Tatar cuisine
Encyclopedia
The Tatar cuisine is primarily the cuisine of the Volga Tatars
, who live in Tatarstan
, Russia
, and surrounding areas.
takes its origin from the cuisine of the Volga Bulgars, who once were nomads, but nearly 1500 years ego turned to agriculture and assimilated into local agricultural societies.
Tatar cuisine was influenced by the surrounding peoples – Russians
, Mari, Udmurts, and also peoples of Central Asia
, especially Uzbeks
and Tajiks. Dishes, such as plov (pılaw), halvah (xälwä), and sherbet (şirbät) entered long ago into the Tatar culture. Tatars became familiar with many elements of Russian cuisine
early in their history. However, culinary influences and greater variety of products have not changed the basic ethnic features of Tatar cuisine but have instead made it more diverse.
Geography and nature were also instrumental in the shaping of the Tatar cuisine. The location of the Tatars at the border of two geographical zones – the northern forests and the southern steppe, and also in the basin of two large rivers – the Volga and the Kama encouraged trade and considerably enriched the national cuisine. The Tatars became acquainted early in their history with rice
, tea
, dried fruit
s, walnut
s, seasoning
s, and spice
s.
The Tatar cuisine relies heavily on the main agricultural products of the region – cereals and livestock. Fruits and vegetables were much less developed in the region's agriculture, although the relative importance of the potato began to increase from the end of the 19th century. Local vegetables included onion
s, carrot
, horseradish
, turnip
s, pumpkin
s, beet
s and, in small quantities, also cucumber
s and cabbage
. Fruits were mainly grown in orchards on the right bank of Volga, including local apple
, cherries
, raspberries
, and currants
. The forests were a source for wild berries
, walnut
s, hops
, cow parsnip
, sorrel
, mint
, and common wild leek
s. Mushroom
s were not typical in traditional Tatar cooking, and they began to be used only recently, especially among the urban population. Cattle and sheep provided beef and mutton, both equally popular among the Tatars. Horse meat
was eaten boiled, salted, and cured
. Milk was used primarily in dairiy products, such as curd
s, sour cream
, etc. Poultry was widespread in local farms (chickens, geese), and eggs were a popular dish, eaten in various forms. Beekeeping
in the forest-steppe belt produced an abundance of honey for local consumption.
The dishes in Tatar cuisine can be subdivided into the following categories:
(şulpa) used as the soup base, soups are divided into meat, chicken, fish, vegetable, mushroom, etc. The soup may be thickened with noodles, grains, or vegetables – separately or in combination. Particularly popular is noodle soup served with toqmaç (home made noodles) and enriched with pieces of boiled meat or chicken from the broth.
Soups are often served with meat balls or stuffed bun
s (öçpoçmaq
, pärämäç, bawırsaq). A festive and to a certain extent ceremonial dish for the Tatar is pilmän (pelmeni
in Russian
), a kind of dumpling
filled with meat and always served in a clear soup.
, and potatoes. Meat or chicken boiled in the broth is cut into small pieces and served as a main course, sometimes quickly fried in oil with onions, carrots, and bell peppers. Boiled potatoes are a favorite side dish, with grated horseradish served as an accompaniment. A chicken stuffed with eggs in milk (tutırğan tawıq) is a special dish for holidays.
Bäliş is the oldest traditional dish combining meat and grains. Pieces of fat meat (mutton, beef, goose, or goose and duck innards) are combined with grains (millet
, spelt
, rice
) and baked in a crock
. Tutırma, an intestine filled with finely cut or chopped liver and millet or rice, is another combination of meat and grains.
Pilaw (plov) is served at dinner parties, especially in the city. A popular local version is the so-called Kazan pilaw prepared with boiled meat. Dishes combining boiled meat with noodles include qullama or bişbarmaq
, common for many Turkic peoples. Meat is stored in the winter naturally frozen; it is preserved for the spring and the summer by salting or curing. Horse meat is used to make sausages (qazılıq
); cured goose and duck are considered a delicacy.
Poultry eggs
, primarily those of chickens, are a very popular dish in Tatar cuisine. They are eaten boiled, fried, and baked.
Grains are made into a variety of porridge
s: millet, buckwheat, oatmeal, rice, peas, etc.
s, and biscuit
s. Leavened yeast dough is used to make bread (ikmäk, ipi), which is always served with meals. Bread was traditionally baked from rye flour, and only the wealthy could afford wheat bread. Today, both wheat and rye bread are found in stores.
Qabartma is a kind of yeast dough pancake that may be prepared in different ways: baked in a pan in front of an open oven fire, or fried in boiling oil in a cauldron. Qabartma is eaten hot, thickly spread with butter.
