CULTURE AND NATURE: THE EUROPEAN HERITAGE OF SHEEP FARMING AND PASTORAL LIFE

RESEARCH THEME 6: CUISINE BASED ON SHEEP PRODUCTS

RESEARCH REPORT of

Tanya Mareva, МА ethnologist Regional Historical Museum Smolian

OCTOBER 2011

This project has been funded with support from the European Commission. This publication [communication] reflects the views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.

1 Contents

1. Introduction

2. Traditional mutton consumption 2.1. Dishes with sheep and goat yoghurt and dairy products 2.2. Mutton dishes 3. Events and customs 4 „Shepherds’ cuisine” in restaurants, rural and eco-farms, agrotourism 5. Festivals 6. Closing words Bibliography

1. Introduction

Food and nutrition have been broadly determined by environment and economy. At the same time they are bound to the culture and the psychological characteristics of particular ethnic groups. The idea of cuisine of every human society is largely ethnically charged and quite often this is one more sign of diversity between communities, ethnic groups and people. Various studies of Bulgarian nutrition provide information about ancient Thracians – the inhabitants of this region in previous millennia, who included in their menu mutton and milk. Homer called Ancient Thrace „the mother of sheep”. Vergilius wrote poetry in the I century A.D. about the shepherds along the Danube who provided milk as fat, as it could be carried to town in baskets. Archaeological evidence from the Chalcolitic – plenty of osteological material from domesticated sheep - testify that traditions in raising sheep for their meat, milk and wool in this region were rooted back in Prehistory. Old Slavic tribes in the period of their migration and settlement on the Balkans were also used to mutton. Proto- Bulgarians were a nomadic people and their nutrition was based on meat and milk, including mutton. According to the accounts of medieval analysts, bread was considered the principal food of Bulgarians, but they also mention that mutton was largely represented in their cuisine.

2 We are able to make a reconstruction of Bulgarian diet in the late Middle Ages according to the data from Ottoman documental sources. Animal husbandry and particularly tending sheep and goats was the basic occupation of the population in the hills and the highlands. It met both local needs and those of the large imperial agglomerations (Istanbul, Adrianople and Thessalonica), as well as the needs of the Ottoman army in the Balkan Peninsula. Due to the specific culture and traditions of the conquerors, the demand for mutton was enormous. Documents from the sixteenth century indicate a number of settlements where special social strata called “dzhelepi, dzhelepkeshani” were set free of taxes and charged with the collection of sheep for the needs of the empire. The principal tax from sheep – most often tithe, provided also a significant food supply for the Ottoman Empire. The Turkish traveler Evliya Chelebi praised the taste of “tender lamb kebabs and flavour lamb stew” in the urban inns across Bulgarian lands. He also wrote about hospitality in the dairies and villages, where he was treated to yogurt, cream, cream and honey, cheese, fresh cheese, whey, cottage cheese, yellow cheese. Documents from the 18-th – 19-th century largely commented on sheep, meat, tallow, cheese, butter and milk on sale in the markets and directing them to provide the army and the Palace. Particularly delicious was considered rams meat of the famous breed “ kavardzhi”, as well as that of rams, kept in winter in the Aegean and Marmora areas, due to the salty grass they grazed. Flocks of sheep from the western parts of the country traveled many days to the slaughterhouses in Istanbul, but the most favorite were sheep raised in the region of because of the unique aroma of herbs they were fed. At the beginning of the 20-th century, science discovered the secret of Bulgarian yoghurt (Bacillus Bulgaricus) and it became famous worldwide. That time also marked the beginning of modern cuisine. Cookbooks appeared in which whole sections were devoted to the dishes of lamb and mutton. In the late 20-th century, however, the consumption of mutton gradually decreased. This was related to changing stereotypes between town and country and the lifestyle divergence of social strata, as well as to the new organization of sheep-breeding, concentrated in state farms. At the beginning of the 21 c., new statistic data shows further decline in the consumption of sheep products determined by the collapse of sheep branch and much more to the restricted production. Relatively high prices of organic products and the fall of purchasing capacities of the population in Bulgaria disadvantages the permanent return of

3 sheep cheese and milk at the table of Bulgarians and lamb still remains the main course just on holidays.

