Uzbek plov

Name: Uzbek plov
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 70 min
Total time: 90 min
Yield: 6
Cuisine: Uzbekistan
Ingredients: 700 g bone-in lamb shoulder or ribs, cut into large chunks; 500 g yellow carrots (or standard orange carrots), peeled and cut into thick julienne matchsticks, NOT grated; 400 g long-grain white rice (devzira rice is traditional; basmati is a good substitute), soaked in cold water for 30 min and drained; 2 large onions, thinly sliced into half-moons; 1 whole head garlic, outer papery skin removed but kept whole and unpeeled; 150 ml cottonseed oil, neutral vegetable oil, or rendered lamb fat; 1 tsp whole cumin seeds; 0.5 tsp ground coriander; 0.5 tsp ground black pepper; 0.25 tsp ground turmeric; 1.5 tsp salt; 700 ml hot water or light stock

The national dish of Uzbekistan: lamb, yellow carrot, and rice cooked in a kazan

Origin: Uzbekistan (Samarkand, Fergana Valley)

From the journey of Carrot.

Plov (плов) (or osh in Uzbek) is the defining dish of Central Asian civilisation and arguably the most important rice dish in the world outside of Asia proper. Uzbekistan has more than 200 regional variations and considers plov not merely food but a ritual: it is made in enormous quantities in a cast-iron kazan (cauldron) over an open fire, stirred by a single designated oshpaz (plov master), and served on great communal occasions (weddings, Nowruz, funerals, and Friday prayers. In Samarkand alone, plov restaurants open before dawn to feed the city. The UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage inscription of Uzbek plov in 2016 was a recognition of its cultural centrality. What makes plov botanically significant is the carrot: the Uzbek yellow carrot) the Desi carrot of Central Asia, a long, slender, sweet, and aromatic variety (is not the orange carrot of Western supermarkets but the ancient variety that has been grown in the Fergana Valley for over a millennium. Yellow plov carrots have a drier, more aromatic flesh that holds its shape through the long cooking and perfumes the rice with a sweetness and depth the orange carrot cannot replicate. This recipe is the Fergana valley style) the most widely reproduced version.

Ingredients

Meat

700 g bone-in lamb shoulder or ribs, cut into large chunks

Carrot

500 g yellow carrots (or standard orange carrots), peeled and cut into thick julienne matchsticks, NOT grated

Rice

400 g long-grain white rice (devzira rice is traditional; basmati is a good substitute), soaked in cold water for 30 min and drained

Aromatics

2 large onions, thinly sliced into half-moons
1 whole head garlic, outer papery skin removed but kept whole and unpeeled

Fat

150 ml cottonseed oil, neutral vegetable oil, or rendered lamb fat

Spice

1 tsp whole cumin seeds
0.5 tsp ground coriander
0.5 tsp ground black pepper
0.25 tsp ground turmeric

Seasoning

1.5 tsp salt

Liquid

700 ml hot water or light stock

Method

Heat the oil in a large, heavy-based pot (ideally a cast-iron casserole or Dutch oven) over high heat until smoking. Add the lamb pieces and sear without stirring for 3–4 minutes until deeply browned. Turn and sear the other side. Remove the lamb and set aside.
In the same pot over high heat, add the onions. Cook, stirring, for 8–10 minutes until deeply golden-brown and beginning to char at the edges.
Return the lamb to the pot. Add the carrot matchsticks. Do not stir: let them sit on top of the lamb and onion for 2 minutes, then stir and cook for 5 minutes until the carrots have softened slightly.
Add the cumin seeds, coriander, pepper, and turmeric. Stir for 30 seconds. Add the hot water and salt. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Place the whole head of garlic in the centre of the pot, pressing it down into the liquid. Simmer, uncovered, for 20 minutes.
Rinse the soaked rice under cold water until the water runs clear. Spread it evenly over the surface of the lamb and carrot mixture: do not stir. Gently pour the remaining hot water over the back of a spoon to avoid disturbing the rice layer (the liquid should just cover the rice).
Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to very low. Cover tightly (use a cloth under the lid) and steam for 20–25 minutes until all liquid is absorbed and the rice is fully cooked.
Remove the whole garlic head from the centre. Gently turn the plov out onto a large round platter: rice first, then the lamb and carrot from beneath. Place the garlic head in the centre as a garnish. Serve immediately.

Notes

Devzira rice (the traditional Uzbek plov rice) is a short, dense, burgundy-tinged grain with extraordinary absorbency that is not widely available outside Central Asia. Good-quality basmati makes an excellent substitute. The whole head of garlic is not just garnish: Uzbek guests compete for the softened, sweet, paste-like cloves inside. Never substitute powdered garlic. Plov is traditionally served with a simple tomato and onion salad (achichuk) on the side and strong black tea.

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Ingredient originTrade or transit route

Became a culinary stapleColonial / trade control