Afghan cuisine
Afghan cuisine is influenced by Persian, Central Asian and South Asian cuisines due to Afghanistan's close proximity and cultural ties. The cuisine is halal and mainly based on mutton, beef and poultry with rice and Afghan bread. Accompanying these are common vegetables and dairy products, such as milk, yogurt, whey, and fresh and dried fruits such as apples, apricots, grapes, bananas, oranges, plums, pomegranates, sweet melons, and raisins. The diet of most Afghans revolves around rice-based dishes, while various forms of naan are consumed with most meals. Tea is generally consumed daily in large quantities, and is a major part of hospitality. The culinary specialties reflect the nation's ethnic and geographic diversity. The national dish of Afghanistan is Kabuli palaw, a rice dish cooked with raisins, carrots, nuts, and lamb or beef.
Background
The cuisine of Afghanistan is halal and uses various herbs and spices including coriander, mint, dill, cumin, cardamom and turmeric as well as locally-grown saffron. Afghan dishes are typically mild in flavor.A variety of rice dishes known locally as 'palao' are prepared with various fruits, nuts and legumes, and combine sweet and sour flavors central to Afghan cuisine. Dumpling and noodle dishes, meat and vegetable stews, legumes, and kebab dishes make up the bulk of Afghan cuisine.
Staple foods
Rice
Rice is a core staple food in Afghan cuisine and the most important part of any meal. Challow, or white rice cooked with mild spices, is served mainly with . Palaw is cooked similarly to challow, but a combination of meat, stock,, and herbs are also mixed in before baking, resulting in the elaborate colors, flavors, and aromas from which the rice got its name. Sometimes caramelized sugar is used to give the rice a rich brown color. Examples of palaw include:- Qabeli palao – meat and stock are added, plus a topping of fried raisins, slivered carrots, and pistachios
- Zamarod palao – Spinach, dill and sometimes other green herbs are mixed in before the cooking process, hence zamarod, meaning "emerald"
- Bore palao – lawand is added giving the rice a yellow color
- Landi palao – a traditional meal of rice
- Bonjan-e-roomi palao – bonjan-e-roomi is added during baking giving the rice a red color
- Narenj palao – a sweet elaborate rice dish made with saffron, orange peel, pistachios, almonds, and chicken
- Mash palao – a strictly vegetarian sweet-and-sour pilaf baked with mung beans, apricots, and bulgur wheat
- Albalo palao – a sweet rice dish with sour cherries
Afghan bread
Afghan bread is flat and cooked in a tanoor or tandoor. The bread is slapped onto a stone wall to cook. Tabakhai is a flatbread cooked on a flat upside-down pan.Major dishes
Steamed dumplings
There is a wide variety of dumplings. Known under the name khameerbob and often eaten as dumplings, gs, they are rarely served at large gatherings, such as weddings. They are instead served on special occasions at home.- Aushak – dumplings filled with a mixture consisting mainly of leeks, topped with either garlic-mint or a garlic yogurt sauce, sautéed tomatoes, red kidney beans, and a well-seasoned ground-meat mixture. It is a dish associated with Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan.
- Mantu – steamed dumplings filled with onion and ground beef or lamb, usually topped with a tomato- and yogurt- or -based sauce and then garnished with dried mint and coriander. The yogurt-based topping is usually a mixture of yogurt, garlic, and split chickpeas. The -based sauce is made of goat's cheese and also mixed with garlic; a and yogurt mixture is sometimes used.
Qormah
Qormah is an onion- and tomato-based stew or casserole usually served with challow rice. First, onion is caramelized, for a richly colored stew. Then tomato is added, along with a variety of fruits, spices, and vegetables, depending on the recipe. The main ingredient, which can be meat or other vegetables, is added last. There are hundreds of different types of including:- Qormah e gosht – usually the main served with palaw at gatherings
- Qormah e alou bokhara – onion-based using veal or chicken, sour plums, lentils, and cardamom
- Qormah e nadroo – onion-based, using lamb meat or veal, yogurt, lotus roots, cilantro, and coriander
- Qormah e lawand – onion-based, using chicken, lamb, or beef, plus yogurt, turmeric, and cilantro
- Qormah e sabzi – lamb, sautéed spinach, cilantro and other greens with fenugreek; sometimes kidney beans are included
- Qormah e shalgham – onion-based using lamb, turnips, and sugar
Kabob
Afghan kabob is most often found in restaurants and at outdoor street vendor stalls. Most of the time, it contains lamb meat. Kabob is made with naan instead of rice. Customers have the option to sprinkle sumac or ghore angoor on their kabob. Pieces of fat from the sheep's tail are usually added to the skewers to add extra flavor. Traditional Afghan kabobs are made with onion juice, lemon, yoghurt, black pepper and sometimes saffron for chicken.Other popular kabobs include the lamb chop, ribs, kofta, and chicken.
