Uzbek Cuisine

The Hunzacots live in Hunza Valley in Northern Pakistan and are known for their health and longetivity. They eat a very healthy diet, and their bread is all over the internet promising good health.

From tedmontgomery.com

Hunza Diet Breat has a taste that is very satisfying and chewy all on its own, but you also may add, if desired, apricots, raisins, chopped walnuts or almonds, and/or sliced dates to the above ingredients. Mix all ingredients thoroughly. Grease and lightly flour cooking pan(s). Ideally, use baking trays with about 1-inch-high sides. Pour the batter in pan(s) ½-inch thick over the base.

Bake at about 300° F for 1 hour. After cooking, dry the bread in the oven for about 2 hours at a very low heat—about 90° F. (If your oven temperature does not go below 90° F, try turning it as low as possible and leaving the oven door open until the bread becomes dry.) After it is cooled, tip it out and cut it into approximately 2″×2″ squares.

Store the bread wrapped in cloth in a container. You may need to repeat the baking depending on the size of your baking pan and oven until all the mixture is used.

Hunza Diet Bread is made from natural buckwheat or millet flour. It is rich is phosphorous, potassium, iron, calcium, manganese, and other minerals, as nothing has been destroyed in the preparation of the wheat. Thus it contains the essential nourishment of the grain. This is why you must use only natural buckwheat or millet flour to make your own Hunza Diet Bread.

I am currently reading “The Foodlover’s Atlas of the World” by Martha Shulman. This is a great resource on cooking and foods around the world. She lists main ingredients from 90 different cultures around the world and the geography and climate influence a culture’s cuisine. Unfortunately, Uzbekistan is not one of the countries described. There is a very interesting page on the Republic of Georgia however. There I was introduced to “mchadi”.

Georgia is divided into Western Georgia, which borders on the Black Sea, and Eastern Georgia which is dry and windy. Western Georgia is rainy and has higher temperatures. Corn is preferred over wheat. Georgians make mchadi out of corn flour. Mchadi is basically like corn bread. New world foods like kidney beans, tomatoes, and green beans are also favorites.

I thought this amazing since I am also from cornbread country. My family is from Western Tennessee, which borders the Mississippi River. It is very hot and humid here. Wheat was not traditionally grown. My grandparents grew up on cornbread and beans. My mother still cooks this meal once a week and it is one of my favorites. We usually pour the peas over the corn bread and eat fried potatoes and green beans as side dishes.

Mchadi is cooked very much like southern cornbread. You just mix the corn flour with water. Put it in a pan with oil and either bake or fry it. My mother puts cornbread and oil in a cast iron skillet and cooks it in the oven. That is only good if your skillet is seasoned though.

Here is an easy recipe for “mchadi”. Use it to scoop up gravy, grease from your chicken or vegetables. I also like to eat it with potato soup.

Mix cornmeal & water together well. (about a cup of flour)
Form it into a round ball. Heat a
skillet over low heat. With wet hands, flatten cornmeal ball into a
large pancake abt 1/2-inch thick. Put this into hot, dry skillet & cook
over moderate heat for 5 mins or long enough to form a crust. Turn
pancake over w/a spatula & cook for 5 mins more. Serve warm. Serves 4 to
6.

Serve it to your friends who swear they will never try foreign food and tell them that they just ate Caucasian food!!

Georgian Cheesebread (Khachapuri)

Put two cups unbleached white flour and 1/2 teaspoon salt into a medium bowl. Put 12 tablespoons of butter into small pieces and place with flour and salt. Beat one egg and 1/4 cup plain yoghourt and add to the flour mixture. Form into a ball and chill for one hour. Grate 1 1/4 pounds of Muenster and Havarti cheeses. Add a beaten egg to the grated cheese. Preheat the oven at 350 deg. F., and grease a large baking sheet. On a floured board roll the dough to a rectangle about 12 x 17 inches. Spread the cheese mixture on half the dough and then fold the other half over to enclose it, sealing the edges. Transfer to the baking sheet, and bake for 50 mins. or until brown.