Nokhat Shurak

Easy·20 min

A homely dish of fat chickpeas simmered with meat and onions until creamy and tender, lightly spiced and often served with rings of raw onion and a piece of horse sausage. Comforting and protein-rich, it is a beloved everyday plate.

Nokhat shurak is honest Uzbek home and bazaar cooking, built on the chickpea, nokhat, that has fed Central Asia since antiquity. A specialty especially associated with Samarkand, it keeps the chickpeas whole and proud in a simple stew rather than folding them into rice as plov sometimes does, often crowned with a slice of kazy, the prized horse-meat sausage. Slow-soaked and gently simmered, it is the kind of unfussy, nourishing dish that fills a working table or a teahouse lunch.

The chickpeas are buttery-soft and almost creamy, carrying a nutty earthiness in a clear, deeply savory broth. The meat is meltingly tender, the cumin warm and gentle, and a tangle of raw onion adds a fresh, sharp bite. It's plain in the best way, quietly satisfying and restorative.

Overnight soaking hydrates the chickpeas so they cook evenly to a creamy interior without falling apart, while long gentle simmering with bone-in meat lets gelatin enrich the broth. Keeping the spicing minimal lets the natural nuttiness of the chickpeas and the savory meat lead.

Variations

Made with lamb or beef; served as a thicker stew or soupier; garnished with kazy horse sausage, herbs, or chili

On the Palate

Where Nokhat Shurak sits in the Uzbek flavor cloud

Ingredients

Serves 4

How it's made

8 steps · 20 min

1
20 min
Soak the chickpeas overnight in plenty of cold water until swollen.
2
10 min
Heat fat in a pot and brown cubed meat on the bone over medium-high heat.
Watch out
Brown the bone-in meat hard before adding anything else — that seared crust is where the broth gets its depth.
3
6 min
Add sliced onion and cook until soft and golden.
4
4 min
Drain the chickpeas and add them to the pot with cumin, salt and pepper.
5
3 min
Pour in water to cover generously and bring to a gentle boil.
6
110 min
Simmer slowly, skimming, until the chickpeas are creamy-tender and the broth is rich.
Watch out
Keep it at a lazy simmer and skim the foam; a hard boil breaks the chickpeas apart before they turn creamy inside.
7
5 min
Adjust the seasoning and let it rest off the heat to settle.
8
4 min
Serve in bowls with raw onion rings and, if you have it, sliced kazy sausage.