“Borsch bet”: Klopotenko did not have time to change Zaluzhny’s taste preferences

30 January 13:44

At the end of October 2024, the famous chef and culinary expert Yevhen Klopotenko and the former Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland Valeriy Zaluzhnyi made an unusual bet: Klopotenko had 80 days to change the general’s attitude to borsch. However, the deadline has already passed, and the result has not been achieved. Klopotenko’s press service told us about this in an exclusive commentary to Komersant ukrainskyi.

How did it all start?

Klopotenko spoke about the unusual bet on social media, noting that the idea came up during his stay in London, where he was organizing a charity dinner party.

It turned out that the former head of state does not like this dish.

“Zaluzhnyi doesn’t like borscht. But we made a bet that I would change that. So stay tuned for more news in this case, in short. I don’t know if I can do it in 80 days… but this bet started in London, when I participated in the organization of a charity dinner party… So, it all started with charity, and as a bonus, I have to make Mr. Valeriy fall in love with borsch. Challenge accepted,” Klopotenko wrote on October 30.

Why did the bet fail?

the 80-day deadline has long since passed, but Klopotenko has not fed Zaluzhnyi borsch. The main reason was the inability to meet in person.

According to the chef’s representatives, he had made all the necessary preparations: he had studied the ex-chief executive’s taste preferences, developed a recipe and was ready to present him with the perfect borsch. However, so far their schedules have not coincided: when Zaluzhnyi was in Kyiv, Klopotenko was out of town.

Will there be a second attempt?

Despite the failure of the bet, Klopotenko does not lose hope. He noted that as soon as he has the opportunity to meet, he will cook Zaluzhnyi borsch, which he believes will change the general’s opinion of this dish.

So perhaps the story is not over yet, but for now the intrigue remains open.

It should be noted that on July 1, 2022, Ukrainian borsch was added to the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage List. Klopotenko contributed to this by organizing an online borsch festival with the support of the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy.

Остафійчук Ярослав
Editor