'' the traditional way: with one's hands Palav or osh, generically known as
plov (
pilaf), is a
rice dish made with
julienned carrot, and pieces of
meat, all fried together in
vegetable oil or mutton fat in a special cookware called
deg (a
wok-shaped
cauldron) over an open flame. The meat is cubed before or after being cooked, the carrots can be yellow or orange, and the rice is colored yellow or orange by the frying carrots and the oil. The dish is eaten communally from a single large plate placed at the center of the table, often in with one's hands in the traditional way. Another traditional dish that is still eaten with hands from a communal plate is
qurutob (), whose name describes the preparation method:
qurut (, dried balls of salty cheese) is dissolved in water (,
ob) and the liquid is poured over strips of а thin
flaky flatbread (
patyr or
fatir, , or more accurately фатир равғанӣ,
fatir ravghani, i.e., fatir made with butter or tallow for flakiness). Before serving the dish is topped with onions fried in oil until golden and topped with fresh seasonal vegetables. No meat is added.
Qurutob is considered a
national dish, predominantly consumed in the southern regions. Meals are almost always served with
non (),
flatbread found throughout
Central Asia. If a
Tajik has food but not
non, he will say he is out of food. If
non is dropped on the ground, people will put it up on a high ledge for beggars or birds. Legend holds that one is not supposed to put
non upside down because this will bring bad luck. The same holds if anything is put on top of the
non, unless it is another piece of
non. Breakfast usually consists of tea,
kulcha (Tajik milk bread) or
non with butter,
hasib (sausage),
panir (
Feta cheese),
qaymoq or
sarshir,
murabbā (jam),
tukhmbiryān (omelettes with meat), etc. Fruits such as berries, grapes, melons, apples, peaches, and apricots are eaten too during the summer. Kompot (a non-alcoholic sweet beverage that may be served hot or cold and is made with fruits) is often drunk as well. Traditional Tajik soups include mainly meat and vegetable soups (such as
shūrbā and
piti), and meat soups with noodles (such as
laghmon and
ugro). Other dishes shared regionally, either as fast food or as an appetizer, include
manti (steamed meat dumplings),
tushbera (
pelmeni),
sambusa (a triangular
pastry with either a meat and onion stuffing or a pumpkin and onion stuffing, baked in a
tandoor oven), and
belyash (pl.
belyashi, , deep-fried cakes made of yeast dough and filled with minced meat, similar to
pirozhki).
Soviet cuisine both influenced and was in turn influenced by Tajik cuisine.
Dairy products Dairy dishes, usually served as part of the spread of appetizers in a Tajik meal and scooped with pieces of flatbread, include
chakka (a sour milk preparation), thick
yogurt, and
kaymak (high-fat clotted cream).
Qurut balls may be served as a snack or an accompaniment to cold beverages. Although not a traditional Tajik drink,
kefir, a drinking
yogurt, is often served with
breakfast.
Summer produce In the summer, Tajikistan abounds in
produce and
fruit; its
grapes and
melons were famous throughout the former
Soviet Union. The
bazaar also sells
pomegranates,
apricots,
plums,
peaches,
apples,
pears,
figs, and
persimmons. ==Beverages==