圖像來源, GETTY IMAGES
Soup should never be your go-to weapon in a food fight. As projectiles go, a bowl of chunky liquid proves messy and lacks precision. Fist-size bread rolls are more effective – or, say, chocolate pudding catapulted from a spoon. In Russia though, the latest food fight is all about soup, and it’s being hurled from the walls of the Kremlin via Twitter.
發動食物之戰，你絕對不會用湯作武器。一碗湯發射出去，濃厚的湯汁一定會四散開來，未必能擊中敵人。戰鬥力反不如拳頭大小的麵包卷，或者是，從湯匙中甩出去的巧克力布丁。然而在俄國與烏克蘭之間，正激烈上演的食物大戰正是和湯有關，而這場食物之戰是由克裡姆林宮牆上扔出去的一則推特文揭開戰幕。
The soup war boiled over into social media this year, when @Russia (the official Twitter account for the Russian Federation’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs) tweeted: 「A timeless classic, #Borsch is one of Russia’s most famous & beloved #dishes & a symbol of traditional cuisine」.
今年俄國外交部的官方推特帳號@Russia發了一則推文稱：「永恆的經典名菜羅宋湯是俄國最著名、最受歡迎的菜餚之一，是傳統美食的象徵。」於是這場湯之大戰在社交媒體上打得沸沸揚揚。
To the average Twitter skimmer, Russians broadcasting about borsch may seem obvious and innocuous, but for Ukrainians, who consider borsch to be their national dish, the Russian tweet is wartime propaganda, especially considering the current occupation of Crimea and the latest territorial conflict in eastern Ukraine that’s been raging since 2014. The Ukrainian Twittersphere responded with anger and humour, with comments like 「As if stealing Crimea wasn’t enough, you had to go and steal borsch from Ukraine as well」.
對於一般的推特瀏覽者，俄國官方對羅宋湯大吹特吹似乎理所當然，於人無害。但對於視羅宋湯為本國悠久歷史名菜的烏克蘭人卻非常憤怒，認為俄國這則推文無異於是針對烏克蘭的戰爭宣傳，特別是俄國正佔領著烏克蘭的領土克裡米亞，並且自2014年兩國爭奪東烏克蘭領土的武裝衝突亦持續至今。烏克蘭人的推特圈以憤怒和幽默回應俄國官方的挑釁，評論說：「好像偷了克裡米亞還不夠，你們還想偷走我們烏克蘭的羅宋湯。」
Borsch (борщ in Cyrillic) is a hearty soup, usually coloured red from beetroot (though green and white varieties of the soup exist), and for centuries, it has been a daily staple in the Ukrainian kitchen. For many, Russia’s claim on such a quintessentially Ukrainian dish embodies a much larger trend of Russia’s historical oppression of Ukrainian language, politics, and, above all, independence.
羅宋湯（西裡爾字母為борщ，英文borsch）是一種暖心的菜湯，通常用甜菜根作主料，顏色鮮紅（不過也有綠色和白色的羅宋湯），幾百年來一直是烏克蘭人廚房的主食。對許多人來說，俄國將烏克蘭這道典型的傳統主食據為己有，完全體現出俄羅斯在歷史上對烏克蘭語言、政治的壓迫，尤其是對烏克蘭獨立自主的打壓。
According to Alex Kokcharov, a London-based political and economic risk analyst of Belarusian descent, the Russian Foreign Ministry’s chest-beating around 「Russian」 borsch is, 「another attempt at cultural appropriation by Moscow」. He explained that while 「a number of cultures claim borsch to be theirs – Ukraine, Belarus, Poland and Russia – Ukraine has the strongest claim for the dish.」
居住在倫敦，專門研究俄國、烏克蘭和白俄羅斯間歷史地緣政治衝突和經濟風險的分析師亞歷克斯·科卡洛夫（Alex Kokcharov）表示，俄國外交部將烏克蘭傳統主菜稱為「俄羅斯」羅宋湯，並大肆吹捧，這完全是「莫斯科對他民族文化的又一次盜用」。他解釋說，雖然「有多個民族，包括烏克蘭、白俄羅斯、波蘭和俄羅斯都聲稱羅宋湯是他們的國菜，但只有烏克蘭宣稱的理據最強而有力。」
「Borsch is most definitely from Ukraine,」 said Olesia Lew, a New York-based chef and head consultant for Veselka, the iconic Ukrainian diner in New York City’s East Village, who is proud of her Ukrainian heritage. 「I say it’s Ukrainian, not just from a nationalistic point of view, but because the soup hails from the land of Ukraine, and those ingredients have been found in the country’s archaeological record into the distant past.」
紐約廚師、紐約東村著名烏克蘭菜餐廳維塞卡(Veselka)的首席顧問奧萊西婭‧盧（Olesia Lew）對烏克蘭文化傳統引以為傲。她說，「羅宋湯絕對起源於烏克蘭。我說羅宋湯是烏克蘭菜，不是出自於我個人的民族主義立場，而是因為這種湯確實起源於烏克蘭，而且在烏克蘭歷史的考古記錄中已經發現了羅宋湯這些食材。」
So, what about the millions of ethnic Russians who insist the red soup they love is most decidedly Russian?
