Uzbek mastava is a famously thick and rich Uzbek soup, sometimes called "liquid plov" for its generous combination of meat, rice and a wealth of vegetables. It's a hearty, balanced and fragrant dish that is traditionally cooked in Uzbekistan for holidays, when guests are visiting, or simply as a complete one-bowl meal. The key ingredients are lamb or beef, round-grain rice, carrots, onions, tomatoes, potatoes and a generous handful of spices: cumin, coriander, black pepper and hot red pepper. Cut the meat into cubes and brown in a kazan with onion and carrot, add tomatoes and potatoes, pour over hot water and simmer for 30 minutes, then add the rinsed rice and cook for another 15-20 minutes. Serve with plenty of fresh herbs and katyk. Proportions for a 4-liter kazan inside.
One of the most famous Caucasian dishes is kharcho in the Georgian style. Traditionally, it is made from beef, which must necessarily consist of a rich bone and a sufficient amount of meat.
Azerbaijani dushbara is an elegant and remarkably beautiful national dish of Azerbaijani cuisine — tiny grape-sized dumplings filled with ground lamb, simmered in a fragrant meat broth. It's true culinary craftsmanship: real masters shape such miniature dumplings that 10-12 of them fit in a single tablespoon. Dushbara is served right in the broth with vinegar, garlic and a generous handful of fresh herbs — the flavor is rich, warming and quite unlike anything else. Knead a firm dough from flour, an egg, water and a pinch of salt. For the filling, finely chop lamb with onion, salt and spices. Roll the dough out very thin, cut into small squares, place a tiny piece of filling in the center of each and pinch into a dumpling shape. Simmer in boiling meat broth for 5-7 minutes. Proportions for 4 servings inside.
Bukhler is the national meat broth of the Buryat and Mongolian peoples — beautifully simple yet incredibly satisfying thanks to its concentrated meat flavor and clear, rich stock. The dish is built around large bone-in chunks of lamb or beef slowly simmered in water with the bare minimum of vegetables and spices: onion, wild garlic, sometimes angelica root and always plenty of black pepper. The goal is to coax out the deepest possible meat flavor while keeping the broth crystal clear, which means carefully skimming foam throughout. Serve in large bowls with the meat on a separate plate and the broth in another — a hearty, warming meal for cold weather. Authentic proportions and serving traditions inside.
Azerbaijani kufta bozbash is a famous national dish of Azerbaijani cuisine with ancient roots, known since the days of the Ottoman Empire. It's a thick, fragrant soup with large meatballs of ground lamb stuffed inside with dried fruit (prunes or sour plums), plus chickpeas which are an essential element. The defining feature of kufta is the surprising filling inside the meatball — that's exactly what gives the dish its unmistakable sweet-and-sour note and aroma, and makes it truly special. Soak chickpeas for 6-8 hours and simmer with a piece of lamb bone for 1-1.5 hours. From ground lamb with rice, onion and spices form large balls, tucking a prune or sour plum inside each one. Drop the kufta into the boiling broth with chickpeas and potato and cook for 30 minutes. Serve with herbs and saffron. Proportions for 6 servings inside.
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