Ingredients
Meat
- 1.2 kglamb on the bone, in large pieces
- 100 glamb fat, optional
Pulses
- 200 gdried chickpeas, soaked overnight
Broth
- 3 litreswater
- 1onion, whole
- 2bay leaves
- 1 tsppeppercorns
- salt
Vegetables
- 6small potatoes
- 3carrots, in chunks
- 2onions, sliced
- 2tomatoes
- 1turnip, optional
- 1green pepper
To finish
- a large handful of coriander and dill
- black pepper
- 1 tspground cumin
To serve
- non bread
- sliced raw onion
- green tea
Directions
- Soak the chickpeas overnight in plenty of cold water. Unsoaked chickpeas will still be hard after three hours, and they will never catch up with the meat.
- Drain the chickpeas and rinse them well. Put the lamb in a large pot and cover with cold water. Start in cold water rather than hot, which draws the flavour into the broth.
- Bring it slowly to a boil and skim off the grey scum as it rises. Skim thoroughly in the first fifteen minutes, before the scum disperses.
- Add the soaked chickpeas, the whole onion, bay and peppercorns. Never boil it. Simmer, partly covered, for 1 hour 30 minutes. Skim occasionally, but leave some fat, which is expected in Central Asian soups. Add salt after the first hour.
- Salt added at the very start slows chickpeas softening, so it goes in once they are on their way. Keep them large: whole small potatoes, thick chunks of carrot, quartered tomatoes.
- Simmer a further 30 to 40 minutes until the potatoes and chickpeas are tender. They should be completely soft and creamy inside, not merely edible. Add the ground cumin near the end. Taste the broth and season it properly, because it is thin and unforgiving of under-seasoning.
- Serve that first, with bread and raw onion, as the meat course. The broth should be golden, faintly cloudy from the chickpeas, and taste strongly of lamb and cumin.
Technique
- The chickpeas are what distinguish Tajik shurbo from Kyrgyz shorpo.
- It is cooked over a fire in a kazan in rural households.
- Some versions add mung beans or rice.
Substitutions
- Tinned chickpeas, added only for the last 30 minutes.
- Beef in place of lamb, which needs longer.
Variations
- With mung beans added.
- Made with the meat fried first, for a darker soup.
- With quince, which is added in some regions.
History
Lamb, chickpea and vegetable soup served in bowls after the meat.
Frequently asked questions
What is Shurbo?
Shurbo is a soup & stew from Tajikistan: slow lamb soup with potato and chickpeas. Lamb, chickpea and vegetable soup served in bowls after the meat.
How long does Shurbo take to make?
Shurbo takes 20 min plus overnight soaking of preparation and 2 hr 30 min of cooking. The recipe makes 6 servings. It is rated easy to make.
What can I substitute in Shurbo?
Yes, within limits. Tinned chickpeas, added only for the last 30 minutes. Beef in place of lamb, which needs longer.
What is the most important thing to get right in Shurbo?
Soak the chickpeas overnight in plenty of cold water. Unsoaked chickpeas will still be hard after three hours, and they will never catch up with the meat.
