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comrade1234 17 hours ago [-]
My wife and I started something during Covid where we'd pick a random city in the world (there are websites that do this for you), look at the region's popular/common dishes and pick one to cook for the weekend. Most recent was Mirza Ghasemi: A smoked eggplant dish cooked with garlic, tomatoes, and eggs, from the Caspian Sea area.
We would also sometimes make flatbreads from the area but man is it messy to do in your own place with flour flying around everywhere. We do make the flatbreads sometimes but it's usually easier to just buy frozen paratha from the Indian store.
Biggest surprise - everything's stew.
sakopov 16 hours ago [-]
> Mirza Ghasemi: A smoked eggplant dish cooked with garlic, tomatoes, and eggs, from the Caspian Sea area.
Eggplant is one of those incredible veggies that seemingly not a lot of people know what to do with. You can bake it on a grill or your cooktop stove to give it that amazing smokey taste. I often eat it as-is without adding anything else but pairing with eggs takes it to the next level. There is another dish from that same general region called Ajapsandali which is probably one of the tastiest breakfast meals you'll ever eat if you like eggplant.
profsummergig 10 hours ago [-]
Eggplant, after being charred on an open flame, is an incredibly versatile and flavorful ingredient to put into other vegetable dishes. Shout out to the Indian baingan bharta of course. Ratatouille made with charred eggplant is simply amazing.
The word "non" used throughout the article is the origin of the term "naan bread" from Indian culture (the Central Asian Turks/Mughals who ruled most of India for centuries developed "naan bread").
piltdownman 15 hours ago [-]
Unagi Don using Aubergine is one of the few vegan cheats that is arguably better than the original. Rukmini Iyer does a nice riff with a vegan traybake on a similar theme that's very easy to throw together
Is “aubergine” a true synonym of “eggplant” or are you referring to a regional variety of some kind, different from the “eggplant” in other comments here?
barrkel 7 hours ago [-]
Eggplant is called aubergine in UK and Ireland. Full true synonym.
fakedang 13 hours ago [-]
Aubergines are eggplants are brinjals.
hn_throwaway_99 12 hours ago [-]
I generally like lots of vegetables, and while I can certainly enjoy a good eggplant parmesan (anything breaded and fried with cheese and marinara sauce is usually pretty easy to like), eggplant has got to be my least favorite vegetable, and I've tried it lots of different ways.
It just has the consistency of some kind of styrofoam to me (or else just turns to mush if it's overcooked) with a bitter-ish taste I don't like. While it can serve the purpose of "it just soaks up the flavor/sauce of whatever it's cooked in", there are lots of other vegetables/beans/tofu I'd much rather use for that purpose than eggplant.
stevenwoo 8 hours ago [-]
I have the same experience with eggplant. I wonder if this is one of those tiny taste differences that is some sort of genetic/epigenetic in origin (not quite supertaster but atypical) since there’s several different experiences expressed here about eggplant. For instance, cantaloupe always tastes a bit rotten to me - even when tasting the same fresh cut fruit with friends and family it is pleasant for them and not for me.
vlod 12 hours ago [-]
Baked and made into a curry works for me. i.e. Baingan Bharta
It's remarkably easy to make at home, although worth trying as a side dish (at a restaurant) if you like Indian food.
d4ng 14 hours ago [-]
Worth bathing the decently sliced eggplant in whipped egg and then in flour, and frying in a decent amount of oil. Add herbs. Simple. This is common in the Mediterranean.
When cooking over gas, it is nice to remove the skin in cold water, chop up coarsely, and add yoghurt, garlic, olive oil, salt and herbs, with a good whizzing up following, to make a decent dip for flatbread or anything else.
carpo 14 hours ago [-]
I never liked eggplant as a kid, but my Chinese in-laws make some amazing eggplant dishes. My favourite is one where they cut it into inch thick slices, then slice the slice about 3/4 of the way through and stuff it with a seasoned pork mince, dust it with flour and deep fry until golden.
thenthenthen 2 hours ago [-]
Super good. I also love the Chinese bbq eggplant and ofc the classic ‘three delicacies from the ground’ (地三鲜）
5555624 16 hours ago [-]
While I don't care for eggplant, I used to make an exception for Moussaka Pizza (eggplant and meatballs) from Waterford Pizza in Waterford, CT. (I believe they're still there; but, it's been 40+ years.)
comrade1234 16 hours ago [-]
> Ajapsandali
I looked it up and that looks great. Kind of like vegetarian goulash with all of the peppers. And simple. I think we'll try this soon.
chucksmash 17 hours ago [-]
> Mirza Ghasemi: A smoked eggplant dish cooked with garlic, tomatoes, and eggs, from the Caspian Sea area.
