Postcard from Bishkek

When I go up to Naryn, I am often asked by my neighbours of friends to bring back with some produce, which they claim tastes better than what we can buy here in the city, coming as it does svergie – fresh – and direct from the ecologically chistie countryside, (that is direct from the source […]

The other day, a friend, (who happens to know that I have a penchant for spicy foods), asked me how I coped without my daily fix of Marmite,  a spread made from yeast extract which is a byproduct of brewing beer.  To be fair, it is more salty than spicy … and is definitely an […]

A friend of mine had a health scare and went to see his doctor … who put him on an interesting diet. Although he was under strict instructions to restrict what he ate for breakfast and supper, for lunch he was given free rein: “Eat what you want”. At first hearing about it, the thought […]

Scotland has Haggis, Northern England has Black Pudding and Cornwall has Pasties … Southern Kyrgyzstan had Plov and Karakol … Karakol has Ashlan Fu. Ashlan Foo is just as much at home on the menu in cafes and restaurants as it as at street and market food stalls … it is to be found on […]

When I first arrived to Kyrgyzstan, almost twenty years agi, I was often asked about the differences I noticed between Britain and Kyrgyzstan.   What people were most interested in was the “big” differences … at that time, they had an impression of life in the West but that had been augmented by an influx […]

It is often said that the Kyrgyz traditionally ate every part of an animal … and knowing that that the eyes of a sheep are given as a sign of respect to honoured guests, I can believe it. Djorgom is a traditional Kyrgyz dish which remains popular today – indeed it is sometimes called the […]

Bread is a basic food and there are many different forms …  from Leypioshka – the traditional flat breads, soldatski – a tin load, rezheniy – a black bread … down to the modern synonym for technological advancement – slices bread. Here is a selection of dough that are often encountered as accompaniments to meals here […]

One of the most popular meals during the summer is Shashlik – which is the Russian name for a type of Shish Kebab – pieces of meat on a skewer  … indeed that’s what shish means in Turkish – skewer.  Kebab on the other hand refers to meat that is cooked over or next to […]

Tonight is known in Mexico as the Night of the Radishes. The festivities associated with this event have been celebrated since 1897 in the main square of the city of Oaxaca and is usually attended by several thousand people. and has been described as one of the impressive Vegetable Festivals around the world. Craftsmen carve […]

Last week, I saw an interesting news item … announcing the establishment of a new fish farm in the Naryn Region where they are “growing” Rainbow Trout which aims to produce between five and six tons a year. When I first came to Bishkek I was sent to go and buy some fish.  Now, I […]