The cuisine of Uzbekistan is an assortment of Tatar, Tajik, Mongolian, Kazakh gastronomic traditions. Glory was brought to her by bright dishes, which are characterized by sufficient variety and excellent taste.
National cuisine of Uzbekistan
Soups, vegetables, horse meat, lamb, bread and dairy products are sure to be present on the local table. The famous Uzbek dish is pilaf: it is cooked both on weekdays and holidays, it can be either simple or multicomponent, made with sesame or sunflower oil. For the preparation of pilaf, different ingredients are used, for example, lamb or beef, cumin, barberry, pepper, saffron … But in any case, the composition of pilaf necessarily includes carrots, onions and rice.
In Uzbek cuisine, soups are far from the last place: among them, shurpa of various types stands out - “shurpa-shepherd” (meat soup with vegetables) and “kaurma-shurpa” (soup with potatoes, turnips and carrots).
It is worth noting that in the north of Uzbekistan, fried meat, pilaf and dough cakes are more often prepared, and in the south - complex vegetable and rice dishes.
Popular dishes of Uzbek cuisine:
- “Dumlyama” (a dish made of lamb, spices and vegetables, which is cooked in a cauldron);
- "Bedana palov" (pilaf with quail added);
- “Shurpa-mash” (bean soup with lamb);
- “Cholop” (cucumbers, radishes and herbs are present in this cold soup made with sour milk);
- “Basma” (a dish of lamb stew with tomatoes, potatoes, eggplants, garlic, onions and spices);
- “Oshi behi” (a dish of chopped lamb in quince).
Where to taste the national cuisine?
If you want to save money, you can have a snack by going to street vendors - they will offer you to buy samsa or a portion of pilaf.
As for restaurants, Afrosiab is suitable for satisfying hunger in Tashkent (this institution is great for those wishing to get acquainted with Uzbek cuisine - they will find barbecue, pilaf, shurpa on the menu) or Karavan (lovers of manti will like it here), in Samarkand - “Karim Bek” (those wishing to take a meal in a secluded atmosphere will be offered to sit in small cozy booths to enjoy lagman, pilaf and barbecue), and in Bukhara - “Doston House” (a feature of this restaurant is that almost all Uzbek dishes are prepared here over an open fire; guests can taste pilaf, samsa, shurpa and other dishes, as well as watch the performances of a folklore ensemble).
Cooking courses in Uzbekistan
Those interested in culinary courses should be advised to look into the culinary workshop "Studio of taste" in Tashkent (both culinary courses for lovers of Uzbek cuisine and master classes are held here). In Tashkent, you can also visit the Katta Tanaffus training center, where cooking courses are open.
When purchasing tours to Uzbekistan, try to guess the trip for the Pilaf Festival (Tashkent, April).
