ExploFood · Asia
What to eat in Uzbekistan
Five dishes to try in Uzbekistan, the most typical first. One is vegetarian.
Five dishes to try in Uzbekistan
Plov Palov / Osh
Rice cooked with lamb, yellow carrots, onion and cumin in a large cauldron.
How to have it: Traditionally a lunch dish; in Tashkent visit the Central Asian Plov Centre before it sells out.
Samsa Somsa
Flaky pastry filled with lamb and onion, baked against a tandoor wall.
How to have it: Buy it hot from bazaar tandoors in the morning; pumpkin samsa is a vegetarian option.
Lagman Lag'mon
Hand-pulled noodles in a meat and vegetable broth or stir-fried sauce.
How to have it: Most chaikhanas serve it; choose soup style or 'qovurma' fried lagman.
Manti
Large steamed dumplings filled with minced lamb and onion.
How to have it: Eat them with a spoon of sour cream or yoghurt and chilli vinegar.
Non
Round tandoor-baked flatbread with a stamped centre.
How to have it: Never placed upside down or cut with a knife; tear it by hand, and try Samarkand's famous version.
What to eat next door
Plan the trip
Questions
What food is Uzbekistan famous for?
Plov (rice cooked with lamb, yellow carrots, onion and cumin in a large cauldron) comes first on our list, followed by Samsa, Lagman, Manti and Non.
What is the national dish of Uzbekistan?
Ask ten people and you get several answers. The dish we put first for Uzbekistan is Plov: rice cooked with lamb, yellow carrots, onion and cumin in a large cauldron. Traditionally a lunch dish; in Tashkent visit the Central Asian Plov Centre before it sells out.
Which dishes in Uzbekistan are vegetarian?
One of the five on this page is vegetarian as usually made: Non. Recipes vary, so ask about stock, lard or fish sauce.
What street food should I try in Uzbekistan?
Samsa (flaky pastry filled with lamb and onion, baked against a tandoor wall).
How reliable is this list?
The dishes are hand-picked from general knowledge in the Explo app, where you can also tick off the ones you have tried. Recipes vary by region and by family, so take it as a starting point.
Keep exploring
Practical · 3 min readEat your way through a country: how to find the national dishesFood is the fastest way into a place. How to find a country's signature dishes, order them well, eat safely and keep a record of what you have tried.
Planning · 4 min readHow to build a travel bucket list you'll actually useTurn a long wish list into a short plan: sort places by ease, season and effort, pick your next three, and keep the list alive after every trip.
Planning · 4 min readHow to choose the best time to visit anywhereWeather is only one part of it. Learn how to weigh seasons, crowds, prices and events, with real examples of the best months for popular destinations.- Country guidesCountry guidesBest months, weather, holidays and plugs for every country.
- Free toolWhere can I go?Every country your passport opens, sorted by how easy it is.
Tick off every dish you try in Uzbekistan
Explo is a free app: light up the countries you have visited, keep the dishes you have tried, and check visa rules, weather and holidays before you go.
Get ExploDishes are hand-picked from general knowledge in the Explo app, with links to Wikipedia. Recipes and names vary by region.