Chapli kebab, a specialty of eastern Afghanistan, is a patty of minced beef. It is a popular barbecue meal in Afghanistan. It is prepared flat and round and served with naan. The original recipe of chapli kabob dictates a half-meat, half-flour mixture which renders it lighter in taste and less expensive. This type of kabob contains herbs and sometimes chilli.
Chicken
Afghan chicken or murgh-e is a classic example of one of the most famous dishes of Afghanistan. Chicken dishes are usually found in restaurants and at outdoor street vendor stalls. Unlike in the Indian cooking style, chicken in Afghan cuisine is often used with the intention that it be halal. Cream, butter, and curd are customary ingredients in all chicken recipes, whether served as an appetizer or a main course.Quroot
Quroot is a reconstituted dairy product, traditionally a by-product of butter made from sheep's or goat's milk. The residual buttermilk remaining after churning butter is soured further, treated with salt, and then eventually boiled. The precipitated casein is filtered through cheesecloth, pressed in order to remove liquid, and then shaped into balls; the product is thus a hard and very sour cottage cheese. Though it can be eaten raw as a savory snack, it is typically served with cooked Afghan dishes such as aushak, mantu, and kichri qoroot.Miscellaneous
- Afghan burger
- Afghan chatni made with fresh coriander leaves
- Afghan kofta
- Afghan salad
- Aush
- Bamiya
- Badenjan
- Badenjan-burani
- Badenjan salad
- Bichak
- Bolani, also called "buregian" in southern Afghanistan
- Chainaki or Dizi, also known as Abgosht in western Afghanistan
- Chakida or chakka
- Chopan kabob
- Dampukht
- Delda or oagra
- Dolma
- Gosh e feel
- Halwaua-e-aurd-e-sujee
- Kalah chuquki or kalah gunjeshk
- Kaleh pacha
- Kebab
- Khoujoor
- Kichri
- Londi, or gusht-e-qaaq
- Maast or labanyat
- Mashawa
- Moraba
- Nargis kabob
- Narinj Palau
- Osh pyozee
- Owmach
- Salata
- Rosh
- Shami kabob
- Sholeh Ghorbandi
- Shor-Nakhood
- Torshi
Desserts and snacks
As a dessert after a meal, most Afghans generally eat fresh fruit. For snacks, they may drink tea with something sweet like cakes, cookies or pastries. On occasions, they also eat dried fruits which are widely available in every Afghan market. Other typical desserts include the following:- Afghan cake
- Baklava
- Bastani
- Cream roll
- Falooda or Faloodeh
- Firini
- Fernea, sometimes spelled,
- Kolcha
- Shir- Yakh, a traditional wet ice cream
- Sheer khurma, a traditional dessert
- Sholeh Zard
- Shir Berenj
Soups
Drinks
Chai
Chai is tea in Afghanistan, which can either be green or black. It is consumed at all times, especially a short time after finishing a meal or with guests during any social gathering. Most people drink green tea with no sugar. Some add cardamom, saffron, or sugar.Sheer chai is also consumed but mostly in the morning and on special occasions. It is a type of Kashmiri chai. Many people of Afghanistan also drink masala chai, particularly in cities such as Asadabad, Jalalabad, Khost and Kandahar.
Doogh
Doogh is a cold drink made by mixing water with yogurt and then adding fresh or dried mint. Some variations of doogh include the addition of crushed or diced cucumber chunks. It is the second most widely consumed drink in Afghanistan, especially during lunchtime in summer. Doogh can be found at almost every Afghan grocery store and is served in restaurants.Sub-cuisines
While Afghans have a common cuisine, certain ethnicities form sub-variations of it.Pashtun cuisine
Pashtuns are the largest ethnic group of Afghanistan, constituting about 42% of the country's total population. A major dish in Pashtun culture are rosh and sohbat, found at traditional gatherings and events. Other major Pashtun dishes include lamb-skewered sajji and chapli kebab. The name dampukht stands for steamed meat, and khaddi kebab is the Afghan shashlik, which is grilled on an open fire, on a spit.Although it differs between regions, Pashtun cuisine is meat-heavy and often includes caramelized rice. For example, the dish known as bolani in the north and east is often called borogyen in the south and west of Afghanistan.
Common summer beverages include shlombeh, a drink consisting of liquid yogurt, mint, and cucumber. Sherbet is an ice-sugared cold drink. Sher yakh is a sweet ice-like product.