Uzbek pilaf contest was held at the Branch

In preparation for the Navruz holiday, the selection of the best oshpaz, a competition for the best pilaf was held in the student’s dormitory of the Russian State University of Oil and Gas (NRU) named after I.M. Gubkin.

The winners of the culinary duel will be able to demonstrate their skills at the Festival of Spring and Light.

Cooking pilaf and gathering for a treat with the whole world is a long-standing good tradition in the houses of residence of the students of the Branch. However, this time it was decided to hold a separate contest among the best students-oshpaz so that they could clearly demonstrate their mastery of cooking the legendary national dish.

“Uzbekistan is famous throughout the world for its traditional pilaf: the legendary dish is included in the UNESCO Intangible Heritage List” - notes Kamiljon Sultanov, chairman of the jury, head of the “Marifat and Manaviyat” and youth affairs department. “However, at the same time, each region is famous for its own “private” technology of osh preparation, as the participants of our competition were able to see.

As part of a delicious tournament, students presented various types of pilaf, depending on the regions: Samarkand, Bukhara, Khorezm and Fergana. The distinction of the signature dish of Uzbek cuisine here is the variety of meat, the use of fat tail fat, the variety of oil used - cottonseed or sunflower oil, as well as the addition of fruits and cereals for decorative purposes. The guys used not only “classic” cumin, garlic, but also green and red peppers, black peppercorns, barberry, mung bean and chickpeas.

During the contest we have learnt, that, for example, Samarkand pilaf consists of layers: meat, carrots, rice are not mixed, and in Tashkent region, raisins, peas are added to osh and only yellow carrots, lamb and laser varieties are used. In Namangan, only devzira rice, beef are used for custom pilaf, and lemon is always added. For Andijan pilaf, the rice is washed at least seven times and the dish is prepared without any additives, focusing on the good roasting of the ingredients.

And although the main requirements of the jury were taste and external design, after the tasting it became clear that each type of pilaf is good in its own way.

The following winners have been identified among the participants: Zafar Norchaev (Kashkadarya region) and Jamshidbek Shokirov (Andijan region) - 1st place, Khurshid Kholmurodov (Kashkadarya region) - 2nd place, Zokir Nafasov - 3rd place.

It seems that each of the contestants revealed only a part of their proprietary secrets, because family recipes should be treasured. The respectful and respectful attitude of students to the preparation of pilaf is important, which became clear from the finished product of their skill, said a member of the jury – said 4th year student Farhad Amanbaev from Karakalpakstan.

“According to the results of the oshpaz competition, it was decided that the winners will be able to please the guests of the Navruz holiday with their art, while sponsors volunteered to provide all the necessary products for the festive Osh” - Komiljon Sultanov said.

Press-service of the Branch