That sounds good. Makes me think of hunkar begendi.
parl_match 17 hours ago [-]
everything's stew. everything's a variation of the 4 easiest ingredients for humans to cultivate plus one or two local or regional specials
garlic/onions: aliums that thrive in most climates
rice: grass that can be drowned (to fuck off pests)
eggs: per day, one chicken produces enough binding enzymes to thicken and modify a meal for 5-8 people
veg/seed oils: cooking, flavor, etc
and since that's in the caspian sea area, they also have a ready supply of tomatoes and eggplant from centuries of trading with asia
elgenie 9 hours ago [-]
Tomatoes are a New World crop, so those come from the Colombian exchange rather than some sort of thousands-year-old Silk Road trading history.
21asdffdsa12 6 hours ago [-]
stew is also - the most forgiving dish regarding meats.. bad cut? Just stew it more.. this can go so far- that soldiers who where starving where used to cooking down the leather of boots and tournisters..
yubblegum 15 hours ago [-]
> from the Caspian Sea area
That's a funny way of saying Gilan, Iran. The dish was invented by (and is named after) Mohammad Ghasem Khan Vali, the governer of Gilan province.
comrade1234 14 hours ago [-]
I didn't see that anywhere. Is that like general Tso's chicken being from a chinese general?
yubblegum 13 hours ago [-]
No, more like saying that a classic Chinese this is from "Eastern Asia area"
zer00eyz 17 hours ago [-]
I wonder how close that dish is to the Indian one Baingan Bharta (it lacks eggs).
comrade1234 17 hours ago [-]
It's similar but the egg almost makes it like custard and the spice is only turmeric and some red pepper and garlic. It's more subtle.
RajT88 18 hours ago [-]
My wife and I own a restaurant. It's a tough business.
I feel like there must be more interest among native-born Americans in foreign food these days, based on the fact there's 3 Uzbek restaurants within a couple of neighboring cities (which are maybe 200k people total). There's apparently only ~2000 Uzbek-Americans in all of northern IL! And mostly concentrated over an hour's drive away from where these restaurants are.
That said, my wife and I were very interested to try the Tashkent bread. I think this article calls it out - it's better very fresh. It was really good, but not as amazing as we expected (maybe lunch is the time to dine at the Uzbek place closest to us).
I still find it amazing that even (probably) family-run restaurants for such a niche cuisine can make a go of it. I take it as a good sign about American dining preferences.
netsharc 17 hours ago [-]
I guess if you're a migrant, an ethnic restaurant (is that term politically correct?) is one of the most obvious businesses you can start.
The Thai government used to sponsor (not sure if they still do) Thai diaspora who want to open a restaurant in a foreign country, it was their way to market the country and attract tourists.
munk-a 14 hours ago [-]
Thai cuisine is remarkably interesting due to Global Thai and both the funding for restaurants as well as the standardization of curry recipes that was led by the government to help spread cultural awareness of the cuisine.
21asdffdsa12 6 hours ago [-]
The moment you ask yourself that- you are already poisoned. Because walking around on eggshells, makes you hate those who force you to be over considerate in time. Which results in buildup and release of tension.. just be yourself- and be kind intrinsicly..
vector_spaces 15 hours ago [-]
OK, I'll bite. In this particular case I personally would have said "a restaurant of your national cuisine" or even omit the adjective altogether since it's somewhat obvious from the preceding conversation what you mean.
My main qualm with this usage -- aside from being dated -- is that all cuisines are ethnic, but singling out the hypothetical migrant's as such implies that it is particularly ethnic. So in this sense it is a bit othering.
