As you know, in cooperation with the State Committee for Tourism Development of Uzbekistan, the Association of Gastronomic Tourism of Uzbekistan and the TV channel "Worldwide" launched a project "Cook with Uzbekistan" to demonstrate the gastronomic potential of our country.

As part of the project, weekly national dishes of Uzbek cuisine were prepared online by well-known chefs of our country in the form of master classes and watched from all over the world.

The master classes left a very warm impression on the participants and gave more results than expected. Inspired by these master classes, Uzbek plov was made in Belgium.

In 2019, travel journalists and photographers John Reinhard and Marleen Reinhard discovered Uzbekistan, the unknown but beautiful country. They have already visited it several times with the full support of the Embassy of Uzbekistan and the State Committee of Tourism. At the request of the State Committee of Tourism, they were allowed to organize a press trip to Uzbekistan in September 2019. In addition to the usual places and monuments, they also visited the Gastronomic Tourism Association of Uzbekistan, and met with the President Gulnoza Odilova.

A friendship developed and continued in recent months and when the Association of Gastronomic Tourism of Uzbekistan took the initiative to provide cooking lessons via the Internet, they were one of the first to want to follow all broadcasts as a student. John and Marleen also got a group of Belgian photographers enthusiastic about taking a trip to Uzbekistan with them in April 2021 and in preparation Marleen had decided to invite them all and to make Plov with the knowledge obtained on the internet.

The most delicious Plov they have ever eaten in Belgium was the Plov the chef of the embassy made a while ago at an embassy meeting. Marleen therefore approached the embassy with the request that the chef send her his recipe. The embassy replied by return mail that she did not think that Marleen would be able to make up for that, but that she would send the chef of the embassy.

And so it happened that, to the great surprise of all guests, on June 12, in the garden of John and Marleen, the chef suddenly appeared with all cooking appliances and all ingredients bought in Brussels.

While the photographers took plenty of photos of the cooking process and were able to delve into the recipe, the tipped press also appeared, because journalists from Belgian newspapers thought this was so newsworthy that they wanted to see for themselves what makes Uzbek cuisine so special.

For example, a private event grew into a real promotional event for Uzbekistan.

The group will travel to Uzbekistan next April. John and Marleen Reinhard hope to return in September this year, they can hardly wait. 

#StayHome

#CookWithUzbekistan

#PlanYourTastyDestination