Dagestan cuisine – where and what to eat for tourists
From this article you will learn about the traditional cuisine of the peoples of Dagestan, what is special about it, we will list the main national dishes that you definitely need to try. And you can learn more not only about the cuisine, but also about interesting places of the Republic, as well as share your experience about traveling in this beautiful region or ask other tourists a question 💬 in our chat in Dagestan.
This article has been translated from Russian language using an artificial intelligence-based translation algorithm. We apologize for any inconvenience caused by the quality of the translation. You can read the original of this article in Russian here, and ask questions on the topic of our travel forum in English here.
Where can I eat in Dagestan
Dagestan attracts travelers not only with its unique and ancient monuments, but also with its distinctive culture. However, neither one nor the other would be appreciated without the traditional Dagestani cuisine. More than a third of the questions in our chat on Dagestan relate to the peculiarities of cuisine and traditional dishes that are definitely worth a try.
Wherever you travel in Dagestan, you will not stay hungry. Dagestanis are very friendly to guests and invite them to gladly share a meal with them. There are many cafes and fast food outlets here, they can be found even in small villages, along roads and at the main attractions. There are no chain catering restaurants in Dagestan, but in large cities you can easily find local cafes and restaurants with national, European and Asian cuisine at almost every turn. Prices for dishes are reasonable everywhere, and they cook very tasty in Dagestan. If you need to eat everyday and inexpensively, then you can find canteens here.
Kitchen features
Dagestan is a multinational republic, it is home to more than 14 nationalities: Avars, Kumyks, Dargins, Laks, Tabasarans, Aguls, Lezgins and others. Everyone has their own peculiarities of cooking traditional dishes, which are carefully preserved and passed down from generation to generation. Nevertheless, in general, the cuisine of the Caucasian peoples is similar in many ways.
It is hearty and flavorful. The basis of Dagestani cuisine consists of simple and affordable products: meat, dairy products, flour products, vegetables, legumes, fruits, spices, spices and herbs. Lamb and beef are preferred from meat, less often chicken. Pork is banned in Dagestan.
What is worth a try
- Miracle is the most common dish that you will find everywhere. Large fragrant tortillas perfectly complement the main dishes, and sometimes replace lunch or dinner. These are round closed pies with fillings of cottage cheese, potatoes, meat, pumpkin, cheese with greens. The dough can be thin and thick, fried miraculously in a dry frying pan and smeared with melted butter on top. Among different peoples you can find the names Botischal, Berkal, Burkiv, Afarar. But no matter how they are called and cooked, they are always very tasty and satisfying.
- Khinkal is the most popular Dagestani dish resembling manti. They can be different in shape, flour composition, dough thickness, with meat filling inside or separately meat and dough pieces. Served with or without broth, red or white sauce is served separately. One of the varieties of hinkal is called Halpama (haltama), corn flour is used for the dough.
- Kurze are similar to dumplings or dumplings. As a filling, potatoes, cottage cheese, minced meat, seasonings are used. Served with sauce.
- Shish kebab – no menu can do without it. The main condition for the most delicious shish kebab is fresh meat, spices, spices, fresh herbs, sauce and flatbread.
- Sokhta (Sukhta) – boiled liver sausage in a natural shell with onions and spices.
- Burchak-shurpa is a very hearty and rich lamb soup with homemade noodles, vegetables and beans.
- Dried meat. In a cafe, as an independent dish, of course, is not served, but soups and broths are prepared from it. Such a product can even be taken with you on the road, because it is stored for a long time, thanks to salt preservation and proper drying. You can meet the ruins with pieces of this in the markets.
- Apricot porridge is a sweet and fragrant puree, which is prepared from fresh apricots or dried apricots, butter, with the addition of flour and urbech.
- Urbech is a sweet nut paste made from almonds, hazelnuts, peanuts, cashews, sesame, apricot, flax seeds, pumpkin, sunflower, milk thistle. It can consist of one type of nuts, or several. Urbech can be eaten as an independent dish, or added to other dishes. Urbech with flax seeds is the most popular in Dagestan.
- Bakhukh is the most common dessert in Dagestan. It is made from melted or butter, flour and honey. After cooling, cut the hardened mass into diamonds or cubes.
- Tea is a favorite drink. Herbs collected in the mountains have a unique and bright aroma. Herbal teas with mint, oregano, lemon balm, thyme, honey or milk will perfectly quench thirst and fill the body with new strength.
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