The following highlights some of the popular Traditional Turkmenistani Foods. If you manage to be in an Turkmenistani restaurant or you are visiting Turkmenistan, I recommend the following:
1. Dogroma Chorba
It is a meat soup with an incredible flavour. Very easy to prepare, dogroma chorba is made by boiling lamb meat, with kidneys, heart and lungs, using salt and pepper for seasoning, while adding a few tomatoes. Cut into small pieces, the boiled ingredients are mixed together and cooked in their broth. Broken pieces of flatbread and chopped onion round off the dish just before serving.
2. Shashlyk
It consists of pieces of meat, usually lamb, skewered on skewers and grilled over a fire. Although a common food in Central Asia, Turkmenistan’s top-notch shashlik is different from that of other countries because of its distinct desert flavour. The secret of this unique taste lies in the use of haloxylon as fuel, a tree-like shrub that grows in Turkmenistan’s vast Karakum desert. Haloxylon wood is extremely dense and hard and can only be split by hitting pieces of it on something harder than it.
3. Dograma
This traditional Turkmen dish consists of çörek flatbread, sliced onions and stew, usually made with lamb, beef or mutton. The name of the dish comes from dogramak, which means to mince, and refers to a cooking technique in which all the elements are cooked and roasted separately, then cut and minced, and then combined. Dograma is traditionally served on special occasions and is usually prepared in large quantities. Once assembled, the combination of meat, bread and onion is usually placed in a bowl and then poured with a delicious broth.
4. Kovurma
Kovurma is an indigenous speciality made from pig offal, of Turkish origin and name, prepared at the same time as švarg – tlačenica during the winter pig slaughter. Good kavurma is part of the host and his ability to make good use of all the raw materials from the slaughtered pig. The meat and fat of the animal are cubed and put directly into a covered pot to begin the slow roasting process. After several hours of slow roasting, often over an open flame, the meat breaks down and becomes as soft as cotton.
5. Pilaf
Rice pilaw or pilaf is one of the most popular side dishes in the cuisines of Middle Eastern and Asian countries. Everyone has their own way of preparing it, but the one we show you today is the recipe for Turkish-style rice pilaf. Aromatic, creamy and full of flavour. Turkish-style rice pilaf or pilaf is started on the stove and finished in the oven. The butter gives it a superb buttery texture and a superb flavour, as do the herbs.
6. Shurpa
It is one of the most popular Turkmen and Central Asian soups, made with lamb broth and completed with the addition of potatoes and tomatoes. The boiled vegetables are cooked together with fried onions, carrots, flour, bay leaf, salt and pepper. The broth and vegetable mixture are served in a bowl, together with the boiled lamb and a spoonful of sour cream.
7. Kazanlama
Said to be an ancient dish, kazanlama was traditionally prepared by shepherds in the desert using saxaul, the desert shrub that is also used to cook shashlik. It is nothing more than meat cooked over hot coals.
8. Chorek
Chorek is a Turkmen flatbread made in a tamdyr, a clay oven, which is considered the most sacred place in a house. According to tradition, one never steps on a piece of bread, and the chorek must not be carelessly cut or broken with one hand, but must be broken with both hands. It is forbidden to turn a piece of choir upside down, or to throw it away.
9. Manti
It is a popular street food in Turkmenistan and consists of a kind of stuffed dough. Closely related to the East Asian mandu, it is another staple of Turkmen food. The mixture used to stuff manti consists of a mixture of spiced meat, usually lamb or beef, along with vegetables such as onion or pumpkin. Manti is usually served with a sour cream sauce that combines well with the spicy flavour of the dish.
10. Gutap
Meaning ‘half moon’, it is a type of flatbread stuffed with beef or lamb and onions. They are cooked in a frying pan on the cooker and eaten with the hands. Similar to Azerbaijani qutab, Turkmen gutab has several variations for the filling, including meat, potatoes, spinach or pumpkin.
If you found this list useful, here are some more Traditional Asian Foods to try out on my Pinterest channel.