那麼，那些堅稱自己最愛的這種紅湯絕對是俄羅斯菜的千百萬俄羅斯人又怎麼看?
「Yes, Russian people claim it’s their food,」 said Lew, 「But it’s a food they developed through occupation.」
奧萊西婭‧盧說，「是的，俄羅斯人聲稱這是他們的食物，但這是他們佔領烏克蘭後發展起來的菜餚。」
According to Lew, borsch did not simply leak across the collective consciousness of Russian cuisine, but most likely entered the Soviet mainstream in the Stalinist era as a result of a concerted effort by the Kremlin. In his attempt to collectivise the largest country on Earth, Stalin tasked his Commissar of Food, Anastas Mikoyan, with establishing a Soviet national cuisine that catered to the more than 100 different 「nationalities」 (the Soviet term for the diverse ethnic populations) found in the USSR.
她認為，羅宋湯不僅滲透了俄羅斯烹飪的集體意識，而且很可能是在史達林時代，透過克裡姆林宮的統一指揮而進入蘇聯主流社會。史達林為了在這個地球上最大的國家蘇聯實現集體化，下令他統管糧食工作的政治局委員米高揚（Anastas Mikoyan）負責打造一種全蘇聯境內100多個不同的「民族」都集體喜愛的蘇聯國菜。
圖像來源, GETTY IMAGES
羅宋湯是史達林時代才進入蘇聯主流社會，當時主管食品的政治局委員米高揚（右）將這道烏克蘭人發明的菜湯打造為蘇聯的國菜。
Mikoyan’s official study of cultural melting pots and mass food production led him to the United States, where he fell in love with hamburgers, hot dogs and ice cream. On his return, Mikoyan launched factory-produced ice cream across the Soviet Union and popularised efficient kitchen meals like kotleti (minced meat patties) in everyday cooking. In 1939, he published the propaganda-heavy Book of Tasty and Healthy Food, a standardised cookbook that was often gifted to newlywed couples in the Soviet Union from the Communist Party – a book that is still in print to this day.