2. Traditional mutton consumption Ovine products are used in Bulgarian cuisine implementing old basic culinary technologies: boiling, baking and stewing, or processed into meat and dairy products. Dishes of mutton, milk and dairy products are well represented in Bulgarian cuisine especially in mountain areas, where sheep breeding was basic trade for ages. 2.1. Dishes with sheep and goat yoghurt and dairy products Dairy products can be classified as durable and perishable. Cheese and butter are durable products from sheep milk that are consumed as food all the year round. Yellow cheese belongs to the same group, but due to its high cost its consumption was harshly limited. Sheep and goat yoghurt, as well as cottage cheese are perishable products consumed in the past only in summer. Fresh sheep milk in the past was consumed rarely - usually by children and sick people. Today it is generally not offered for sale on the market. In the past shepherds occasionally drank milk with a straw directly from the bucket in the course of milking the ewes. This habit – rather an exception than the rule, was probably the only case of consuming raw sheep milk. Sheep milk was presented in Bulgarian cuisine generally as sour milk – yoghurt, or curdled – cheese and curds. It was called kíselo mlyáko [sour milk, yoghurt], lyúto mlyáko [hot/pungent milk] (Strandzha), chóstu mléko [thick/dense milk] (the Rhodopes), fáteno mléko [caught/curdled milk], ayórt (Pirin)/ ogurt () [yoghurt]. Yoghurt represented a seasonal everyday food in summer. Once upon a time it was a main dish in the traditional diet, eaten with bread or kachamák [hominy]. It was also added to many other dishes, but it was usually consumed pure, without any additions. Today in mountainous areas where yoghurt is produced, it has turned a delicious dessert. It is served garnished with homemade jams from wild berries (strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, etc.), with honey and nuts – usually walnuts. Except at home, yoghurt is also available for consumption in restaurants and catering. Traditionally at home yogurt was served in a large ceramic or wooden bowl. It was carried for workers in the fields in a wooden vessel or single-handled clay jar, called armagâ (Northeastern Bulgaria), rakátka/rukátka, ushátka, etc.

4 After the extraction of butter, the remainder represented a sort of traditional Bulgarian drink – mátenitsa, matán, barkanítsa, ayrán, ogúrt’. Shepherds and their families used to drink this buttermilk with a great pleasure, especially in the summer heat and during the hard work in the fields. It is widely used in present time too – prepared at home of slightly turned sour yoghurt with water. In public catering and in dairy industry this drink - ayrán [kefir] is made today from cow milk because of its lower price. Sheep milk thickens at the end of the milking season. At that time a special milk product was prepared in the mountains, obtained in the course of long boiling the milk on slow fire to evaporate maximum of the consistent water. It was salted to taste or added a lump of cheese. This product has got various local denominations: bráno mlyáko, ovcheník, kutmách, ashchák and katák. To prevent it going spoilt, people sealed it with a layer of melted butter to isolate it from the contact with air. Thus “sealed” kutmách was consumed with bread in Pirin mountain after Shrowetide (the first Sunday before Lent). In the same area they used to eat it sweet. A special sort of the same product was the krotmách for quick consumption at the foot of Sredna gora – usually to the milk were added grapes, must or whipped eggs. Recently katák is offered for sale as a special brand because of its good taste and there is a great demand for it despite the higher price. It is also served in restaurants as a starter in combination with roasted red peppers (slightly or very hot) - a traditional appetizer in the Balkan region. In the same area – Lovech vicinity, following the old tradition at the end of milking season a special delicacy was prepared – the so-called ufchérski ogúrt’ [shepherds’ yoghurt]. After the recipe, milk was cooked for a long time on low fire – to become very consistent and after its cooling 1-2 slices of bread was added. It was ready for consumption in 2 – 3 days. Butter was one of the very durable basic sheep dairy products in the past. It was the subject of trade for a long time (15th – 19th century). Today its production for the market is considered non profitable any more. Cheese is the most popular product from Bulgarian sheep milk. When the term “white brine cheese” is used, sheep or goat cheese is meant. Skimmed cheese – bíto sírene, imansáz peynír was most often used in the traditional Bulgarian cuisine. Fresh cheese, called yahlá, telemyó was specially prepared and consumed on the celebration at the beginning of the milking season. This tradition has been preserved ever since in the mountains by the families of petty sheep farmers. One of the most spicy shepherds’ delicacies with a very specific taste – ushmár, ishmár, sindirmyó, bél mázh was prepared from unripe unsalted

