Uzbek Plov: The National Dish Explained

Ask anyone in Uzbekistan where to find the best plov, and you will get an answer, a story and probably an invitation. Plov, also called osh or palov, is cooked in homes every week, served at every wedding and prepared in giant cauldrons at plov centres that feed hundreds of people at lunchtime. Uzbek plov culture was inscribed on UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2016.

How plov is made

A good plov starts with a heavy cast-iron kazan over a strong flame. The order of steps matters more than the recipe.

1. Fat: cottonseed oil, sometimes combined with lamb tail fat, is heated until very hot.
2. Meat: lamb or beef is browned in the fat, sometimes with bones for flavour.
3. Onions follow, then carrots cut by hand into long matchsticks. Grated carrots are considered a mistake.
4. Zirvak: the meat, onion and carrot base is simmered with cumin, salt, whole garlic heads, chickpeas or raisins depending on the style.
5. Rice, soaked in advance, is layered on top without stirring, covered with water and cooked until absorbed, then steamed under a lid.

The cook, called an oshpaz, judges heat and timing by experience. For celebrations, master cooks prepare plov for hundreds of guests in kazans large enough to stand in.

Regional styles

Tashkent

Rich and generous, with the rice and zirvak mixed before serving. Often topped with slices of horse-meat sausage and a quail egg. Tashkent’s plov centres are an institution; your guide will take you to a busy one at the right hour. See Tashkent for the city.

Samarkand

Served in layers rather than mixed: rice at the bottom, then carrots and meat on top. Samarkand plov uses less oil and lets the yellow carrot and rice speak for themselves. More on the city: Samarkand.

Bukhara

Bukhara has many styles, including a festive version with dried fruits and a green plov with herbs. Plov here often appears alongside other slow-cooked local dishes.

Fergana Valley

Fergana plov is hearty and often includes chickpeas. The valley’s cooks have a reputation for perfectly separated rice grains. See the Fergana Valley for a craft and food itinerary.

Khorezm

In Khiva and Urgench, plov is cooked with local yellow carrots and is often lighter. Khorezm cooks also add vegetables and dried fruits in seasonal versions.

When and where to eat plov

Plov is a lunch dish. Plov centres start cooking at dawn and serve from late morning; by mid-afternoon the best kazans are empty. In private homes, plov is served on weekends and at gatherings. At weddings, a morning plov is traditionally served to male guests before the main celebration.

At the table, plov is eaten from a large shared plate, with bread, achichuk salad of tomato and onion, and green tea to cut the fat. Some older diners still eat plov by hand, but spoons are standard.

Plov workshops

Watching plov being made from the first sizzle of fat to the final lifting of the lid is one of the best cultural experiences in the country. We can arrange:

• a morning at a plov centre to see the kazans being prepared;
• a hands-on workshop with a local cook, finishing with lunch together;
• a home visit where a family prepares plov for your group.

These experiences work for individual travellers, families and groups, and can be included in any program. For the wider picture of Uzbek cuisine, read our Uzbek food guide.

Etiquette tips

• Wait for the host to serve; taking food from the shared plate in front of you is normal.
• Tea is the accompaniment; heavy cold drinks with plov are considered bad for digestion.
• Compliment the cook. It is always welcome.

Add plov to your trip

Tell us whether you want to eat, watch or cook. Send us a request with your dates and group size, and we will build plov experiences into your program and send a quote.