Ingredients
Dough
- 400 gplain flour
- 1egg
- 150 mlwater
- 1 tspsalt
Filling
- 300 gminced lamb
- 1onion, very finely chopped
- 1 tspsalt
- ½ tspblack pepper
Broth
- 1.5 litreslamb stock
- 1onion
- 1bay leaf
- salt
To serve
- dried mint
- garlic crushed into vinegar
- black pepper
Directions
- Make a firm dough with the flour, egg, water and salt, knead it for 10 minutes, then rest it for 40 minutes.
- Chop the onion almost to a paste. In a dumpling this small there is no room for a piece of onion you could identify.
- Mix the filling and keep it cold while you roll.
- Roll the dough out extremely thin, to about 1 mm, and cut it into squares of 2.5 cm.
- Two and a half centimetres is the target. Tradition holds that eight dushbara should sit on a single spoon, and while nobody actually counts, the smallness is the identity of the dish rather than a flourish.
- Put a bare pinch of filling on each square, fold it into a triangle, press the edges, then bring the two base corners round to meet and pinch them together.
- Simmer the stock with the onion and bay leaf for 20 minutes, then strain it and return it to the pan.
- Drop the dushbara into the simmering broth and cook for 4 to 5 minutes from the moment they rise to the surface.
- Serve in bowls of broth with plenty of dried mint crushed between the palms over the top.
- Hand round a small dish of vinegar with crushed garlic in it, which everyone spoons into their own bowl to taste.
- Freeze them raw on a tray and bag them once solid. Making a batch is a long afternoon, so it is worth making far more than you need.
Technique
- It is a job for several pairs of hands, and in Azerbaijan it is made communally for exactly that reason.
- Very thin dough and very little filling. The pleasure is in the broth and the count, not in the meat.
- The garlic vinegar and the dried mint are not garnishes. They are what the broth is seasoned with at the table.
Substitutions
- Wonton wrappers cut down, which is a genuine time-saver.
- Beef in place of lamb, with a little extra fat.
Variations
- Chuchvara, the Uzbek relative, served with suzma.
- Joshpara further west, which is the same idea again.
- Served drained rather than in broth, with yoghurt and garlic.
History
Tiny dumplings, traditionally small enough for eight to sit on a spoon, served in broth with vinegar and mint.
Frequently asked questions
What is Dushbara?
Dushbara is a soup & stew from Azerbaijan: broth crowded with tiny lamb dumplings, dried mint and garlic vinegar. Tiny dumplings, traditionally small enough for eight to sit on a spoon, served in broth with vinegar and mint.
How long does Dushbara take to make?
Dushbara takes 1 hr 30 min of preparation and 30 min of cooking. The recipe makes 6 servings. It is rated hard to make.
What can I substitute in Dushbara?
Yes, within limits. Wonton wrappers cut down, which is a genuine time-saver. Beef in place of lamb, with a little extra fat.
What is the most important thing to get right in Dushbara?
Two and a half centimetres is the target. Tradition holds that eight dushbara should sit on a single spoon, and while nobody actually counts, the smallness is the identity of the dish rather than a flourish.