5 cheese fried in plenty of butter. It was constantly stirred and flour was added to thicken. Finally, it was salted or sweetened, according to the individual taste. Whey, a by-product in cheese making, was also a favorite drink for quick consumption. Curds were the most popular, widely used product from sheep milk in all the regions with developed sheep breeding in the past. It was called ódvara, úrda, vúrda, ulashík, ishumík and ishmík. It was a perishable product derived from boiled cheese whey or from buttermilk left over after churning butter from curdled milk. In mountain areas, the so called izvárovo, myáhovo sírene [skins-cheese] was traditional. The cheese was stored in lamb skins processed in a special way, hence the name myah, which is the Bulgarian for ‘skin’. Kashkaval (yellow cheese) is a very specific durable product from sheep milk, a kind of mature hard cheese. It was produced in limited quantities because of the large quantities of milk needed for its making. It is considered that in Bulgarian lands people made yellow cheese since Antiquity. Today, a product labeled “kashkaval from sheep milk” is on the menu of Bulgarians, offered for sale by various dairies in the country. Except for raw consumption and in addition to many salads and baked dishes, it is often served breaded with a garnish of fried potatoes. In traditional Bulgarian cuisine sheep milk products were generally used in the preparation of basic traditional dishes – in addition to various kinds of gruels and pastry as bánitsi, katmí, tútmanitsi. The rice pudding, known as mléchnitsa, syutlyásh was a popular dessert in urban cuisine from the first half of the 20-th century. Even now these dishes are Bulgarians’ favorite home food. Especially favorite in everyday life and restaurant network are the so-called “Sirene po shópski” [‘Cheese a la Shopi’] and “Sírene v gyuveché” [‘Cheese in a clay pot’], baked in small clay pots on a pad of onions, vegetables, mushrooms, sometimes with eggs on top. The reflections of traditional shepherds’ cuisine on present day culinary are of a special interest. Today in the mountains of Bulgaria, most sheep-owners process the milk themselves and make organic products, mainly for personal consumption. On their table at home those traditional dairy products are presented, which were part of the diet of their predecessors too. They use to prepare yoghurt and a variety of white brine and curdled cheeses (brânza-sírene, myáhovo sírene, izvárovo sírene).

6 2.2. Mutton dishes Speaking of mutton in Bulgarian traditional cuisine, we should first note that animals were very rarely slaughtered to provide food for the family. They slaughtered an animal as a ritual offering to prepare the ritual meal on special occasions and family celebrations: birth, weddings, funerals, kurbáns (Bulg.), name-days, etc. Lamb was slaughtered only on St. George’s Day and Easter. Rams or ewes, i.e. barren, were slaughtered as a ritual offering (kurbán). The kurbán [‘the offering’] could be common of the village or of a neighborhood and was meant to honor a saint patron on his day. Kurbán [offering] was also made at home on a certain day to express gratitude for the escape of danger, survival or recover of anyone in the family. In autumn aging animals (male or female) were slaughtered and flesh was processed into durable meat products to meet the needs of the family in winter. Bulgarians used to make for winter supplies biltong (pastarmá) – salted and dried meat, lean or with bones, and sazdarmá (called kavarmá, kaurmá in southern regions) - fried and stewed in its own fat lean meat. The storage of these durable ovine meat products depends on the way of their preparation. Biltong is wrapped in cloth and then hung in a cool, dry and ventilated place. It can be further cooked with beans, roots and hotchpotches. Goat pastarmá was famous. Sazdarmá was “packed” in a sheep stomach/ rumen – tarbúh, tarbúf or in a skin – meshína. Then the opening was stitched up and the product was pressed under a weight and kept in a cold place. It was cut and consumed in winter months up to spring. It was served cold or warm and fried - with hominy, added in porridge or fried with eggs. People in the mountains kept the habit to prepare pastarmá and sazdarmá for winter supply of the family. Both products are also commercially available in areas where they were traditionally consumed. Roasting mutton on a spit – chevermé, ovén na ruzhén, is an old Bulgarian culinary practice. A delicacy was prepared from the intestine for those who slaughtered the animal and roasted it. It was called kukurésh – all the entrails: intestines, stomach cut in stripes, chopped heart, spleen and kidneys, wrapped in intestine, twined on a spit and roasted. The most prestigious part of the roast mutton is the tail – koyrúk. It was offered to the most respectable man, the dearest guest at the table. The neck – shíinik, was intended for the master of the roast. In the Rhodopes the locals claim their cheverme is more delicious than in the plains, because the animals are not too fat and grazed aromatic grass. They also consider best the cheverme