To be clear, I don't write this to call you out for your usage or accuse you -- I'm just answering your good-faith question.
RE your point, I don't agree that it's so obvious -- cooking and running a restaurant are pretty hard regardless of where you are from!
RajT88 17 hours ago [-]
Migrant is actually the wrong word entirely, I think.
Migrants move around to follow the work. (Think more like "Nomad") Immigrants resettle in new places.
I'm reading more about it, and probably these restaurants survive based on a combination of:
- Family run, keeping labor low (labor always number 1 cost)
- Central Asian and Muslim customers (much more than just Uzbeks)
- Setting up in low-rent locations like strip malls
So a few big nights a week can sustain the family business. I guess there's a way it adds up to a profitable business.
knome 17 hours ago [-]
>Migrant is actually the wrong word entirely, I think.
immigrant, im- (variant of in-) ; migrant into your country
emigrant, ex- ; migrant out of your country
both are still migrants. there is no specific cause for migration required to be an migrant.
you just need to move somewhere new to live.
RajT88 17 hours ago [-]
You are technically correct. The best kind of correct!
In terms of common usage though, it's as I said, especially in North America.
ComputerPerson 15 hours ago [-]
I believe they were asking whether or not "ethnic" is the correct term.
"Foreign food" or "foreign restaurant" seems to be the norm where I live, but maybe I'm uncultured. "Ethnic" wouldn't offend anyone I don't think.
RajT88 13 hours ago [-]
Could be. "Ethnic" sounds to my ear a lot less possibly offensive than "migrant" given the current climate.
frollogaston 15 hours ago [-]
I did notice that the Muslim Chinese restaurants have a lot of non-Chinese Muslim customers, maybe because they want halal.
dyauspitr 10 hours ago [-]
Well, you have to be an esoteric migrant. This technique doesn’t really work for a Chinese or Indians.
oa335 16 hours ago [-]
"There's apparently only ~2000 Uzbek-Americans in all of northern IL"
where did you get this number? does that include chicago, because i live in Chicago area ... seems low.
Figuring some fudge factor too. It could be low - it's hard to find numbers for nationality counts for central Asians broken down by state.
oa335 11 hours ago [-]
that websites estimates are definitely too low - e.g. there are definitely more than 40 Uzbek people in Chicago... I've been to 3 uzbek restaurants in Chicago proper myself.
alephnerd 18 hours ago [-]
Much of the Uzbek and Central Asian community is largely located in the Bay, NYC, and DMV. There are around 3 Uzbek restaurants in SF alone.
chadash 14 hours ago [-]
It’s wild how NYC trumps every other city for ethnic food by miles. The number of central Asian places (mostly Uzbek and Georgian) is probably closer to 100.
dyauspitr 10 hours ago [-]
NYC is just a wonderful place. I lived there for a decade and loved every minute of it. I don’t want to live there anymore because now I have a family and I like having a huge amount of land and living in nature and serenity and all of that but New York City is one of the best places on the planet.
YuriNiyazov 17 hours ago [-]
Theres Sofia (ex-Uzbek) and uzbegim, what’s the third one?
alephnerd 17 hours ago [-]
There used to be a third one a couple blocks away from Sofiya/Halal Dastarkhan in Tenderloin, but I think that may have shut down.
There also used to be 2 actual ethnic Uyghur restaurants (not Chinese from Xinjiang) in SF but they shut down as well.
17 hours ago [-]
gtg239a 18 hours ago [-]
It makes sense and is also a surprise to see that Aramco has a lifestyle publishing arm.
That aside, this was a great article. There are some great videos on yt as well showing the baking process. But what those videos don’t show that this article points to is the these Uzbek bakers use natural sour dough leavening. I wish this article also included a recipe for the dough.
Another thing this article does that I like is that it describes how to eat these loaves, because it’s hard to guess just by looking at them. Hoping I get a chance to try one of these loaves someday.
epistasis 13 hours ago [-]
I've spent a lot of time chasing Uzbek bread and plov on YouTube, so I was very very surprised to see an oil company publishing such a beautiful article. I jsut hope it's not a sign of oil exploitation in Uzbekistan...
schoen 10 hours ago [-]
Apparently there is some active oil production there, but mostly run by Uzbekneftegaz, an Uzbek (not Saudi) company.
