Sasha serves borsch on Ukraine’s Independence Day

Yesterday marked Ukraine’s Independence Day, the day in 1991 when Ukraine declared its independence from the Soviet Union.

One of the millions of Ukrainians who celebrated the day is Sasha Lysechko, who escaped Russia’s assault on Mariupol and moved to the Faroes in the spring of last year.

She now works at the Systrar café in Tórshavn's Nordic House, where she had made a large serving of her country’s national dish, borsch, for the special occasion.

Borsch is a hearty soup made with beets, cabbage, potatoes, tomatoes, carrots, onions, garlic, dill and other ingredients.

 >> SEE ALSO Video: cultural diversity adds spice to life

“It’s a very special day, and it’s a very big holiday for us,” Sasha said while putting the finishing touches on her borsch.

“It’s difficult to know how many ingredients I need to put in because this is such a huge pot.”

Some of the vegetables and spices for the soup were flown in from Ukraine.

Malan Jógvansdóttir Poulsen, one of the many people who visited the Nordic house to celebrate Ukraine’s Independence Day, said: “I came here to taste Sasha’s food on Ukraine’s Independence Day, and it’s absolutely delicious. I’ll try to ask her for the recipe, but I’ve heard that you can google it.”

 >> SEE ALSO Three quarters of refugees live in Tórshavn

Sasha spent two days preparing the huge dish, and after 40 minutes, the pot was empty.

“I’m so happy because everyone said it was really tasty,” she said.

“It’s not the same to celebrate our Independence Day here in the Faroes, but I’m happy to be celebrating the day together with Faroese people and also a few Ukrainians.”

Watch a video clip of the event here.

English version by prosa.fo.

More Faroese News in English.