7 from a black beast, because black wool was thought to absorb better sun rays and in that way - to improve the taste of meat. Roasting a cheverme is long and slow process. It can take 3 to 4 hours, depending on the size and age of the animal. To achieve perfection, one should know many precious details about the preparation, salting, placing the meat on the spit, tying the legs, stitching the belly, etc. The power of fire and speed of rotation is also important. Smearing with fat prevents the meat going burnt, lends it a wonderful flavour and makes a crispy golden crust on top. This crust becomes rather hard in the course of cooling and that is the reason the roast must be torn into pieces while it is still hot. They check-up if the roast is ready by sticking the hips or the spine. But the best master can tell if the roast is ready just taking a look at it. At the end of roasting very tasty sauce oozes down from the meat, so the locals put underneath slices of bread to take it. If the roast is eaten warm, it can sate very quickly the appetite. It can be also eaten cold in the way shepherds prefer it. A favorite combination is roast with hominy. Today, at fairs, holidays and festivals, family and friendly celebrations in the mountains, roast lamb (chevermé) is always offered as the favorite delicacy. On the occasion of special events the roast is made in the previous night. Lamb was roasted 3 or 6 together on a special construction. From time to time they changed their position in order to roast the meat equally. In this manner since the late 19-th c. in the market centers in the Rhodopes roast lamb was offered for sale. There is an old method of roasting lamb or mutton preserved among shepherds and practiced away in secret places – haidúshko pécheno [‘hayduk’ meaning ‘bandit’ or ‘stolen’], pécheno v tráp, i.e. roast lamb in a pit. Lamb is roasted whole, and the ram is divided into four pieces lengthwise and crossways, the entrails and the head are placed in the stomach/ rumen and finally everything is put in the skin. They heat up with fire a specially dug pit. The skin with the meat is laid upon the embers and buried with earth. Sometimes they set another fire over it. The process of roasting took very long time indeed. Usually it started early in the morning and finished in the evening, but the roast got unique flavour and tasted as stew. Today this is performed as a tourist attraction in some mountain areas of the country, as well as for friends’ tables or for eager fans of pomp. Mutton steaks also enjoy the reputation of a great delicacy – grilled on charcoal they are the favorite holiday dish in the Western Rhodopes – Chepino and Batak region, where it is also served in restaurants and at fairs.

8 Mutton roasted on embers or under a vrâshnik [‘metal lid’] is considered a delicacy among shepherds in Southern Bulgaria.