(I don't follow the Central Asian energy industry, I just found this on the Internet.)
cgh 10 hours ago [-]
Uzbekistan has long been one of the largest natural gas exporters in the world and that is set to increase as they have huge untapped reserves. Same story with oil although they aren’t yet a top exporter, so far as I know.
dron57 16 hours ago [-]
Uzbek food is very popular with all people from the former USSR. So there will be a lot more demand than just Uzbek-Americans.
xyzelement 13 hours ago [-]
Totally. I take my family to the kosher Uzbek places here in NYC for just that reason.
21asdffdsa12 3 hours ago [-]
2700 bc.. the world was already old in the olden times.. i wish we had a "heroes" journey book- where every text is a link to its inspirations, going all the way back..
qurren 16 hours ago [-]
I went to an Uzbek restaurant in SF a couple weeks ago called Sofiya. Highly recommend. Food was so good that I want to visit the country now and probably will within the next year.
e40 1 hours ago [-]
Thanks, will try!
epistasis 13 hours ago [-]
Thanks for the pointer, my (Ukrainian) family is going to love this. Plov!
Maksadbek 16 hours ago [-]
Yay, an article about my country is on the HN frontpage!
Justin Marozzi's book Tamerlane: Sword of Islam, Conqueror of the World is a great read on Timur who i believe is considered almost a god in your country (like Genghis Khan in Mongolia) - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timur
There was also a classic russian movie titled "Nepobedimyy"(1983) (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0261099/) aka "The Invincible" on one of the founders of the russian martial art of Sambo (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sambo_(martial_art)) which was shot in Uzbekistan and features their styles of wrestling. It was almost like a documentary and i loved it for how real and earthy it was both for the martial arts and the locations.
its pretty rare to see Uzbekistan on global news and even HN frontpage.. i have been there in May, its pretty wonderful. Although English isn't spoken in many places, I had a great impression of the food. I actually went there for the Soviet architecture at first, but the local atmosphere of daily life was also unforgettable. I randomly picked restaurants a few times, and both the meat and the bread (non/naan) were delicious
its very safe and the prices are cheap. The only downside is that public toilets are scarce and they all charge a fee, which is really hard to deal with as a Chinese person. I was shocked that the price of using a restroom often exceeded the price of a loaf of naan
also this reminds me to refresh my personal blog domain and keep writing blogs.. because i have no where to post travel blogs like this for now.
d_silin 17 hours ago [-]
Article gave me an idea that Indus Valley seals were baker's stamps - that's why the imprinted goods were never found (eaten!).
julianeon 17 hours ago [-]
I could probably spend a whole month eating fresh bread there every day and enjoy it more than a Michelin starred restaurant.
lebuffon 12 hours ago [-]
This has some resemblance to albeit the much simpler bread found in Pompei.
Okay, how can I get a sampler pack of all those breads delivered here in the States?
littlekey 16 hours ago [-]
Surely "naan" would have been a way better transliteration choice than "non", right?
alex000kim 12 hours ago [-]
No, Uzbeks themselves use “non” when using Latin alphabet.
Fun fact: in the past Uzbek language has been written in arabic, cyrillic, and, since ~2018, in latin.
Source: grew up there
roncesvalles 14 hours ago [-]
1. English transliteration has its own cultural inertia. It's not just about what's most phonetically sensible (that too only for some particular English region: how an American phonetizes non would be different from how a Brit or Aussie would).
2. Don't assume the Uzbeks say this word the same way as the Indians do. It may very well sound closer to "non" in Uzbekistan.
