What was supposed to save the “fish day” of Soviet citizens and why chose Thursday Bashny.Net

What fish day in the USSR I was on Thursdays, even young people who were born after the collapse of that country know. But few people know why it took a day to eat fish dishes. Why did you choose Thursday? Interestingly, some catering establishments still follow this strange tradition. And housewives with experience sometimes cook fish dishes at home on Thursdays.



Back in 1932, the notorious People’s Commissar of Supply Anastas Mikoyan proposed to replace all meat dishes with fish dishes on one day of the week. And then there was no reference to a specific day, and they had to choose a fish day in each institution themselves.

The reason for this initiative was simple – there was a shortage of meat in the country, so this product had to be replaced with something. In addition, the country’s leadership planned to seriously develop the fishing and canning industry. So it would be nice if the population got used to fish. Of course, along the way, they actively talked about the benefits of fish, about easily digestible protein, about the necessary trace elements (including iodine and phosphorus).



And I must say that not everyone was delighted with the appearance of the “fish day”. And dislike enjoyed not only fish cutlets, ear or fried fish, but even caviar.

At that time, the USSR quickly became the main exporter of black caviar, and this product was quite affordable to Soviet citizens. But they didn't take him very seriously. Therefore, posters with appropriate calls did not take long to wait.

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In the postwar period, the fishing industry developed rapidly. Soon canned fish became very popular, because it was almost the only way to deliver fish to the table of every inhabitant of the huge country. There were more than 50 types of canned goods in the shops.



At the same time, enterprising hostess came up with a lot of recipes for a variety of fish dishes. At that time, there were sandwiches with sprats, and “herring under a fur coat”, and “mimosa”. In the 1950s, they began to produce a “pick in tomato”. The dish was liked not only by the then General Secretary Nikita Khrushchev. Cheap canned food is loved by students and various drinks.

Later in the USSR mastered both sea and ocean fishing. So when meat was once again a scarce product, the management knew how to replace it. In 1976, they returned to the Fish Day. However, this time they decided to serve fish in all establishments on Thursdays.



Why Thursday? There are many reasons why I chose Thursday. Thursday was statistically the most profitable day to sell fish. But there is also a version that in this way they tried to annoy believers who traditionally did without meat on Wednesdays and Fridays. And a "fish day" on Thursdays forced three days in a row to eat without meat.

There are other guesses, though. So fish dishes in the canteens Soviet people still disliked. Therefore, some citizens either did not go to the dining room on Thursdays, or took sandwiches from the house. In any case, the performance on this day suffered. And it was better to have that decline in productivity at the end of the week. Thursday was good enough for that.



Did you like "fish day"? How did you feel about fish dishes in the cafeteria? Share your thoughts in the comments.

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