Mutton with grits is an old ritual dish, called keshkék, cooked on special occasions – weddings, birth celebrations, all-village feasts, etc. Today it is still prepared in rural areas in the highlands, where domestic sheep breeding is still living. Keshkek is prepared in spring, according a local recipe, and is ritually consumed for health and against drought and hail. The meat (usually a whole animal) cut into large pieces, is boiled and boned. Grits is boiled separately, added to the boned meat and this is permanently and vigorously stirred with big wooden spoons for an hour, until an almost homogenous consistency with a very specific taste is obtained. The dish is cooked by men highly experienced in culinary, who have well mastered the traditional cuisine technologies. In the twentieth century, a variety of recipes with lamb and mutton were included in urban cuisine and that of wealthy farmers. Meat was bought in cuts or in large pieces – cheyrétsi [quarters] on the market or at the butcher’s. Everywhere in Bulgaria the classic preparation of mutton is gyuvéch [‘hotchpotch’]. It was prepared as follows: the half-boiled meat in large cuts was baked in the oven with a mix of coarsely cut vegetables (onion, butter-beans, peas, aubergin, okra, peppers, tomatoes and potatoes) until it was stewed in its own fat. The dish got its name from the deep large earthen vessel in which it was traditionally cooked. Lamb is released on the market in spring and hence there is a lot of recipes of its cooking with fresh greenery – onions, spinach, dock, parsley, mint, etc. In the home cuisine of urban centers in the first half of the twentieth century widely consumed was the lamb soup (ágneshka kurbán chorbá), lamb liver soup of intestine (ágneshka drob chorbá) or baked dishes of lamb intestines, called drob-sarmá (cooked and chopped lamb intestine with rice, mint and onions, covered with the stomach caul, rich in fat), baked lamb intestines (ágneshki chrevtsá na fúrna), roast or cooked lamb head (ágneshka glavíchka), shardéni [stuffed abomasums], etc. Cookbooks were full of such recipes in the 30ies and the 40ies of the 20-th century, still more in financial terms they were suitable for average households. A more serious investment required lamb stuffed with rice, herbs, spices, mushrooms and intestine, roast in the oven. This is prepared up to the present day with a great success. In areas where roast lamb - chevermé was not so typical, stuffed roast lamb according to this recipe was the

9 customary festive food, particularly on St. George’s Day and Easter. Similarly dishes of kid meat were prepared. Many Bulgarians consider kid meat of a very delicate taste and it is preferred as holiday food in many households in the areas of Stara planina and high valleys. Mutton is for seasonal consumption – in autumn when the animals have grown-up and in winter – in preserved state. In modern urban cuisine it is cooked with vegetables and in a variety of hotchpotches. A specific local variant is presented by mutton stews with plums or quinces, which lend a slightly sweet taste to the dish ( region). Among the dishes of mutton, a special place occupies the kurban soup (meat is boiled just in salted water without any other additions). This is a ritual meal, prepared from the meat of a previously promised and consecrated animal which is sacrificed on the occasion of certain religious or family holiday, i.e. the lamb is a ritual offering. This tradition is still preserved in many places. An established ritual system accompanies the preparation of the kurban. It includes practices related to the slaughter of the animal, divination by its entrails, donation of the skin to the church, cooking, distribution, consumption of the soup, burying the bones in the crops, etc. A typical feature of common village kurban-offerings and celebrations in the Rhodopes is that the liver is boiled separately, cut into small pieces and the chef distributes them to everybody present. This is done on the most respected shepherds’ summer holidays – St. George’s Day, St. Nedelya and Ilinden (St. Elijah’s Day).

3. Events and customs The most typical blood sacrifice in the culture of Bulgarians is the ritual mutton meal - kurban. It is prepared all over the country throughout the year for various personal, family and religious holidays and all-village celebrations - fairs, votive offerings to prevent diseases, mishaps, dangers and to overcome bad omens. In pre-modern times in the life of shepherds and their families there were two most important dates in the calendar: St. George’s Day (Gergyovden) – the beginning of summer and milking season, and St. Demetrius’ Day (Dimitrovden) – the beginning of winter, preparation and tending the flocks in the cold months. This dual calendar and the evolving dual annual labour organization of shepherds, had many reflections on their cuisine, especially on ritual meals. Gergyovden (St. George’s Day, May 6) as the most important holiday in relation to sheep and shepherds, suggested family ritual tables full of sheep products and meals – both milk and meat. On Gergyovden for the first time in the year farmers and shepherds milked

