In the second part of the interview with the bearer of traditions and successor of the family business of the butcher shop "Eco et" Asemgul Kabeldinova about how to properly serve meat in Kazakh style and what this teaches modern youth.
In Kazakh culture, meat is not just food, but a whole philosophy passed down from generation to generation. "Tabak tartu" (traditional serving of meat on the dastarkhan) is a kind of language of respect, hierarchy, education and love for one's family. Today we talked with an expert who keeps this tradition and learned why it is important to know what kind of meat is served to whom, what is the difference between kazy and shuzhyk, and how future mothers and housewives are raised through meat.
- To what extent is the tradition of "Tabak tartu" preserved today? Who should receive what parts of the meat?
- Today, this tradition has not disappeared completely, but is often distorted or forgotten. In Kazakh culture, cutting and serving meat is a cultural code passed down through generations. Each bone and part of the animal's carcass has its own "addressee".
For example:
The head - to the respected aksakal;
The thigh and pelvic bone - to a particularly honored guest;
Kazy, karta, zhaya - to respected guests sitting in a place of honor;
The brisket - to a young kelin, sometimes to a son-in-law;
The mace bone, vertebra - to a son-in-law;
The sacrum - to women;
The old bone (kәri zhіlіk) - to young people or students;
Sausage, ribs - to children or household members.
There are other ancient traditions, such as kalzha (meat prepared especially for a new mother), sybaga (a part set aside for a distant relative or friend). This is also a symbol of respect, conveyed through the ceremony of serving the dish.
- What mistakes do women most often make when serving tabak with meat?
- The most common mistakes:
They don’t know which part of the meat to serve to whom;
They put the meat on the dish without following the serving rules;
They don’t try to make the serving beautiful;
The meat is undercooked or overdried.
This is not just everyday negligence - the reason is that people do not delve into traditions, do not observe hierarchy, and do not have the art of serving a national dish.
- What is the difference between kazy and shuzhyk?
- Kazy is prepared only from fatty meat taken from horse ribs. They stuff it with pieces of small intestine, salt, season and dry it.
Shuzhyk is made from beef or horse meat (sometimes mixed), also in a casing of intestines, but more often from lean meat, resulting in a sausage of amazing taste.
The key difference: kazy is always the fatty rib part of a horse, while shuzhyk can be much simpler in composition.
How does meat help educate youth?
When we teach young people how to cook meat, who to serve what part, how to greet a guest, we introduce them to the roots, to the traditions that are passed down from generation to generation.
This is not just cooking, it is the transmission of the national code and the education of the future housewife, future mother and keeper of the hearth, the continuer of the family.
Being a kelin is not just cleaning and cooking. It is preserving the honor of the family and clan. And the dastarkhan is its unique calling card.
Therefore, teaching girls is our most important mission. - What questions do participants of your master classes ask most often and what surprises them?
- There are many questions:
What are the names of the various bones and parts of the animal carcass,
What is the difference between shuzhyk and kazy,
How to salt meat correctly,
How to serve tabak with meat.
Many are surprised:
"Why haven't we been shown this before?"
There are participants who hold meat in their hands for the first time in their lives, but at the same time they are interested in learning how to cut it and serve it correctly to the table, and how to follow the basic principles of the "Tabak tartu" ritual.
Those who come in national clothes receive prizes for the most beautiful image. This is not just a master class, but a spiritual experience that must be studied and known.