Azernews.Az

By Laman Ismayilova

Azerbaijan’s National Culinary Association took part in the15th Istanbul Gastronomy Festival held on February 2-5. The Festival brought together chefs from more than 27 countries around the world.

The Azerbaijani cooks grabbed 4 gold, 4 silver and 5 bronze medals in the individual contests, Trend Life reported.

In the team events, Azerbaijan secured a silver medal, a trophy for third place and the diploma for 4th place.

The country's national culinary team included Araz Akhmedov, Parviz Abdullayev, Adil Jafarov, Sarkhan Mammadov, Nijat Babayev, Nigar Mirzoyeva, Chinara Hajiyeva, Azada Musabeyli (team captain). Four members of the national team participated in an international competition for the first time.

Tahir Amiraslanov, the president of the Azerbaijan National Culinary Association was the member of jury.

Azerbaijan is always grabbing attention by its cuisine, as the country’s cuisine is one of the most delicious cuisines in the world and no tourists can resist tasting the local food while staying here.

Most of Azerbaijan's national meals are cooked from mutton, beef, poultry and fish. The variety of national foods also includes many dishes with rice, flour, vegetables and greens.

The unique dishes of Azerbaijani cuisine such as dolma, bozbash, bozartma, chykhyrtma, khashil, Shish kebab, piti, pilaff, and govurma are included in the national menus of the neighboring Caucasus nations.

Azerbaijani cuisine is also well known by its usage of vegetables and greens seasonally in all the dishes. Fresh herbs, including mint, coriander, dill, basil, parsley, tarragon, leek, chive, thyme, marjoram, green onion, and watercress are very popular and often accompany main dishes adding certain spice.

The Caspian Sea is home to many edible species of fish, including the sturgeon, Caspian salmon, sardines, grey mullet, and others. Black caviar from the Caspian Sea is one of Azerbaijan's best-known delicacies that are popular in other parts of the world, including former Soviet countries.

In a nutshell, ‘tasting’ Azerbaijan means enjoying juicy apples, pomegranates, grilled meats, kabab, dolma, bozbash, all perfumed with the herbs of untouched woodlands and the spices of the Silk Road.

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Laman Ismayilova is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Lam_Ismayilova

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