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| Plov dans la guesthouse Oxus avec Sobir et son fils, rue Rakhmatulaiev à Samarcande. |
Curious name, isn'it ? Plov. Some heavy stuff falling in the stomac. But no. One day, the son of governor of Bukhara fell in love with the daughter of a poor craftsman. Knowing that the local tradition did not allow him such an union, he sank into a devastating and dumb melancholy. Then we called ibn Sina (Avicenne). This one guessed that there was a girl behind the big young man's depression, but who might that be ? While taking the pulse of the prince, he asked the state employee in charge of the census to enumerate in front of him the district names of the city. In the evocation of one of them, the prince’s pulse began beating more hardly. The street names of this district ? At a street name, prince’s pulse still accelerated. The names of the residents of this street ? When was pronounced the name of his beloved, the prince’s pulse burst out. Then Avicenne prescribes to the prince to eat once a week the palov och (the plov of the festive meals) until the reassurance, and recommended to the governor, to the great displeasure the aksakals, to authorize the marriage.
Nargiza tells me this story while we drive in the direction of Kozi-Ariq, the district where is the house of her parents to whom we are going to have dinner. The meal, naturally, consists in the national dish of Central Asia. The plov is widespread in all the Middle East but it is with the Uzbeks and the Tajiks that its preparation is the most accomplished, with sometimes some variants according to regions. Another legend (the country is not short on it) says that the plov was conceived by the cook of Alexander the Great. After the long battles, while the reserves of food were running out, the cook ordered that we go hunting the sheep of steppes and he made a dish with rice and mutton by adding desert herbs.
- To make a good plov, tells me Nargiza's dad, is needed for 7 people 1 kg of mutton or beef, 700 gr of yellow carrots, 1 kg of rice, 150 gr of onions, 25 cl of sunflower oil, some leaves of mint, pepper, salt and cumin.
While Nargiza cuts carrots in fine small slices, the meat in pieces of the size of the thumb and slices thinly onions, Rahmatullo heats the oil on a high heat.
- It has to begin to smoke, he says.
He browns the meat in the oil and adds onions while mixing slowly. When onions become golden, he adds carrots, spices, chopped mint leaves and a teaspoon of salt. He pours some water, without moving. When the water begins to boil, he reduces over low heat.
- Now, he says, you let cook uncovered.
Meanwhile, Nargiza undertakes to soak the rice. At the end of one hour, Rahmatullo puts down it on carrots always without mixing. He adds two spoonful of salt and some tepid water to cover the rice.
- Here, he tells me, begin the most delicate part of the preparation. It is necessary to move regularly and slowly the rice so that it does not stick, always without mixing.
He makes then with the spoonbill a hole in the middle of the rice to allow the evaporation of the water contained in the lower layers and the rise in of flavors in the rice which he tastes regularly.
- If the rice is still hard and if the evaporation is insufficient, it is necessary to add some water.
While he caresses with delicacy the pristine rice, Nargiza's father tells me his holidays in Bulgaria in Soviet time.
- It was in the eighties. At that time, we could travel. At the end of only five days, the friends who accompanied me asked me to prepare them the plov. We bought a sheep, took a big pan and begun the preparation. We were in a restaurant, at a table where were Germans. We suggested them sharing the plov. In exchange, the Germans offered us some beer. Then, we offered them Uzbek skullcaps as well as a book on Samarcande. A friendship between our peoples had been born thanks to our plov.
While speaking, Nargiza' father tastes the rice, watches that he does not stick on the pan. When it is just right, he leaves the plov to rest over low heat during ten minutes.
Every body takes place on the tapshan for the dinner. It's excellent. The rice is cooked just right, tender and retaining its texture, melting and fragrant. And this good bread from Samarkand with sesame seed we are sharing is delicious. Known throughout the region, it is good to eat for three months, they say. We drink tea and vodka because it is time for toast. After the tapshan is cleared, we take the elongated semi pose that allows the stomach to expand slowly. At the time of leaving, Rahmatullo thanks me for my visit and tell me that we are now united by the plov.
- When you're in a foreign country where you do not know the language, friendship is very important, he says.
Nargiza tells me this story while we drive in the direction of Kozi-Ariq, the district where is the house of her parents to whom we are going to have dinner. The meal, naturally, consists in the national dish of Central Asia. The plov is widespread in all the Middle East but it is with the Uzbeks and the Tajiks that its preparation is the most accomplished, with sometimes some variants according to regions. Another legend (the country is not short on it) says that the plov was conceived by the cook of Alexander the Great. After the long battles, while the reserves of food were running out, the cook ordered that we go hunting the sheep of steppes and he made a dish with rice and mutton by adding desert herbs.
- To make a good plov, tells me Nargiza's dad, is needed for 7 people 1 kg of mutton or beef, 700 gr of yellow carrots, 1 kg of rice, 150 gr of onions, 25 cl of sunflower oil, some leaves of mint, pepper, salt and cumin.
While Nargiza cuts carrots in fine small slices, the meat in pieces of the size of the thumb and slices thinly onions, Rahmatullo heats the oil on a high heat.
- It has to begin to smoke, he says.
He browns the meat in the oil and adds onions while mixing slowly. When onions become golden, he adds carrots, spices, chopped mint leaves and a teaspoon of salt. He pours some water, without moving. When the water begins to boil, he reduces over low heat.
- Now, he says, you let cook uncovered.
Meanwhile, Nargiza undertakes to soak the rice. At the end of one hour, Rahmatullo puts down it on carrots always without mixing. He adds two spoonful of salt and some tepid water to cover the rice.
- Here, he tells me, begin the most delicate part of the preparation. It is necessary to move regularly and slowly the rice so that it does not stick, always without mixing.
He makes then with the spoonbill a hole in the middle of the rice to allow the evaporation of the water contained in the lower layers and the rise in of flavors in the rice which he tastes regularly.
- If the rice is still hard and if the evaporation is insufficient, it is necessary to add some water.
While he caresses with delicacy the pristine rice, Nargiza's father tells me his holidays in Bulgaria in Soviet time.
- It was in the eighties. At that time, we could travel. At the end of only five days, the friends who accompanied me asked me to prepare them the plov. We bought a sheep, took a big pan and begun the preparation. We were in a restaurant, at a table where were Germans. We suggested them sharing the plov. In exchange, the Germans offered us some beer. Then, we offered them Uzbek skullcaps as well as a book on Samarcande. A friendship between our peoples had been born thanks to our plov.
While speaking, Nargiza' father tastes the rice, watches that he does not stick on the pan. When it is just right, he leaves the plov to rest over low heat during ten minutes.
Every body takes place on the tapshan for the dinner. It's excellent. The rice is cooked just right, tender and retaining its texture, melting and fragrant. And this good bread from Samarkand with sesame seed we are sharing is delicious. Known throughout the region, it is good to eat for three months, they say. We drink tea and vodka because it is time for toast. After the tapshan is cleared, we take the elongated semi pose that allows the stomach to expand slowly. At the time of leaving, Rahmatullo thanks me for my visit and tell me that we are now united by the plov.
- When you're in a foreign country where you do not know the language, friendship is very important, he says.
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