10 the ewes and the first milk should be necessarily curdled into yoghurt to be tasted for the first time in the year. In some areas, this milk was curdled into cheese with the same ritual context – to be given away and eaten by all the society for well-being, with blessings and wishes for the health of flocks and a good milking season. On this day, the lamb meal (kurban) was the special sacrificial offering. According to the traditions and preferences, both basic recipes were used in cooking the lamb – roasted on a spit or stuffed with grits and greenery and roasted in the oven. Common village celebrations on Gergyovden involved commensality always outdoors, in the open air - “in the green” – at a special votive site, established by the tradition or in the churchyard. Yoghurt and fresh cheese made from the first milking were inevitably present on the table. Fresh cheese on this day was eaten with fresh green onion and garlic, which were also first picked from the garden and considered “milky”, i.e. ‘young’ and ‘white’. In advance, all the holiday meals and products were blessed in the church. In northeastern Bulgaria on that day pieces of fresh cheese were thrown at young married women as a blessing and wish for fertility and having much milk for their babies. In the past, consecrated food from the solemn table was distributed and exchanged in the neighborhood and among relatives. The vessels from these ritual meals should not be returned empty – to prevent ewes from losing their milk, so people used to put inside some salt. According to the old shepherds beliefs and superstitions, witches and magicians could “steal” the milk of their flocks on Gergyovden. It was called mámene na mlyákoto [‘luring’/ ‘deluding’/ ‘deceiving’ the milk]. To protect their flocks, the farmers applied a number of irrational practices: smearing the barn door with tar, taboo on lending milk and salt on this day, etc. On Gergyovden in some places of 600 – 700 m altitude, the flocks were ritually taken down to graze in “the plains”, to the lowlands. The shepherd was given special food – leavened bread and fresh yoghurt or fresh cheese. If the flock was collective (from the sheep of several owners), each farmer donated food to the shepherd on that day. Thus shepherds’ bags were full for many days ahead. In the early 60ies of the twentieth century, May 6 (St. George’s Day) was officially declared the Day of the Shepherd. In rural areas of the country where large flocks of sheep were raised, this day was celebrated very solemnly and large feast tables were organized with lamb stew, roast lamb and fresh cheese. Predoy [First milking] was a special celebration, spread generally in the Rhodopes and Pirin region, which marked the start of milking season. It was usually held on the Day of

11 Sts. Constantine and Helena (May 21). Many rituals with milk were performed – milking a ewe through a silver finger-ring, sprinkling milk from breastfeeding women, running of breastfeeding women around the ritual table, etc. The very ritual table on this day is full of ritual breads, yoghurt, fresh cheese or shepherds delicacies like ushmár. The summer holidays Petrovden (St. Peter’s Day, June 29), St. Nedelya (July 7) and Ilinden (St. Elijah, August 2), which occur during the milking period, were in the past the most respected by the Rhodopean shepherds. At that time of the year, the shepherds were in their native villages (for in winter they went down to the plains) and stayed at home to celebrate with their families. The celebrations usually took place outdoors, in the open air, at votive sites – the so-called obrótsi (obrók) of the village. A lot of animals were sacrificed on these celebrations – cooked or roasted on spits. People gathered around the feast tables according to their family or trade. There was plenty of fresh cheese and yoghurt. Shepherds’ wives served food to everyone. Whoever took it must bless both farmers and flocks. In general, in mountainous regions, where sheep husbandry was developed, the consumption and distribution of milk and milk products as ritual food was typical for many holidays – Christmas, Easter cycle, summer holidays (Petrovden, St. Nedelya, Ilinden), as well as Petkovden (St. Petka’s Day), when rams were let to cover ewes. Ram sacrifice in the wedding rituals has an important place in Bulgarian traditions. In mountainous areas, where many sheep were grown, a ram (godésh) was dedicated and sent to the bride’s house. This ram was especially cooked for the wedding ritual table at the bride’s house, because the bride’s kin was not present at the celebration in the groom’s house (the newly weds’ home). Since 1900, the “godesh” rituals were abandoned and instead of a whole ram, a shoulder/quarter (pléshka) of meat – raw or cooked, was sent to the bride’s parents. This custom is considered emblematic of the Central Rhodopes region and it has been performed many times by amateur folk ensembles of local cultural centers. Amateurs from the village of (Luki municipality, region), staged the representation “Taking the wedding ram to the maiden’s house” and gained a gold medal at the National folklore festival in , 1981. Eighteen years later, with the spectacle “Rhodopean Wedding”, the same tradition was represented by Bulgarian participants from Momchilovtzi, Smolyan region and won the “Golden Axe” award at the International folklore festival in Zakopane, Poland.

12 A similar custom is found in Northwestern Bulgaria. In that region the groom’s father sends a black sheep or ram to the in-laws, cooked or as raw meat. While the wedding flag – symbol of marriage - is being prepared, a few in-laws, closest relatives, rotate in the threshing-floor a cornel spit with the meat, stuck on it with the horns and head. They hurry to roast the ram before the flag is finished. When the meat is ready, the same in-laws carry it on the spit to the table. Women guests must decorate it – they stuck on each horn an apple or a quince covered with golden leaf and laid on the head a wreath of flowers. When the bride comes out of her parent’s house and leaves for her new home, they take back to the bridegroom’s house only the decorated head of the wedding ram.

