Uzbek cuisine

Uzbek cuisine is much loved and deeply respected all over the world. Agree that as soon as you hear the names of Uzbek cuisine dishes, such as pilaf, manti, kebab, lagman, somsa, shurpa – you have to swallow hungry saliva. And once you feel the aroma of freshly baked tortillas, fragrant shish kebab or pilaf, it is already impossible to deny yourself to enjoy these delicious dishes. Uzbek cuisine has won, and continues to win worldwide fame and love for its bright and so diverse taste qualities in the East.

Most recipes of Uzbek dishes, preserving a centuries-old history, are accompanied in the preparation of a variety of rituals and omens. And for such a long history, specific features have appeared in Uzbek cuisine.

Cuisine for Uzbeks is a separate layer of their culture. Uzbeks have always led a sedentary life, unlike their nomadic neighbors, they themselves cultivated various crops on their lands and cultivated animal husbandry. On fertile lands, under the bright sun of Uzbekistan, the locals grew ripe vegetables, fragrant fruits and cereals.

No one disputes that the development of Uzbek cuisine was influenced by the traditions of the Turks, Kazakhs, Uighurs, Tajiks, Tatars and Mongols, i.e. all those peoples who inhabited the territory of modern Uzbekistan. Among the borrowed dishes there are such dishes as roast, kebab, bogursak, brushwood, dumplings, manti, lagman, etc. But Uzbek dishes have spread far beyond the borders of Uzbekistan, and now shurpa, pilaf, dimlama and mastava decorate the tables of many other countries of the world.

Most recipes of Uzbek cuisine include the use of not only meat products, but also everything that grows on the fertile soil of Uzbekistan – these are juicy vegetables, ripe fruits, fragrant spices and cereals. The bright sun gives Uzbekistan a warm climate, thanks to which a huge number of fruits, vegetables, grapes, melons, herbs, berries and nuts grow here. And absolutely all of this is used to create culinary masterpieces that delight not only the locals, but also turn the heads of visiting guests. Flour products, as well as fermented milk products, occupy an important place in Uzbek cuisine.

If we talk about the meal itself, as in the rest of the world, in Uzbekistan – three meals a day. Breakfast here is called – nonushta, which means "to break cakes", lunch is tushlik ovkat, and dinner is kechki ovkat. Uzbeks, as a rule, and mostly eat with their hands, sitting on the floor behind a dastarkhan. At the beginning of the meal, sweets and fruits are usually served, then vegetables and various salads are brought. After salads, guests are offered fragrant shurpa and thick mastava. And the main dishes complete the feast — manti, lagman, shish kebab and pilaf.