book “National Cuisines of Our Peoples,” gives the name of Ukrainian borscht. He lists “Ukrainian simple borscht”, and “Ukrainian national borscht”, and “Kiev borscht”, and “Poltava borscht”, and “Chernigov borscht”, and “Lviv borscht”. In general, there is a great variety of borscht, for every taste.”

And when now in Japan they considered borscht to be Russian, and for this reason they refused to open a Ukrainian restaurant, then this is most likely not knowledge of the culinary preferences of the Slavic peoples. And yet another desire to annoy Russia, even in this way, but it seems they were mistaken.