Samarkand plov
A layered plov in which nothing is stirred: the rice stays pale, and the carrots and meat are served on top of it.
Shurpa
A hearty soup of mutton, carrots, potatoes and herbs, either simply boiled or browned first, served in a deep bowl with bread.
© Fry72, CC BY-SA 4.0
Two methods
Shurpa — shoʻrva in Uzbek — comes in two main styles. For qaynatma (boiled) shurpa, mutton brisket and ribs go into cold water and simmer slowly; the scum is left alone, since it disappears once the onion goes in. Whole carrots, tomatoes, salt and spices follow, and whole potatoes at the end. The result is a clear, fragrant broth, with the meat and vegetables served on a separate plate.
For qovurma (fried) shurpa the meat is first browned in tail fat with onion and tomato before water is added, giving a richer, darker soup. Both are finished with dill and coriander.
More than twenty kinds
Depending on what goes into the pot, there are more than twenty kinds of shurpa — with chickpeas, turnip, stuffed vine leaves, cabbage or vermicelli. A common way to serve it is to tear bread into the bowl and pour the hot broth over it. In teahouses and neighbourhood canteens shurpa opens the midday meal, and in winter it is the most requested dish of all.
Shurpa in a clay pot
A special version is koʻza shoʻrva: meat, chickpeas, carrot and onion go into a small clay jug, one per person, and stew slowly beside a tandoor or over embers before being served in the jug itself. The long, gentle cooking makes the broth especially rich and fragrant.
Cuisine
Cuisine
Samarkand bread
A tandoor-baked round with a thin, stamped centre, a plump rim and a glossy crust — Samarkand’s signature taste and the classic gift to carry home.
Tandoor samsa
Flaky pastries filled with lamb, onion and tail fat and baked on the wall of a tandoor — Samarkand’s favourite breakfast.
Kabob (shashlik)
Lamb, liver and minced-meat skewers grilled over charcoal and served with raw onion, vinegar and hot bread — the smoke that drifts down every Samarkand street.
Manti
Large steamed dumplings from a tiered steamer, filled with hand-chopped lamb, onion and tail fat — or with sweet pumpkin.
Norin
A cold dish of hair-fine, hand-cut noodles tossed with shredded horsemeat and qazi sausage — the refined starter of weddings and big feasts.
