The 5th Golden Shah National Culinary Championship has started within the framework of the 18th Azerbaijan International Agricultural Exhibition (Caspian Agro) and the 30th Anniversary Azerbaijan International Food Industry Exhibition (InterFood Azerbaijan), Azernews reports.
It was noted that the championship was organized by the Azerbaijan National Culinary Association (ANCA) with the support of the State Tourism Agency and the Azerbaijan National Culinary Center under its jurisdiction, in partnership with the World Association of Chefs Societies (Wordlchefs).
In total, 10 international teams representing Azerbaijan, Turkiye, Uzbekistan, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Belarus, Croatia, Serbia and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus are taking part in this year's competition. Meanwhile, more than 30 local teams and over 300 chefs are competing as individuals in more than 10 categories.
The jury of the fifth Golden Shah National Culinary Championship includes international chef judges from 16 countries licensed by Worldchefs.
The main goal of the four-day championship is to promote the development of gastronomy in general, expand the potential of gastrotourism, give the winners the opportunity to participate in international competitions, and develop culinary skills by adopting the experience of world chefs.
This is also necessary so that the methodology of preparing dishes of our national cuisine is studied by chefs of the world and so that our country as a whole is recognized as a destination for gastrotourism.
The Golden Shah National Culinary Championship also received the right to host the continental championship of chefs Gold Shah, organized jointly with Worldchefs, starting last year.
As the first local championship officially recognized by the World Association of Chefs Societies (Wordlchefs), the Golden Shah National Culinary Championship received the opportunity to host teams from other countries.
In addition, due to international recognition, the rules of the competition were improved, and the jury included judges of a higher level.
Note that the Azerbaijan National Culinary Association (ANCA) was created in 1991. Its main job is to find, learn about, and share Azerbaijan's traditional food culture. ANCA brings together the best chefs, food experts, and scientists in the country. The person who started, founded, and is the general director of ANCA is Tahir Amiraslanov Idris.
ANCA is part of important international groups. Since 1992, it's been a member of the World Association of Chefs' Societies (WACS), and since 1998, it's been in the Traditional Food Committee of the UNESCO Folk Art Organization.
ANCA has been very active on the world stage. They've participated in many World Culinary Congresses and European Conferences, traveling to countries like Germany, Norway, Australia, and more.
Azerbaijani teams from ANCA have won many gold, silver, and bronze medals, as well as other awards, at cooking competitions and Olympics around the world. These events have been held in places like Malta, Korea, Russia, Germany, and the USA. ANCA has also organized events to showcase Azerbaijani food culture in countries like Russia, France, Japan, and China.
ANCA members have also served as judges in international cooking contests in various countries, including Russia, Greece, Turkiye and the USA.
ANCA has introduced Azerbaijan as a leader in a new way of thinking about food globally. They've given many talks at universities and conferences in other countries, and now students in several foreign universities even have exams on Azerbaijani cuisine.
Thanks to ANCA's efforts, Azerbaijan was the first country from the former USSR to join WACS in 1992. Later, with ANCA's help, countries like Russia, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, and Kazakhstan also became WACS members. ANCA is currently helping Georgia to join as well.
Today, Azerbaijan is represented in important positions within the World Folk Art Organization, including the leadership of the "Traditional Food Committee."
Members of ANCA have received top cooking awards from organizations in Russia and Ukraine. ANCA itself has been honored with awards for its contributions to human values and public recognition, and has been recognized as a master of world culture and art.
The Azerbaijan National Culinary Association is the only professional group in the country focused on cooking. It works not just with chefs, but also with scientists (like historians and doctors) and the media.
Chefs trained by ANCA are working in top restaurants in Azerbaijan and in other countries like the USA, Germany, and England.
ANCA is the only organization dedicated to promoting Azerbaijan's traditional food culture within the country. Through TV appearances and articles, they've helped bring more attention to Azerbaijani cuisine.
They've organized many cooking competitions for young chefs, home cooks, and bartenders. They've also held events focused on regional Azerbaijani food and given classes and training to students in schools and universities.
ANCA has held conferences about the current state and future of Azerbaijani food and mass catering. They've also supported scientific research and even helped defend the first university thesis on Azerbaijani national cuisine culture. They created the first cooking magazine in Azerbaijan called "Kulina."
ANCA is highly respected both in Azerbaijan and internationally. They are creating official standards for Azerbaijani dishes, and about 20 dishes for restaurants have been legally protected (patented).
More than 1,500 examples of Azerbaijani national dishes have been added to the government's online list of intangible cultural heritage. They have collected over 4,000 national dishes and are still adding more.
ANCA started modernizing national cuisine in 1993 and has been studying and using a "neo-classical" approach since 2005. They find and recreate old recipes from historical documents.
They collect, translate, and restore cookbooks from the 15th to 19th centuries, using these old recipes in their restaurants. They study the history of national cuisine through scientific research.
National dishes have been studied from many angles, including their history, culture, health aspects, and even their appearance and ethics. As a result of this research, a book with 2500 restored recipes, updated for today's needs, has been created and is used by chefs and restaurants. They have also created new standards for dishes, which have been patented and are now being used.
While there were "halal food" standards, there wasn't a concept of "halal cuisine" or "halal service." ANCA developed these standards within WACS and introduced the idea of "halal culinary," which includes halal restaurants, halal food, halal service, and halal catering. They have also created and patented "Hilal" standards (like Michelin stars for restaurants and chefs) with 1, 2, and 3 stars, and are currently working on implementing them.
