Traditional Iraqi sheep's head and trotters stew, slow-simmered for 8-10 hours overnight with onion, garlic, rice, chickpeas, and stuffed sheep's stomach — eaten with bread and lemon. The Baghdad Friday-morning specialty, served at street pacha stalls before dawn. Polarizing dish — locals adore it, outsiders find the appearance startling.
Pacha (also called paça in Turkish) is the Baghdad-Mosul Friday-morning street food — sold at specific pacha-only restaurants and street stalls in pre-dawn hours. Old Baghdad has pacha streets where men gather before sunrise for breakfast. The dish reflects nose-to-tail Iraqi cooking traditions; nothing is wasted from the sheep. Diaspora Iraqis seek out pacha as a cultural homecoming meal.
Pull a piece of cheek meat or tongue from the head — gelatinous, deeply rich, slowly-cooked tender. Bite trotter meat — sticky-gelatinous, almost candy-like in mouth-feel from the collagen. The broth is concentrated, salty, deeply meat-umami. Squeeze lemon over; the acid cuts the richness. With khubz to dip in the broth, the Baghdad Friday morning ritual. Old Baghdadi men know which pacha vendor to seek out.
8-10 hour low-simmer breaks down sheep head and trotters into a gelatinous broth and meltingly tender meat. Pre-soak removes blood; aggressive initial skimming clears the broth of impurities; the result is concentrated meat-broth with rich mouth-feel. Lemon's acid cuts through the heavy collagen-fat. The stuffed stomach absorbs broth and becomes its own complete preparation.
Variations
Modern restaurants sell just the broth as 'pacha soup' for diners who don't want the whole experience. Stuffed-stomach-only version is for those who skip the head. Lebanese pacha is similar but with more spices.
On the Palate
Where Iraqi Pacha sits in the Iraqi flavor cloud
Ingredients
Serves 6
How it's made
11 steps · 1 hour 30 min active + 8 hours 30 min waiting
- 15 min
Prep meat: 1 sheep's head (cleaned, halved by butcher) + 4 sheep's trotters (cleaned, hooves removed) + 500 g lamb shoulder or shank.
- 2122 min
Soak all meat in cold salted water 2 hours; drain. Rinse thoroughly.
Watch outSoak the meat in cold salted water until the water pulls out the blood, then rinse well — this is what keeps the final broth clean, not muddy.
- 36 min
In a very large pot, add the meat + cold water to cover (4-5 L) + 1 tbsp salt + 1 tsp black peppercorns + 4 bay leaves + 2 onions (whole, peeled) + 1 head garlic (cut in half).
- 416 min
Bring to a boil. Skim aggressively for 15 min — the foam must be removed for clean broth.
Watch outSkim the grey foam hard for the first 15 min as it rises — every bit you leave clouds the broth for the whole long simmer.
- 5540 min
Reduce to lowest simmer. Cover loosely. Cook 8-10 hours overnight (or 4-5 hours on a higher simmer).
Watch outDrop to the barest simmer — just a lazy bubble now and then; a hard boil turns the broth cloudy and toughens the meat.
- 6122 min
Make optional stuffed stomach: clean 1 sheep stomach. Stuff with 200 g rice + 100 g chickpeas + 100 g cubed lamb + 1 chopped onion + 1 tsp salt + 1 tsp baharat. Sew closed. Add to the pot in the last 2 hours.
- 72 min
After cooking: the meat should be fall-off-bone; the broth should be richly flavorful.
- 84 min
Lift meat onto platters. Discard onions, garlic, peppercorns.
- 94 min
Strain broth.
- 105 min
Plate: arrange head pieces, trotters, stuffed stomach (if made), and lamb shoulder. Pour hot broth into bowls separately.
- 113 min
Garnish with 4 tbsp chopped fresh parsley. Serve with khubz flatbread, lemon wedges, and crushed garlic-vinegar on the side.
