Samarkand plov

Perhaps in every Uzbek city there is its own recipe for plov and they have many similar moments. However, the Samarkand plov stands out noticeably in this list. Its feature is that it is not mixed but served on a common plate in layers: a layer of rice, a layer of carrots, and on top - meat. Traditionally, Samarkand plov is eaten by hand, alternating ingredients at one's discretion.

This dish is cooked in a kazan or another thick-walled pot. Almost the entire process takes place at the highest heat of the stove, only at the end the fire is reduced. This allows to shorten the cooking time to 1 hour.

It is very important to choose the right rice for this dish so that it does not turn into a sticky porridge, and as they say, it should be "grain by grain". To avoid mistakes, it's better to take special rice such as "Jasmine", "Basmati", "Indica", or other varieties marked "for plov". The amount of rice should roughly equal the weight of the meat.

Yield: 7 servings.

Caloric content: 196 kcal per 100 grams of the dish.

Cooking time: 1 hour.

Ingredients

• rice – 400-450 g;
• meat (originally it’s lamb, but you can take fatty pork or veal) – 450 g;
• carrots – 400 g;
• onion – 250 g;
• vegetable oil or tail fat – 100 g;
• garlic – one whole head;
• plov seasoning – 1 tablespoon;
• salt – 1 tablespoon without a heaping;
• hot water – about 250 ml.

Cooking

1. Start by preparing all the ingredients used. Cut the meat into rather large pieces (about 3 x 3 centimeters).

2. Do not grate the carrots but cut them into long thick strips (5 x 0.5 centimeters), so that after it softens and stews, it can be seen and easily picked up.

3. Cut the onion into medium-sized random pieces. Peel the head of garlic from the outer skin, but make sure the cloves do not fall apart.

4. Rinse the rice very thoroughly (up to 10 times) until the water is clear – this will remove the rice starch.

5. Turn the stove on to the highest heat. Pour oil or melt the tail fat in the kazan or another suitable pot. When the oil is heated, place the meat in it.

6. Fry it until a golden crust forms (this will take about 5 minutes).

7. Next, add the onion.

8. Fry it until brown (5-7 minutes) – this degree of frying will give the plov a special flavor.

9. Add a small part of the cut carrot strips.

10. Fry it for about 2 minutes – this will protect the bottom from further burning.

11. Now add the remaining carrots.

12. Immediately pour in 100 milliliters of boiling water. During the stewing process, the carrots will release their juice.

13. Add the seasoning.

14. The resulting mixture is called zervak. Cover it with a lid, leaving a small gap (do not reduce the fire). Evaporate the mixture for about 7 minutes without stirring.

15. Next, place a whole head of garlic into the zervak.

16. Pour in the rice and spread it evenly over the surface.

17. Add salt.

18. Start pouring in boiling water, holding a slotted spoon under the stream so that the rice does not change its position.

19. The liquid should be 1-1.5 centimeters above the surface of the rice.

20. Cover the kazan with a lid and still keep it on high heat for 10-15 minutes until all the water evaporates but the oil remains, and the surface is covered with holes.

21. Then gather the rice into a mound without touching the lower layers with meat and carrots.

22. To allow steam to pass better, make deep holes with the back of a spoon.

23. Cover the surface of the plov with small plates or a suitably sized large plate. Close the kazan with a lid. Only now reduce the heat to the minimum. Leave the dish to simmer for 30 minutes.

24. The Samarkand plov is ready. Serve it hot on a large plate in layers – first rice, then carrots, and on top meat. Usually, a salad of fresh tomatoes, herbs, and onions is served with plov. Eaters take the components of plov in their desired proportions. Traditionally, this is done by hand, but many prefer to use cutlery.

Try it, bon appétit!