Azerbaijani chefs awarded for contribution to culinary [PHOTO]

14 February 2023 12:59 (UTC+04:00)

Laman Ismayilova

A national award "Master of Culinary Arts" has been presented at the International Mugham Centre, Azernews reports.

The prize aims to attract public interest to acclaimed chefs, who have been working for many years to promote the Azerbaijani cuisine.

The national award is established jointly by the Azerbaijani Chefs' Guild and the creator of the Diyar.az gastronomic map Nigar Amirbayova.

In the official part of the event, the memory of the Azerbaijani martyrs as well as those who died as a result of the devastating earthquake in Turkiye was honored with a minute of silence.

Moreover, famous singers and musicians performed the mugham "Karabakh shikastasi", as well as Uzeyir Hajibayli's opera "The Cloth Peddler".

Speaking at the award ceremony, Nigar Amirbayova stressed that the prize is granted to chefs with extensive experience in the culinary field.

In his speech, Azerbaijani Chefs' Guild chairman Ilkin Akbarzada stressed that the ceremony participants are the chefs from Baku and other cities with 45-50 years of experience, who successfully represented Azerbaijan at the international level.

"Our main goal is to introduce our experienced chefs living in the capital and districts to the public. Around 40 chefs from Baku and Azerbaijani districts will be awarded today. Young chefs from vocational training institutions have been also invited to the ceremony. Chefs with rich experience in the culinary field will encourage the young generation to worthy represent national cuisine worldwide. In our society, we have many young people who are active in this field, and I hope that they will contribute to the development of this field," said Ilkin Akbarzada.

The Azerbaijani Chefs' Guild chairman also highlighted the Guild's activities aimed at promoting national cuisine. He presented a report on the work done by the Guild last year.

In 2022, Azerbaijani Chefs' Guild celebrated International Chefs Day. Moreover, Azerbaijani cooks have successfully participated in the 2nd International Gastronomic Festival and Culinary Competition in Denizli, Turkiye. In total, the national team won seven medals, including three gold, two silver, and two bronze in various categories.

At the same time, the Guild representatives were nominated as jury members of many international culinary championships.

In their remarks, the president of the Azerbaijan National Culinary Association and the World Platform of the Islamic Countries Culinary Societies (WICS), member of the World Association of Chefs' Societies (WACS) Honored Cultural Worker Tahir Amiraslanov, Board Chairman of the DAIR Hotels and Restaurants Association Samir Dubandi, Chairman of the Turkish Chefs Society, Chairman of the Denizli City Society of Young Chefs Suleyman Kursak praised the activities of the Azerbaijani Chefs' Guild, headed by Ilkin Akbarzada.

It was noted that Ilkin Akbarzada is doing great and significant work to promote the national cuisine of Azerbaijan. The Guild functions in close cooperation with relevant structures, associations, and educational institutions.

Following the event, a film produced by Baku Media Centre was presented to the attention of the audience. Congratulatory video messages from colleagues of Azerbaijani chefs from around the world were also shown.

Furthermore, Azerbaijani chefs and media representatives were awarded certificates, medals, and cups.

The touching moment of the ceremony was that the awards to the leading chefs were presented by their children, who followed in the footsteps of their parents.

Trend News Agency correspondent Vugar Imanov was awarded a special cup for contribution to the promotion of national culinary arts. The host of the event was Iskandar Ibrahim.

In the foyer, the guests got acquainted with samples of Azerbaijani national cuisine and attended the ceremony of cutting Shah Pilaf, a signature dish of Azerbaijani cuisine.

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