4 „Shepherds’ cuisine” in restaurants, rural and eco-farms, agrotourism Sheep products, reasonably considered a delicacy, are widely used to enrich the menu of public catering and restaurants, which have the ambition to offer their customers local organic food prepared according to old recipes. Lamb roasted on spit (cheverme) is comprehended with a special aura. In the hunting lodge of the Bulgarian communist leader and head of state Todor Zhivkov near Momchilovtzi, Smolyan region, a special place was made for rotation of lambs and local people, while complaining of the weak tourist season last summer, said they had regularly made several cheverme-s a week ordered by wealthy fans from and Plovdiv, who sent their chauffeurs to take the lamb and celebrated at home with ecologically clean organic food. Local people rely on the unspoiled pure nature and the unique taste of meat, cheese and milk and hope their dreams might come true to develop eco- and agro-tourism in the mode of small business in rural areas, alternative to the famous ski resort Pamporovo. A few years ago, one of the most attractive restaurants in Pamporovo was “Chevermeto”, built up in 1970 after the idea of Panayot Cholakov from the neighboring village Progled. His name became fabulous for a “Rhodopean” restauranteur. The trademark of the restaurant is a demonstration of roasting lamb on a spit according to the old technology. The attraction includes a chef and waiters dressed in traditional costumes, a programme of Rhodopean folk songs and dances and bagpipe performance while dinner – roasted lamb torn in large pieces - is served. This is the specialty of the house, visited by many Bulgarian and foreign tourists. Today it should be ordered in advance, because the competition is high and there is no restaurant in the resort or in the area that may not offer authentic cheverme. Ten years ago, a restaurant called “Chevermeto” opened even in Sofia. Hotels, accommodations and

13 restaurants under the same label are already dispersed throughout the country – in Plovdiv, , Melnik, , Ruse, , Kotel, , and the seaside resorts. Everywhere in the “traditional folk” restaurants in spring sheep cheese is served with fresh garlic, meals of lamb liver, lamb soups and mutton dishes after the old recipes. The mountain restaurants necessarily offer local sheep yoghurt garnished with jams of wild berries.

5. Festivals In Bulgaria, in many places, traditionally associated with sheep-farming, local festivals are held, expressing reverence for pastoralism, flocks, milk. It is impossible to list all of them. In the last decade, several cultural events were held in order to protect the prestige of sheep milk in national scale, to preserve old traditions, to attract public interest in Bulgaria and abroad. We should mention the festival “In the Path of Goat Milk” – Gorna Bela Rechka village (Varshets municipality, Montana); “Yoghurt fair and Festival of Folk Traditions and Crafts” – , “Uzana Polyana Fest” in Uzana site over Gabrovo, launched in 2011. Recently, in the last three years, in spring, the World Wildlife Fund organized outdoors tasting organic foods from “farm- lands of a high natural value”, among which Bulgarian sheep and goat yoghurt and dairy products were presented. The event took place in Sofia, in front of the National Theatre House. Such events demonstrate once again that as an important element of traditional pastoral culture, modern cuisine based on sheep products spontaneously refers to the period of climax of sheep-farming, which is probably not gone forever, if the interest for organic products and cuisine technologies is growing every year.

6. Closing words The consumption of mutton in Bulgarian lands is as old as the civilisation itself. The traditional cuisine based on sheep products gradually decreases in modern times. Caused by the lifestyle changes in country and town, as well as of sheep-farming management in the second half of 20th century and furthermore at its very end, now – at the beginning of the 21 c., we are witnessing that the relatively high prices of organic products and the fall of purchasing capacities of the population postpones the mass return of sheep cheese and milk

14 at the table of Bulgarians. Sheep youghurt, cheese and lamb turned into delicacy to enjoy in traditional restaurants, on holidays and social events.

