The Central Asian one-cauldron rice in its Bukharan Jewish form: beef and onions browned and stewed with cumin and barberries, a thick layer of shredded carrot, and medium-grain rice cooked on top in the stew beneath.
Untested: not yet made in this kitchen. It is here for the Rice section’s regional pages and is adapted from the source named in the Notes.
Ingredients
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- 2 tablespoons sesame-seed oil
- 2 large Spanish onions, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 lb beef round or chuck, in 1½-inch cubes
- 1 tablespoon cumin seeds, preferably Uzbek, plus more
- 1 tablespoon sea salt, plus more
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ cup barberries, divided
- 10 large carrots, cut in 2-inch lengths and shredded
- 1½ lb medium-grain rice (the source suggests Kokuho Rose sushi rice), soaked
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne
- 2 scallions
- A handful of pomegranate seeds
Directions
Key ingredients
- Onions. Brown the onions in the two oils until they “taste of the oil,” then the garlic.
- Beef. Brown the beef in batches, about 30 minutes in all.
- Stew. Return the beef and simmer 35 minutes with half the cumin, the salt, pepper, half the barberries, a handful of the carrots and about 6 cups water.
- Carrots. Layer the remaining carrots, seasoned, over the meat.
- Rice. Spoon the drained soaked rice over the carrots without disturbing them. Cook until the water is absorbed, about 30 minutes, then 10 minutes covered on low.
- Serve with the rice on a platter and the meat and carrots on top.
Notes
Source Adapted from Joan Nathan, “Bukharan Plov With Beef, Carrots and Cumin Seeds,” NYT Cooking (2014).
A note on the source’s method One step says to stir the rice every 10 minutes without touching the carrots, which is unusual for plov, where the rice normally cooks undisturbed over the stew. It is reported, not corrected. The source’s list also includes cayenne, scallions and pomegranate seeds; how it uses them was not captured.
Why this version It is Bukharan Jewish (beef and sesame oil), not the mutton-and-tail-fat Tashkent standard. Its medium-grain rice suits Charles Perry’s observation that Central Asia prefers “a shorter grain.” A widely published Uzbek recipe was passed over because its listed ¾ cup of water cannot cover 3 cups of rice as its own method requires.
The Rice section’s Persia and Central Asia page (/rice/persia-and-central-asia/) covers the history and technique behind this dish.
The photo The photograph shows an Uzbek lamb plov, not this Bukharan beef version.