米高揚對蘇聯各民族文化融合和大規模食品生產做了官方研究後訪問了美國，在美國他愛上了漢堡包、熱狗和冰淇淋等美國美食。返回蘇聯後，米高揚在蘇聯各地建立工廠生產冰淇淋，並在蘇聯的家常烹飪中推廣像俄式小肉餅這樣的有效廚房餐。1939年，他出版了一本廣為宣傳的《美味健康食品》的烹飪書，這是一本標準化的食譜，在蘇聯時代共產黨組織常贈送給新婚夫婦為新婚禮物，直到今天這本書仍在印刷出版。
「Mikoyan needed to mass-produce a cultural identity for these Soviet foods,」 said Lew. 「It’s fascinating to read what he picked from each place – be it Ukraine or Georgia – while remaining vague (eg 「add meat」), since at the time most ingredients were not widely available across the Soviet Union. The cookbook made all these dishes part of Soviet culture and thereby 『Russian』, since Russia was the most important culture for the Soviets.」
奧萊西婭‧盧說，「米高揚需要大量生產這些蘇聯食品，建立集體的文化認同。讀他出版的這本烹飪書，看他提到每個地方，無論是烏克蘭還是喬治亞的食材時，總是含糊其辭，比如說『加肉』之類，覺得特別含意深長，因為在那個時候，大多數食材在蘇聯還沒有廣泛的供應。這本烹飪書使所有這些來自不同民族的菜都成為蘇聯文化的一部分，隨之也變成了俄羅斯菜，因為今天的俄國是蘇聯文化最重要的繼承者。」
So what exactly does this Soviet food bible say about borsch? Chapter 6 (「Soups」) starts with cabbage-based Shchi, listing six different recipes, after which comes 「Borsch」, then 「Summer Borsch」 (featuring squash, celery and beetroot greens), followed lastly by a differentiated 「Ukrainian Borsch」. (Imagine an American cookbook with multiple recipes for tacos, finishing with 「Mexican tacos」, and that’s what it sounds like.)
那麼，這本米高揚出版的蘇聯美食聖經到底是怎麼述說羅宋湯的呢? 該書第六章以湯"主題，首先提到俄式捲心菜湯（shchi），有六種烹調法。然後是羅宋湯，接著是「夏季羅宋湯」（主要食材為南瓜、芹菜和甜菜葉），最後才是「烏克蘭羅宋湯」。你可想像一下有這樣一本所謂美國菜食譜，裡面有多種塔可（taco，即著名的墨西哥玉米卷餅），最後一道才叫做「墨西哥玉米卷餅」（Mexican Taco）。米高揚食譜聽起來即是如此。
According to Mikoyan’s recipe, standard borsch contains meat, beetroot, cabbage, root vegetables, onions, tomato paste, vinegar and sugar, while 「Ukrainian」 borsch contains meat, cabbage, potatoes, beetroot, tomato paste, carrot, parsnip, onion, bacon, butter, vinegar and garlic, garnished with sour cream and chopped parsley. The Ukrainian recipe, framed as a separate iteration of the standardised version, is by far the most well-known today.
根據米高揚這本食譜，正宗的羅宋湯應該有肉、甜菜根、捲心菜、塊根類蔬菜、洋蔥、番茄醬、醋和糖，而「烏克蘭」羅宋湯的食材則包括肉、捲心菜、土豆、甜菜根、番茄醬、胡蘿蔔、歐洲防風草、洋蔥、培根、黃油、醋和大蒜，並以酸奶油和切碎的歐芹做裝飾。烏克蘭羅宋湯現被視為正宗羅宋湯的另一個版本，也是當今目前最出名的一種羅宋湯。
While the broader world may consider borsch as a quintessentially 「Russian」 food, very few non-Russians are acquainted with the much less-exciting Russian variant shchi. As a basic cabbage soup, shchi is effectively borsch without the beetroot.
雖然更廣泛的世界可能認為羅宋湯是典型的「俄羅斯」菜，非俄羅斯人中幾乎鮮少人聽說過俄國有一道名氣不大的羅宋湯變體，即俄式捲心菜湯（shchi）。其實這種用料簡單的俄式菜湯就是沒有加甜菜根的羅宋湯。
圖像來源, GETTY IMAGES
米高揚的《美味健康食物》囊括了蘇聯時代一百多民族的各種食譜。
An 1823 Russian dictionary of Ukrainian words defined borsch as 「the same thing as shchi」, while an 1842 book of Russian etymology differentiates between Russian shchi (referring to sour cabbage) and Ukrainian borsch, a word that in fact references the soup’s traditional ingredient of hogweed, or borschevik. Hogweed (Heracleum sphondylium) grows throughout Eurasia, but the plant flourishes in the marshy areas around the Danube and Dnipro (Dnepr in Russian) river deltas. Long before the modern-day countries of Russia or Ukraine existed, the people of the Black Sea region boiled soup from the pickled stems, leaves and flowers of the hogweed plant. Recipe books show that the Ukrainians added beetroot.
