PILAF

There are a lot of varieties of pilaf in Uzbekistan; principal classification of types of pilaf is divided by regions of Uzbekistan which are thirteen. 
Let us start with the Capital city, Tashkent type; it is considered as a most delicious pilaf, its taste can satisfy any pilaf aficionado and not only. The portion calculated by the amount of rice, i.e. 150 g per person.

Ingredients for 4 portions:

1. Vegetable oil (sunflower or cottonseed)- 240 g.
2. Meat lamb or beef - 600 g. 
3. Onion-150 g.
4. Carrot (red or yellow)-600 g. 
5. Rice - 600 g. 
6. Raisins (red)-50 g. 
7. Chick peas (cooked)- 50g.
8. Turmeric-15 g or tea spoon  
9. Cumin-10 g.
10. Black pepper (corn) -5 g or 10-15 corns.
11. Salt to taste.

Preparation recipe:

Take kettle with  5 litter capacity and put it on the stove top putting the heat to the highest level, but always pay attention to the flame, it is very important to know how to treat flame as the level of the flame plays a significant role in good preparation.
Put vegetable oil into the kettle and heat it until light smoke or about 10 minutes.
You can drop into oil cleaned onion to see if it was heated or not, wait until onion gets dark, after remove it, with that you can eliminate unwanted odor of the oil.
Cut meat 3*3 or 4*4 cm cubes or as wanted, and carefully place them into heated oil, quickly stirring it and bring the meat to light grey color, this will not let meat stick to the bottom of the kettle and burn. Then fry meat until it is light brown or about 10-15 minutes.
Then drop in the onion previously sliced into rings and mix it with meat, bring the onions to golden color or fry around 5 minutes.
After add julienne (a.k.a.  matchstick) cut carrots, thickness as desired, fry it 10 minutes.
Then add cold water, is should cover the ingredients 4-5 cm. If you want the meal to be ready faster, then replace cold water with boiling.
After adding water you can mix in the spices: turmeric, black pepper, half amount of cumin, cooked chick peas, raisins and salt. Since rice absorbs salt, make sure that broth is little salty. Bring it to boil and cook it around 15-20minutes.
Then reduce the flame and carefully lay the rice on the surface of the broth, try to make the layer as even as possible, pour some more water 2 cm above surface of rice. Add rest of the cumin over rice and turn the stove to the highest level and wait until water boils away.

After water runs out make little holes on the surface of the rice with spoon, this will help to cook rice evenly. Also you will be able to see that all water disappeared. Then cover kettle and reduce the flame to the minimum and let it stay for 30-35 minutes. After pilaf is ready mix it well and serve it.

Bon appetite!

Ingredients for 4 portions:

1. Lamb fat-200g.
2. Meat lamb or beef-600g.
3. Onion-150 g.
4. Carrot (red or yellow)-600 g.
5. Rice "Devzira"-600 g.
6. Garlic-2 bulbs
7. Cumin-10 g.
8. Salt to taste.
 
Preparation recipe:

Take kettle with 5 litter capacity and put it on the stove top putting the heat to the highest level, but always pay attention to the flame, it is very important to know how to treat flame as the level of the flame plays a significant role in good preparation. Put 1*1 cm cubes of lamb fat into heated kettle and periodically mix it, so the fat pieces will not stick to the bottom and burn. When fat takes golden color, put them on plate, salt to taste, sprinkle with fresh onion rings, it is very good as an appetizer and along with alcoholic beverages and can satisfy a light hunger. This appetizer is called "Vijarki" or fried fat.
Cut meat 3*3 or 4*4 cm cubes or as wanted, and carefully place them into heated oil, quickly stirring it and bring the meat to light grey color, this will not let meat stick to the bottom of the kettle and burn. Then fry meat until it is light brown or about 10-15 minutes.
Then drop in the onion previously sliced into rings and mix it with meat, bring the onions to golden color or fry around 5 minutes. After add julienne (a.k.a.  matchstick) cut carrots, thickness as desired, fry it 10 minutes.
Then add cold water, is should cover the ingredients 4-5 cm. If you want the meal to be ready faster, then replace cold water with boiling. Just after adding water, put two heads of garlic, when cleaning pay attention that garlic will not fall apart into gloves, half amount of the cumin and salt. Since rice absorbs salt, make sure that broth is little salty. Bring it to boil and cook it around 15-20minutes.
Then reduce the flame, remove garlic bulbs, carefully lay the rice on the surface of the broth, try to make the layer as even as possible, pour some more water to cover rice in 2 cm. Add rest of the cumin over rice and turn the stove to the highest level and wait until water boils away.
After water runs out make little holes on the surface of the rice with the side of the spoon, this will help to cook the rice evenly. Also you will be able to see that all water disappeared. Put the garlic heads over rice, then cover the kettle and reduce the flame to the minimum and let it stay for 30-35 minutes. After pilaf is ready mix it well and serve it.

Bon appetite!