My friend called me from Russia and immediately started to criticize ukha recipe described at our web site. He was in position to act as critic because he is a long standing ardent angler. His criticism consisted in the following: if you add potato to ukha then it won’t be ukha, just a fish soup. This call made me understand that another guests of our site could share my friend’s view. That’s why we decided to talk about ukha.
   Ukha as an independent dish has run the gamut from common soup (chicken ukha, pea ukha) to dish associated only with fish.
   There are hundreds of recipes for ukha that differ both in cooking method and ingredients content, sometimes coming into culinary conflict. For example, some people believe that putting any clupeids in ukha is not allowed. Most probably, such opinion was formed just due to ignorance of the Danube herring taste qualities. One of ukha varieties in the Danube delta provides presence of the Danube herring in its fish range. And the Danube herring ukha is a favourite dish of local gourmets. Of course the Danube herring ukha is a regional dish and is cooked only in the lower Danube.
   Each region has its variety of ukha with its cooking peculiarities that sometimes surprise. Thus, boiled hot milk is added to Arkhangelsk ukha made of halibut and codfish, and pickled mushrooms are added to Onega ukha made of dried fish (mostly pan fish), there is also a crayfish ukha, ukha with soft-fried fish.
   In spite of a large number of ukha recipes there are some classic rules to adhere while cooking ukha in any region.
   Firstly, ukha is made of live fish (is not to be confused with fresh fish!).
   Secondly, ukha is cooked in the nonoxidizing pan.
   Thirdly, ukha is cooked with opened cover avoiding rolling boil.
   People believe that ukha is not a dinner dish but a convivial one as well as shashlik, people discuss all news over a plate of fish soup, gossip a little and solve business matters. However, Lipovans of the Danube delta believe that ukha is a common dinner dish like borsch, that’s why it certainly contains potato among all other ingredients. In Vylkove local dry wine “Novak” is served to ukha. Having downed a glass of wine and desiring to emphasize the general impression from meal, locals say: “The bare feet angel itself has walked around the soul”.
   Cooking a convivial ukha by Lipovans is supplemented by observing the rules, otherwise the following rumours will run through Vylkove: “So he can’t cook ukha, people arrived, and he filled them with fish from the Reed bed”. And to make ukha for guests by putting spices and green before taken the fish out of pan is a positive shame.
   In Vylkove say: “She could cook but couldn’t serve”. In the lower Danube people have their own tradition of serving ukha, necessary to comply with in order to observe the general cooking process.
   – Taking into account that prepared ukha is slightly salted, this dish is always served with garlic salamuri (brine).
   – It is recommended to eat fish not with bread but with potatoes boiled in ukha.
   – After cooking ukha, the fish, separately boiled vegetables and salamuri (brine) are served out on separate main plates.
   – The scarlet is ladled out in mugs for each person.
   You can take fish, potato, onion and carrot from the main plate and put garlic salamuri (brine) over it. Enjoy your meal! It’s a joy for body and feast for soul.