1823年俄國出版的一本烏克蘭語詞典將羅宋湯定義為「與捲心菜湯一樣的食物」，而1842年出版的一本俄語詞源學書籍則將俄式捲心菜湯（指酸白菜湯）和烏克蘭羅宋湯區分開來。該書說，烏克蘭羅宋湯的borsch這個詞是指湯中傳統的配料豬豚草的斯拉夫語。豬豚草（拉丁語Heracleum sphondylium）生長在整個歐亞大陸，但在多瑙河和第聶伯河三角洲附近的沼澤地區生長最旺盛。早在現代的俄羅斯或烏克蘭國家出現之前，黑海地區的人們就用醃製過的豬豚草莖、葉和花熬湯。根據各食譜書記載，是烏克蘭人在豬豚草酸湯中加入了甜菜根。
Similar-yet-separate culture and geography make the untangling of Russian and Ukrainian history an almost impossible task. Pro-Russian ideologues use the region’s complex past to promote a rewritten history that draws a straight line from the current Russian regime back to the original Slavic civilisation. To that end, in its tweet, the Russian Foreign Ministry doubled down on its historical bias by reframing of the origins of borsch from 「Russian」 hogweed that dates back to the 「Ancient Rus」 of the 10th Century.
相似但又分離的文化和地理，使得釐清俄羅斯和烏克蘭的歷史成為一項幾乎不可能完成的任務。親俄的意識形態利用俄羅斯和烏克蘭糾纏不清的複雜過去，企圖改寫歷史，將當前俄國政權與最初的斯拉夫文明劃上直接傳承的直線。為此，俄國外交部在推特上加倍強調其扭曲的歷史言說，執意將羅宋湯的起源重新定義於來自俄羅斯的豬豚草，稱其歷史可追溯到10世紀的「古羅斯」時代。古羅斯是東斯拉夫人建立的第一個國家，現代三個東斯拉夫民族國家（烏克蘭、俄國和白俄羅斯）都稱古羅斯是他們國家的起源。
The problem with this statement is that Ancient Rus was centred in Kyiv (Kiev in Russian), now the capital of Ukraine. Over the past millennium, Ukraine’s largest city has been defined by repeated invasion, occupations and violent uprisings – often against the stronghold of Russian influence over Ukrainian politics. Rebranding Ukraine’s national food staple as Russian is even more ironic and offensive in light of the Holodomor, Stalin’s manmade famine of 1932-33, when forced collectivisation, aggressive grain procurement and confiscation of food stores led to the starvation of millions of Ukrainians. The exact number of dead, and whether the famine should be considered a genocide, remains a sticking point that is still debated and denied by Russians.
但俄國這種說法有難以自圓其說之處。因為古羅斯的中心是基伊（烏克蘭語Kyiv），俄語即基輔（Kiev)，而現在基輔是烏克蘭的首都。在過去的一千年裡，這座烏克蘭最大的城市不斷地遭到入侵、佔領和暴力起義，基輔的起義通常是反抗俄羅斯強權對烏克蘭政治的影響。史達林1932年至1933年強行在烏克蘭推行農業集體化，強行向烏克蘭農民徵糧，甚至沒收農民的儲糧，結果數百萬烏克蘭人死於這場人為的大饑荒，鑑於這一慘痛歷史，現在將烏克蘭的傳統主菜重新包裝成俄式食品極具諷刺含意，而且對烏克蘭人的感情傷害也很大。那場大饑荒究竟有多少烏克蘭人餓死，以及這場大饑荒是否應該視為種族滅絕，至今依然是一個炙烤人心的問題，而俄羅斯人也仍然予以反駁和否認。
The battle over borsch and its meaning continues online, most notably around the soup’s official definition. Ukrainian Wikipedia lists borsch as 「found in Ukrainian, Belarusian, Polish, Lithuanian, Iranian and Jewish national cuisines,」 but fails to mention Russian cuisine. Meanwhile, Russian-language Wikipedia says: 「Borsch is a type of beet-based soup, giving it a characteristic red colour. A traditional dish of the Eastern Slavs, it is a common first course in Ukrainian cuisine.」
有關羅宋湯及其定義的戰爭在網上仍打得熾熱，最引人注目的是圍繞羅宋湯的正式定義之爭。烏克蘭語的維基百科指羅宋湯「在烏克蘭、白俄羅斯、波蘭、立陶宛、伊朗和猶太人等民族的菜餚中都能看到」，但獨獨漏掉俄羅斯菜。與此同時，俄語版維基百科卻說：「羅宋湯是一種甜菜湯，以顏色鮮紅著稱。這是東斯拉夫人的傳統菜餚，是烏克蘭菜中常見的第一道菜。」
Admittedly, the wider, non-Slavic world views borsch as Russian, while Poles know it only as beloved Polish barszcz. This is also problematic since at least half of Ukraine was occupied by Poland for several centuries. Meanwhile, the common English spelling of borscht (with a 「t」) derives from the Yiddish transliteration, since the soup was introduced to the west primarily by Jewish refugees fleeing Eastern Europe. Food travels with people, which is why borsch is now popular worldwide.
