Uzbek cuisine: plov, non, tea, and the food traditions of the Silk Road

Plov is a slow-cooked one-pot dish of rice, lamb, carrots, onion, garlic, and cumin, cooked in a heavy cast-iron kazan over an open fire. Every Uzbek region has its own variety: Bukhara plov is layered and drier; Fergana plov is heavier on carrot; Samarkand plov is served unstirred, with the components arranged decoratively on the plate. UNESCO recognised 'palov culture and tradition' as an intangible cultural heritage of Uzbekistan in 2016.

Plov is a lunch dish. Almost every neighbourhood has a public osh-khona (plov house) where the day's plov is cooked in enormous kazans and served from about 11 AM until it runs out — typically by 2 PM. The best plov in Tashkent is at Besh Qozon (the Central Asian Plov Center at the TV Tower), but every city has legendary local versions.

Non (or naan) is round, thick, and stamped in the centre with wooden dies (chekich) that create the characteristic pattern. It is baked on the inner wall of a clay tandyr oven and comes out crisp on the outside, chewy inside, and unlike anything else in world bread. Every meal has non; it is never cut with a knife, always torn by hand, and never placed face-down on the table (a small breach of etiquette).

Regional non differs. Samarkand non is famous for being large, dense, and keeping fresh for a week; Bukhara non is thinner and richer; Fergana non is often studded with sesame or nigella. Tashkent's Khodra bazaar and Samarkand's Siyob bazaar have the country's most-photographed non stalls.

Uzbek sweets lean toward the honey-nut-halva end of the spectrum. Halva (sesame or sunflower paste sweetened with sugar) is the everyday. Chak-chak (fried dough soaked in honey) is a wedding sweet. Navat (rock sugar) is the standard accompaniment to tea. Fresh fruit is a highlight — the melons and pomegranates of Uzbekistan are among the best in the world, and the summer stone-fruit season (apricots, peaches, plums, figs) is worth planning a trip around.

Street food beyond samsa includes obi non (fresh bread bought at the tandyr), chalop (a chilled yogurt-and-herb soup, a summer refresher), and non-stop supplies of dried fruits and nuts from the bazaars.

Tea (choy) is a way of life. Kok choy (green) is the default in the south (Bukhara, Samarkand, Termez); qora choy (black) is preferred in Tashkent and the north. Tea arrives in a small pot with two small handleless cups; a good host pours the first cup back into the pot two or three times to mix — a gesture called kaytar and a small compliment to the guest.

Alcohol is widely available in restaurants outside the Fergana Valley. Uzbek wines from the Bagizagan and Khovrenko cellars are surprisingly good — try the saperavi or the black muscat. Local beers (Sarbast is the market leader) are drinkable pilsners. Vodka is the imported classic; craft cocktails have arrived in Tashkent in the last few years.

Uzbek cuisine is meat-forward but not hostile to vegetarians. Non, samsa (in seasonal veg versions), chalop, salads, pumpkin manti, shurpa asked for without meat, and huge amounts of fresh fruit make vegetarian travel comfortable in cities. Vegan travel is harder — dairy and eggs are used generously — but the growing Tashkent café scene is filling that gap.

Uzbek cuisine is not spicy; chilli and heat are almost absent. Halal is universal outside a handful of European restaurants; pork appears only in Korean and Russian eateries.