Aspos 13 hours ago [-]
Uzbeks do say "non".
debo_ 15 hours ago [-]
It seems like a non issue to me.
walrus01 12 hours ago [-]
I got a job at the local Uzbek restaurant, but before I could learn all the recipes and secret ingredients, I had to sign a naan disclosure agreement.
shrx 16 hours ago [-]
Probbly a deliberate choice to distinguish it from its Indian sibling?
whall6 13 hours ago [-]
I immediately googled “Uzbek population centers in United States”
FpUser 17 hours ago [-]
I spent about a year of my life in Uzbekistan. Food there is pure heaven
hydrogen7800 16 hours ago [-]
I know someone who spent ~ a year in rural Kyrgyzstan, and found the food to be very meat-based, with little variety. Maybe different in the cities, since they enjoyed the trips to Bishkek, and possibly Tashkent, somewhat more.
FpUser 15 hours ago [-]
Never ben to Kyrgyzstan. In Uzbekistan - yes lots of meat but also superb veggies and fruits.
lstodd 17 hours ago [-]
Yes. It is.
And instead of trying to replicate that - it's a learning experience, you learn the world trying that - some advocate for hideous inductive panels. If I were somewhat religious I would say that this is a blasphemy. An unforgivable sin.
FpUser 17 hours ago [-]
I did learn few things, everyone loves my Plov ;) No shortage of ingredients in Toronto and proper cookware.
ilamont 11 hours ago [-]
In the 1990s I travelled through Xinjiang and Gansu in China's northwest. At the time most of the people in rural areas were Uighur, Hui, Tibetan, or other minorities.
At one of the Uighur bazaars they were cooking all kinds of breads and skewered meat. I remember asking one of the younger guys about one that looked like a toasted puff pastry and he called it 烤包子 in Mandarin, i.e. "roasted dumpling." It had lamb inside, and it was fantastic, like a lighter version of a Cornish pasty.
We would also sometimes make flatbreads from the area but man is it messy to do in your own place with flour flying around everywhere. We do make the flatbreads sometimes but it's usually easier to just buy frozen paratha from the Indian store.
Biggest surprise - everything's stew.
Eggplant is one of those incredible veggies that seemingly not a lot of people know what to do with. You can bake it on a grill or your cooktop stove to give it that amazing smokey taste. I often eat it as-is without adding anything else but pairing with eggs takes it to the next level. There is another dish from that same general region called Ajapsandali which is probably one of the tastiest breakfast meals you'll ever eat if you like eggplant.
The word "non" used throughout the article is the origin of the term "naan bread" from Indian culture (the Central Asian Turks/Mughals who ruled most of India for centuries developed "naan bread").
https://thehappyfoodie.co.uk/recipes/miso-aubergines-with-to...
Is “aubergine” a true synonym of “eggplant” or are you referring to a regional variety of some kind, different from the “eggplant” in other comments here?
It just has the consistency of some kind of styrofoam to me (or else just turns to mush if it's overcooked) with a bitter-ish taste I don't like. While it can serve the purpose of "it just soaks up the flavor/sauce of whatever it's cooked in", there are lots of other vegetables/beans/tofu I'd much rather use for that purpose than eggplant.
It's remarkably easy to make at home, although worth trying as a side dish (at a restaurant) if you like Indian food.
When cooking over gas, it is nice to remove the skin in cold water, chop up coarsely, and add yoghurt, garlic, olive oil, salt and herbs, with a good whizzing up following, to make a decent dip for flatbread or anything else.
I looked it up and that looks great. Kind of like vegetarian goulash with all of the peppers. And simple. I think we'll try this soon.
That sounds good. Makes me think of hunkar begendi.
garlic/onions: aliums that thrive in most climates
rice: grass that can be drowned (to fuck off pests)
eggs: per day, one chicken produces enough binding enzymes to thicken and modify a meal for 5-8 people
veg/seed oils: cooking, flavor, etc
and since that's in the caspian sea area, they also have a ready supply of tomatoes and eggplant from centuries of trading with asia
That's a funny way of saying Gilan, Iran. The dish was invented by (and is named after) Mohammad Ghasem Khan Vali, the governer of Gilan province.
I feel like there must be more interest among native-born Americans in foreign food these days, based on the fact there's 3 Uzbek restaurants within a couple of neighboring cities (which are maybe 200k people total). There's apparently only ~2000 Uzbek-Americans in all of northern IL! And mostly concentrated over an hour's drive away from where these restaurants are.