不可否認，在更廣泛的非斯拉夫世界中，一般將羅宋湯視為俄羅斯菜，而波蘭人只知道這道菜是很受人喜愛的波蘭菜巴茨茨（barszcz）。會出現波蘭版羅宋湯這個問題，是因為烏克蘭至少一半的領土曾被波蘭人統治過幾百年。同時，羅宋湯的常見英文拼寫borscht，會帶一個「t」字母，是源自意第緒語的音譯，因為這種湯最初是由逃離東歐講意第緒語的猶太難民帶到西方。食物隨移民漂洋過海，這就是為什麼羅宋湯在全世界都很受歡迎的原因。
「The soup is everywhere now,」 said Dima Martseniuk, head chef at Veselka. 「Maybe like 5% of Russians say it’s theirs, but the other 95% know that borsch is Ukrainian. I mean, I’m not going to pick a fight over it.」 More than nationalism, what matters to Martseniuk is how the soup tastes, since he makes and serves hundreds of gallons of borsch every week.
維塞卡餐廳的廚師長迪瑪·馬瑟尼克（Dima Martseniuk）說：「羅宋湯現在到處都有。可能有5%的俄羅斯人說這是他們俄國人的菜，但其他95%的人知道羅宋湯是烏克蘭菜。我的意思是，我不會為此找人吵架。」除了民族主義，對馬提尼烏克來說，最重要的是湯的味道，因為他每周都會製作和供應數百加侖的羅宋湯。
「My grandma’s classic recipe begins with pork stock boiled from rib bones. Then you have to use sweet cabbage – not the heavy kind. Then it’s important that you cook the other ingredients on the side, in a separate frying pan. You have to sauté them – the onion, carrot and shredded beetroot. Then you add sunflower oil, butter, spices, ketchup or tomato paste. And be sure to add something acidic – white vinegar or lemon juice – that helps preserve the deep red colour.」
「我奶奶經典的羅宋湯菜譜是首先用排骨熬煮豬肉高湯。然後你必須加上甜白菜，不要選又重又大的那一類。另外，重要的是你同時要在另一個煎鍋煎炒其他食材，洋蔥、胡蘿蔔和切碎的甜菜根都得炒。然後加入葵花籽油、黃油、香料、番茄醬。一定要加一些酸性的東西，如白醋或檸檬汁，來幫助湯保持深紅色。」
His less-traditional tip? 「Try making borsch in a pizza oven,」 Martseniuk said. The open flame apparently does wonders to the cooking and it tastes really good.
有非傳統的經驗提示嗎? 馬瑟尼克回答說，「試著在披薩烤爐裡做羅宋湯。」明火烹飪顯然會產生神奇效果，味道確實會很鮮美。
Variation is the real beauty of borsch, and across Ukraine, I』ve encountered countless varieties of the soup – with or without meat, beans or certain spices.
