A delicious combination of rice, vegetables, meat and spices, ‘Pulau’ is very popular in the Silk Road country. But it is most associated with Uzbekistan.
It is the national dish of the country and must be eaten at least once a week. It is an important part of all kinds of ceremonies, such as the birth of a child, marriage, funeral rites and the feast of Muslims on their return from Hajj.
Legend has it that pulao was actually invented for Alexander the Great, who ordered it as an excellent dish to feed his soldiers during his campaigns in Central Asia.
“We don’t have historical evidence to prove it,” said Uzbek tour guide Nilofar Nuruddin, who is interested in food history. But we do know that during the 9th and 10th centuries Palau gained considerable popularity here.
He says that rice has been a cash crop for more than a thousand years. It requires hard labor to grow, harvest and manage livestock. In a predominantly agricultural society, pulao would have been considered a high-calorie and nutritious food.
Palau is also part of the country’s culinary traditions, which was recently added to UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity list. According to Nilofar, “It is more than a dish for us. It builds social relationships and builds friendships. It unites the country.
He said that Palau is also important in Uzbek language. “It’s part of many everyday idioms like if you know you only have one day left to live in the world, spend it eating pulao.”
It means so that you can die happily. Life in Uzbekistan is unimaginable without Pulau.
There are more than 100 varieties of pilaf in Uzbekistan. Recipes may vary regionally and seasonally, but all have in common water, rice, onions, carrots, meat, oil, and salt, which is what its name implies in Persian.
The most famous pilau restaurant in Uzbekistan is Besh Qozun, also known as the pilau center of Central Asia. It is located in the Yunusabad area of the capital city of Tashkent. It is one of the largest pulau restaurants in Central Asia serving 5,000 to 8,000 people daily. It is made in nine large wooden cauldrons called kazans.
Uzbek tradition is that naan is served with each plate of pilaf. Shakirjan Nurmatov, the worker of Besh Qozun, like the rest of the kitchen staff, cleans himself before starting work and then prays to Allah for success with both hands. After that they put more than three thousand naans a day.
At home, women prepare the pulao, while on special occasions in restaurants, it is prepared by men, who are called phooshas. Faizullah Sigdeo, a chef from Bish Qazon, says that this is because it takes a lot of physical strength to prepare large quantities of pulao.
“My biggest kazan (cauldron) can cook three tonnes of food,” he says, under intense pressure. “If a guest doesn’t finish his pulao because he doesn’t like the dish, the cook is so embarrassed that he can kill himself.”
But he says, ‘Thankfully, this has never happened to me.’
When making pulao, this sequence is strictly followed: first the meat (mutton and beef) is browned, then white and yellow carrots, onions, rice, water and spices are added.
Faizullah adds salt, pepper, turmeric and cumin. These ingredients first came to Uzbekistan via the Silk Road.
Chickpeas and raisins are added to most Quzon tea house pulao. It is cooked on low heat for four hours.
Most pilaf is cooked and eaten on Thursdays and Sundays in Uzbekistan. “In ancient times, people from rural areas used to come to the markets of the city twice a week to sell their goods,” says Nilofar.
“So they had good money on Thursdays and Sundays with which they could buy these expensive ingredients.”
Faizullah said that pulau is believed to have aphrodisiac properties while Thursday is an auspicious day for conception.
He says that some men jokingly liken play to sex and foreplay. The oil that collects at the bottom of the cauldron is sometimes drunk as ‘natural Viagra’. Some chefs save the best meat on Thursdays to give customers ‘extra sex power’.
The tradition of entering pregnancy on Thursday is linked to the prevailing Islamic beliefs in the country. Faisullah connects it with the hadith of the Prophet of Islam. “If you want your child to be wise, have a good attitude, pray for the angels and have an open heart, then this is the best day.” But only when you have eaten a plate of naha pulao.’