TV and digital premiere of 16-episode documentary cycle Borsch. The Secret Ingredientdedicated to an iconic Ukrainian dish finally happened.
The first episode Hutsul Borschwas on air on February 9, in Breakfast. Weekend on 1+1 morning show. Since then, for 16 weeks every Sunday we have been watching a new episode about the journey of Yevhen Klopotenko, a chef and culinary expert, all over Ukraine in search for the most fascinating recipes of Ukrainian borsch and the most surprising ingredients. The project was also released on FILM.UA Group official YouTube page.
“We have covered almost all of Ukraine and collected unique recipes but what’s essential is that we’ve met incredible people. There is only one conclusion to draw: so many people, so many borsches, and all of them are great. This is a project of outstanding unity and synergy. We managed to show the wealth and diversity of Ukraine and its flavors and, most importantly, incredible people telling about their values. We are very thankful to PITCH.UA competition for supporting the project and 1+1 TV channel for partnership. Though the series has come to an end we keep working as we are now editing a documentary about our wanderings. In the film, Yevhen Klopotenko will cook a real borsch of unity,” says Natalka Yakymovych, general producer of FILM.UA Group PayTV channels and creative producer of the project.
In total, the viewing share by 18-54(50+) audience has amounted to 6.8%, and on YouTube channel it was viewed by more than 150 thousand people from 30 countries, including the USA, Canada, Thailand, Pakistan, India, Armenia, Georgia, and others! The project has truly become a favorite among the viewers. “It is a unique project showing how diverse our country is, how much color and love its people have,” “Borsch + wine, say no more, this is the best recipe”, “I’ve been watching this project since the very beginning. I have already improved my skills in cooking borsch! This is real eye-candy. Especially the host ;)” – these are some comments from the audience.
It is planned to complete the editing of Borsch. The Secret Ingredient documentary in several weeks.
The project was implemented with the support of United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
You can follow the project news on its pages on Facebook and Youtube
About the project:
Meat-based or vegetarian, with or without beans, potatoes in or out, tomato sauce or real tomatoes added, dried mushrooms or smoked pears, or maybe just mom’s borsch? Which variant should be considered “the real thing”? The battles have been lasting for years. That is why Yevhen Klopotenko, a well-known chef, sets out on a journey across Ukraine to uncover the most fascinating borsch recipes and to find the secret ingredients which make this dish unique! During this trip, Yevhen reaches a conclusion that recipe components are not a priority but people and their values are! Secret ingredients from different regions and people are even cooler than falling in love! We’ll astonish you with borsch cooked on river water, with fish, dumplings, goose meat, sausages and even whisky and honey. We’ll offer you to taste borsch in Chernobyl nuclear power station canteen or just on a quay in the center of Uzhgorod, in “Highest Cuisine Restaurant” in Lviv, on a mountain peak in Transcarpathia, in artists’ summer residence, with Jews, Hungarians and Crimean Tatars… Find your unique borsch and secret ingredient!
Genre: documentary, culinary travel
Year: 2020
Production: FILM.UA
Timing: 16 episodes 8 mins each
Director: Dmytro Kochnev
Creative producer: Natalka Yakymovych
DOP: Yevhen Sakhno
Host: Yevhen Klopotenko