Bibliography Дечов, В., Среднородопско овчарство. СбНУ, т.ХІХ, кн.І, С. 1903 Шишков, Ст., С какво се хранят помаците. - Родопски напредък,1908, кн.1 Маринов, Д., Избрани произведения. Т. ІІ, С., 1984 Вакарелски, Хр., Етнография на България, С., 2007 Вакарелски, Хр., Бит и език на тракийските и малоазийските българи. Част І. Бит., С., 1935 Календар по готварство. Учебник по домакинство в практическото девич. Занаятчийско училище „Мария Луиза” – София. 1937 (фототипно издание, „Абагар” – Ямбол) Кръстева, Г., Народна храна и хранене. – Добруджа, С., 1974 Радева, Л., Храна и хранене. – Пловдивски край, С., 1986 Радева, Л., Храна и хранене. – Пирински край, С., 1980 Радева, Л., Балкано-кавказки паралели в храната и храненето. – Въпроси на етнографията и фолклористиката, С., 1980 Радева, Л., Храна и хранене. – Ловешки край, С., 1999 Маркова, М., Свинско или овче месо? - Ethnologia Academica, 2003/3 Маркова, М., Традиционна технология на българското кисело мляко. – Минало, 2006/2 Маркова, М., Традиционната храна и типологията земеделци/скотовъдци. – Българска етнология, 2006/2 Алексиев, Б., Храната при каракачаните в България: производство на хранителни продукти и хранене. – Български фолклор, 2010/1 Петров, Л. и колектив. Българска национална кухня, С., 1983 Чолчева, П., Н. Сърбинова. 555 рецепти за готвене. С., 1935 (преизд. 1940, 1946)

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1. Sheep yoghourt from the Rhodopes, served with 2. Hominy with sheep cheese and butter. blueberry jam. Photo: Iliya Godev, 2009. Photo: Iliya Godev, 2009

3. Sheep dairy products – white cheese, yellow cheese, 4. Krutmách with roasted red peppers, recipe of brânza cheese, are often eaten with boiled potatoes. Glozhene, municipality - a wonderful Photo: Tanya Mareva, CANEPAL, 2011 appetizer for plum brendy (rakia) at home and in restaurants with traditional cuisine. Photo: Marina Trayanova, CANEPAL, 2011

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5. Quality sheep milk retains its shape at serving. It can be consumed mixed with chopped cucumbers as salad "Snow White" or as dessert with added jam, honey and walnuts. Photo: Tanya Mareva, CANEPAL, 2011

6. Lamb roasted on a spit (chevermé) at a celebration of the Shepherd’s Day near Smolyan, photo Dancho Danchev, 1970. 7. Chevermé in the restaurant "Chevermeto" in Pamporovo, Smolyan region, photo Ilijah Godev, 2009.

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8. Feast table at a chapel near Smolyan, late 1960s – Smolyan Museum Archive

9,10. Boiled mutton (kurbán) at the chapel "St. Spirit" in Raikovo, Smolyan where 220 kg mutton were cooked as a "dry offering." Photos: Tanya Mareva, 2007

11. At a dairy in the Rhodopes, 1920s treating to sindirmyό. – Archive Museum in Smolyan

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12 . Celebration of the shepherd in the Shiroka Laka, Smolyan district. Photo: Dancho Danchev, 1970 Archive Museum in Smolyan 13. Celebration of the shepherd’s Day, Momchilovtsi, Smolyan district. Photo: Michael Kabasanov, 1966

14,15. Boiled mutton (kurbán) on St. Panteleimon’s Day in Pavelsko village, Smolyan region. Checking if the meat is already cooked. The liver is ready. Once having cut it, the head master will give a piece to everybody. Photos: Tanya Mareva, 2007

19 16. 17. Lamb roasted on a spit (chevermé) at the hunting lodge of the Bulgarian communist leader and head of state Todor Zhivkov near Momchilovtzi, Smolyan region Photos: Tanya Mareva, CANEPAL, 2011

18-21. Preparation of "lamb intestines with butter in the oven" by the ex-Zhivkov’ personal cook. Photos: Tanya Mareva, CANEPAL, 2011

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22, 23. Fresh sheep cheese serving on the Saint Patron’s Day of the chapel “St. Nedelya” near the village of Momchilovtsi, Smolyan district. Photos: Tanya Mareva, CANEPAL, 2011

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