千變萬化是羅宋湯的真正之美。我走遍烏克蘭各地，品嘗過無數種不同食譜的羅宋湯，有肉或沒有肉、有豆類或沒有豆類，以及有或沒有某些香料等等。
「There are as many versions of borsch as there are Eastern European grandmas,」 said Tom Birchard, owner of Veselka. 「People have an emotional attachment to the soup, and everybody has their own idea of what it is.」
維塞卡餐廳的老闆湯姆·伯查德（Tom Birchard）說，「有多少東歐老奶奶，就有多少種羅宋湯。人們對羅宋湯寄託有情感，每個人對何謂羅宋湯都有自己的獨家食譜。」
I learned how to make borsch while living in Kharkiv, the second largest city in Ukraine less than 30km from the Russian border. My teacher, Tanya Karabanova, was a bona fide babulya (Ukrainian grandmother) who insisted that the best borsch came from careful cutting and separate cooking of each ingredient so that every subtle vegetable flavour comes out. She was adamant that I never chop the cabbage into squares, resulting in what she called 「stolovaya」, or 「cafeteria-style」, borsch – the kind of soulless, watery-brown sustenance ladled out in schools, military bases or prisons. Instead, she told me to 「rotate the cabbage downwards while shaving finely along the edge, forming long, fine, crescents of translucent cabbage」.
我住在烏克蘭東北城市哈爾科夫（Kharkiv）時學會了如何煮羅宋湯。哈爾科夫是烏克蘭第二大城市，距離俄國邊境不到30公裡。我的烹飪老師塔尼婭·卡拉巴諾娃（Tanya Karabanova）是一位真正的烏克蘭祖母，她堅持認為做最好的羅湯汁必須仔細切割每種原料和單獨烹飪，這樣每一種蔬菜的細微味道都會散發出來。她不準我把捲心菜切成方塊，說切成方塊就會煮成了她所說的「自助餐廳式」羅宋湯，是學校、軍營或監獄裡供應的那種沒有靈魂、味淡如水，顏色褐黃的營養品。她告訴我「把捲心菜向下旋轉著，在邊緣細細地切下去，切成長而細，猶如新月形的半透明捲心菜片」。
「With borsch, everyone is right,」 Lew explained. 「Ukrainians are fiercely independent and defensive about their food and how authentic it is. For me, the key thing is to have the right beets – young, sweet summer beets. I’m a big fan of meatless borsch – and I like beans in my borsch because that’s the way I was raised. Sour cream, absolutely, and I like a bit of kvas (a fermented beverage) in the back note – the sour offsets the sweetness and richness of the beet.」
奧萊西婭‧盧說，「有關羅宋湯食譜，每個人都是對的。烏克蘭人對自己烹調的食物及其正宗程度非常堅持己見，不容異議。對我來說，關鍵是要有合適的甜菜，要用鮮嫩、甜美的夏季甜菜。我是無肉羅宋湯的超級粉絲，我喜歡羅宋湯裡的豆子，因為我就是吃這樣的羅宋湯長大的。絕對要加酸奶油，我喜歡在湯中加入一點克瓦斯（kvas，一種盛行於東歐的發酵飲料)，因為過酸會抵消甜菜的甜味和豐富口感。」
圖像來源, GETTY IMAGES
烏克蘭羅宋湯用肉、白菜、土豆和甜菜烹製而成，被視為最上乘的羅宋湯。
Lew buys her ingredients in the farmers』 markets of New York City, insisting on using the freshest ingredients. Descended from an immigrant family, Lew admits that like borsch, her own life story has spread across the globe.
奧萊西婭在紐約市的農夫市場買配料，堅持使用最新鮮的食材。作為一個移民家庭的後裔，她承認自己的人生故事就像羅宋湯一樣顛沛流離。
「Food is part of culture and identity, but people move,」 she said. 「Food can be shared, and it can unite people – but food can travel. Things get sticky when you try to deny people the food that they have been raised on for generations, and I would never want to deny someone their cultural heritage simply because they were raised in Soviet times.」
她說，「食物是文化和身份的一部分，但人們會遷居流離。食物可以分享，可以凝聚人們，而食物也可以如人遷徙一樣傳播到遠方。你如要否認人們代代相傳的食物，就會是相當傷感情的事。就我自己來說，我絕對不會只因為某個人是在蘇聯時代長大成人，就去否定他的文化傳承。」
News from BBC NEWS