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 Azerbaijani cuisine is famous for its meat dishes. How to choose the most delicious of the many kebabs, kebabs and pilaf.
Azerbaijani cuisine is famous for its incredible variety of meat dishes, the recipes of which are rooted in the past. At first glance, all the dishes are well known to Ukrainians - shish kebab, pilaf, dolma. However, not all so simple. There are many versions of the same delicacy in Azerbaijan.
Azerbaijan cuisine
Food names are often used with prefixes to represent the main ingredients. Knowing a few words in Azerbaijani, you can understand what the dish is made of. So, you can see the prefixes goyun (lamb), guzu (lamb), mal (beef), dana (veal) and toyug (chicken). Rarely, the names of dishes do not coincide with their composition, for example, khan kebab is a shish kebab made from mutton giblets.
Assorted meat
Young mutton is most loved in Azerbaijan. By the way, lamb in the Caucasus differs significantly from the Ukrainian one. The thing is that no artificial feed and additives are used when raising livestock. Therefore, the taste of the ram, which grew high in the mountains, feeding on fragrant herbs, is exquisite.
Only a tender young lamb is destined to get to the dinner table. In addition, only fresh mutton is eaten in Azerbaijan. If it has lain longer than the prescribed period, it is thrown away.
They also prepare dishes from beef, veal, poultry and game. But pork is not held in high esteem here, as in any other Muslim country.
Once in Azerbaijan, be sure to try the local kebab - kebab. Meat on the bone and with a crispy crust is usually made in a charcoal grill or tandoor (round clay oven). The kebabs are not pickled with either vinegar or lemon, since fresh meat will be juicy and tender anyway.
Sauces and snacks are served separately for the ready-made barbecue - chopped onions, adjika, pomegranate, which is usually eaten with seeds, and narsharab - pomegranate concentrate. Be sure to offer tomatoes, cucumbers, herbs, cheese and tortillas. You can wash it all down with ayran or red wine.
Various prefixes can be added to the name of a kebab, for example, lula-kebab - minced meat cutlets with onions, tava-kebab - meatballs with eggs and herbs.
There are about 200 varieties of pilaf in Azerbaijan. Meat for pilaf is prepared and served separately from rice. Shirin pilaf is cooked with dried fruits, govurma pilaf - with fried lamb, maivya pilaf - with stewed fruit, shashandaz pilaf - with fried eggs. Greens are added to pilaf sabzi govurma. Restaurant menus, as a rule, have explanations for dishes in Russian.
Dolma - this is meat wrapped in leaves of grapes (yarpag dolmasy), cabbage (kyalam dolmasy), quince (quince dolmasy), pepper (bibar dolmasy) and eggplant (eggplant or badymjan dolmas). Dolma is usually served in clay pots and poured over with sour cream or fermented milk sauce.
Kufta meatballs have many varieties - arzuman-kyufta from mutton with egg and butter, riza-kyufta - meat balls with onions in tomato puree, kyufta-bozbash - lamb meatballs in pea broth.
Soups in Azerbaijan are rich, they are also prepared on the basis of lamb. Brocade-bozbash soup is made with chestnut and quince, bozartmu - with onions and herbs, duschbara - with dumplings, aromatic spices and dill, and piti - in clay pots. By the way, when ordering soup in Azerbaijan, you should know that cabbage soup is called borscht here.
There are also dishes with more exotic names: soyutma - lamb cooked in a cauldron with tomatoes and herbs, giymya - fried minced meat with dried apricots, chikhyrtma - meat filled with beaten eggs.
The best meat in Baku
You can dine with meat dishes in Baku at every step. If you want to eat in a historical place, you can go to an expensive restaurant like Multani Karvansaray in the old quarter of the city. On the menu it is worth trying the lamb kebab, but keep in mind that the portions are very small. The average wine bill is about 40 manats.
Breathtaking views of Baku can be enjoyed at Zeytun Restaurant on the top floor of Park Bulvar Shopping Center. They offer European and national cuisine. Be sure to order pilaf or lula kebab. You will have to pay 40 manats for lunch.
To travel from modern Baku to medieval Baku, visit the Fayton restaurant. Stonework and stained-glass windows convey the atmosphere of the old city. The menu has many options for kebabs and dishes cooked in a saje pan. The average bill is 40 manats, you have to pay extra for live music.
There are many fast foods in the city that sell doner - mutton or chicken with vegetablessandwiched between crispy buns. This incredible delicious delicacy will cost you up to 2 manats.
In ordinary cafes, the atmosphere is simpler, but the quality of food and service is excellent. Here lunch will cost you 15-20 manats. Please note that in small roadside cafes without a menu, it is better to ask prices in advance, as tourists may overcharge them.
Yarmolenko V.O.
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