That said, my wife and I were very interested to try the Tashkent bread. I think this article calls it out - it's better very fresh. It was really good, but not as amazing as we expected (maybe lunch is the time to dine at the Uzbek place closest to us).
I still find it amazing that even (probably) family-run restaurants for such a niche cuisine can make a go of it. I take it as a good sign about American dining preferences.
The Thai government used to sponsor (not sure if they still do) Thai diaspora who want to open a restaurant in a foreign country, it was their way to market the country and attract tourists.
My main qualm with this usage -- aside from being dated -- is that all cuisines are ethnic, but singling out the hypothetical migrant's as such implies that it is particularly ethnic. So in this sense it is a bit othering.
To be clear, I don't write this to call you out for your usage or accuse you -- I'm just answering your good-faith question.
RE your point, I don't agree that it's so obvious -- cooking and running a restaurant are pretty hard regardless of where you are from!
Migrants move around to follow the work. (Think more like "Nomad") Immigrants resettle in new places.
I'm reading more about it, and probably these restaurants survive based on a combination of:
- Family run, keeping labor low (labor always number 1 cost)
- Central Asian and Muslim customers (much more than just Uzbeks)
- Setting up in low-rent locations like strip malls
So a few big nights a week can sustain the family business. I guess there's a way it adds up to a profitable business.
immigrant, im- (variant of in-) ; migrant into your country
emigrant, ex- ; migrant out of your country
both are still migrants. there is no specific cause for migration required to be an migrant.
you just need to move somewhere new to live.
In terms of common usage though, it's as I said, especially in North America.
"Foreign food" or "foreign restaurant" seems to be the norm where I live, but maybe I'm uncultured. "Ethnic" wouldn't offend anyone I don't think.
where did you get this number? does that include chicago, because i live in Chicago area ... seems low.
Figuring some fudge factor too. It could be low - it's hard to find numbers for nationality counts for central Asians broken down by state.
There also used to be 2 actual ethnic Uyghur restaurants (not Chinese from Xinjiang) in SF but they shut down as well.
That aside, this was a great article. There are some great videos on yt as well showing the baking process. But what those videos don’t show that this article points to is the these Uzbek bakers use natural sour dough leavening. I wish this article also included a recipe for the dough.
Another thing this article does that I like is that it describes how to eat these loaves, because it’s hard to guess just by looking at them. Hoping I get a chance to try one of these loaves someday.
(I don't follow the Central Asian energy industry, I just found this on the Internet.)
Justin Marozzi's book Tamerlane: Sword of Islam, Conqueror of the World is a great read on Timur who i believe is considered almost a god in your country (like Genghis Khan in Mongolia) - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timur
There was also a classic russian movie titled "Nepobedimyy"(1983) (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0261099/) aka "The Invincible" on one of the founders of the russian martial art of Sambo (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sambo_(martial_art)) which was shot in Uzbekistan and features their styles of wrestling. It was almost like a documentary and i loved it for how real and earthy it was both for the martial arts and the locations.
Watch on Youtube - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3GLvE5cCFY0 or https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gssvFq0aRas
its very safe and the prices are cheap. The only downside is that public toilets are scarce and they all charge a fee, which is really hard to deal with as a Chinese person. I was shocked that the price of using a restroom often exceeded the price of a loaf of naan
also this reminds me to refresh my personal blog domain and keep writing blogs.. because i have no where to post travel blogs like this for now.
https://www.thevintagenews.com/2018/07/07/ancient-bread/
Source: grew up there
2. Don't assume the Uzbeks say this word the same way as the Indians do. It may very well sound closer to "non" in Uzbekistan.
And instead of trying to replicate that - it's a learning experience, you learn the world trying that - some advocate for hideous inductive panels. If I were somewhat religious I would say that this is a blasphemy. An unforgivable sin.
At one of the Uighur bazaars they were cooking all kinds of breads and skewered meat. I remember asking one of the younger guys about one that looked like a toasted puff pastry and he called it 烤包子 in Mandarin, i.e. "roasted dumpling." It had lamb inside, and it was fantastic, like a lighter version of a Cornish pasty.
Some of the Tandir/Tandoor ovens are large enough to be a walk-in!