Liquid batter is also prepared with and without yeast. Pancake
s (qoymaq) are made from unleavened batter using wheat flour. Bliny-style pancakes are made from yeast batter using different types of flour (oats, peas, buckwheat, millet, wheat, or mixed). Yeast-batter qoymaq is thicker than the Russian bliny. It is usually served for breakfast, accompanied by melted butter in a small dish.
Various baked items with a savory filling are specific for the Tatar cuisine. The oldest and simplest is qıstıbí, also called küzikmäk. This is an unleavened pancake folded into two and filled with cooked millet. Since the end of the 19th century, qıstıbí has been made with mashed potatoes. Bäleş made from unleavened or fermented dough is filled with pieces of fatty meat (mutton, beef, goose, duck, etc.) mixed with grains or potatoes. Bäleş used to be made for special occasions in the shape of a low truncated cone with an opening on top. Subsequently the name began to be used for ordinary pies with different fillings, similar to the Russian pirog
. Another traditional Tatar pie is öçpoçmaq
, a triangular shell originally filled with a mixture of fatty meat and onions. Later pieces of potato began to be added to the filling. Pärämäç (peremech) is a round-shaped minced meat pie, fried and served hot sprinkled with melted butter. Except for the round shape, it is similar to the çibörek (cheburek
) of the Crimean Tatars
.
Bäkkän (or täkä), particularly widespread in rural areas, is an individual oval or crescent-shaped pie (like large pirozhki
), filled with various vegetables (mainly pumpkin, also carrots or cabbage). Sumsa is a similar pie, usually with a meat and rice filling. A special festive dish among urban Kazan Tatars is göbädiä, a tall round pie with a multilayer filling, which includes rice, dried fruit
s, and qort (a kind of dried salty cheese).
s) etc. Çäkçäk (chakchak
, chak-chak, or chek-chek) is a mound of honey-drenched sweet pastry balls, common among all Turkic peoples. It used to be a ceremonial food brought by the bride to the reception at the bridegroom's home. Today it is a common sweet. Honey is very popular in baking and on its own, served with tea.
) is a dairy drink made by diluting qatıq (katyk
, sour milk) with cold water. Quas (kvass
) is a beverage made from rye flour and malt that the Tatars have borrowed from the Russians
. A kompot
of dried apricots
is a popular dessert at dinner parties.
Another non-alcoholic sweet beverage is şirbät (sherbet
) made from honey. In the 19th and early 20th century it was a purely ceremonial drink, served to wedding guests as the "bride's sherbet" in the bridegroom's home.
Tea is a typical hospitality beverage among the Tatars. They drink hot, strong tea, usually with milk. Tea with baked sweets (qabartma, pancakes) sometimes replaces cooked breakfast.
, and baking
. Frying is primarily used for dough-based foods, much less for meats, which are typically boiled (except meat for pilaw, which requires quick frying). Both boiling and frying were traditionally done in a cast-iron cauldron
built into the side of the large kitchen stove. Baking was done in an oven. Cooking over an open fire was not common. This method was used for making pancakes (täçe qoymaq) and fried eggs (täbä).
Cast-iron utensils and crock pots
were commonly used in the oven. Large deep cast-iron pans served to bake bäleş and göbädiä. Wooden utensils were widely used for various tasks. Bread dough was kneaded in wooden troughs and then allowed to rise in wooden or wicker bowls. Butter was made in wooden churns. Honey and qatiq were stored in wooden containers. Commercially manufactured kitchen utensils, including metallic and enameled pots and pans, china, and glassware, became increasingly accepted starting in the middle of the 19th century.
Tea service has always been the subject of special attention among the Tatar. Tea is drunk from small cups (so that it remains hot). Typical Tatar cups are small and low, with a rounded bottom and a saucer. The traditional Tatar tea service invariably includes a samovar
.
The introduction of modern gas stoves and microwave ovens has led to the adoption of new cooking techniques, mainly increasing the popularity of frying (meat, fish, vegetables). The modernization of kitchenware has deprived cauldrons, cast iron pans, and many wooden utensils of their traditional role. The average family now uses a wide range of aluminum and enameled cookware.
s, kiwi
, mango
, eggplant, etc.
National cuisines of other peoples of the former Soviet Union, especially the Russian cuisine
, have influenced the modern eating habits of the Tatar. On the other hand, the uniqueness of the national Tatar dishes ensures their continued popularity among other nations.
Volga Tatars
The Volga Tatars are the largest subgroup of the Tatars, native to the Volga region.They account for roughly six out of seven million Tatars worldwide....
, who live in Tatarstan
Tatarstan
The Republic of Tatarstan is a federal subject of Russia located in the Volga Federal District. Its capital is the city of Kazan, which is one of Russia's largest and most prosperous cities. The republic borders with Kirov, Ulyanovsk, Samara, and Orenburg Oblasts, and with the Mari El, Udmurt,...
, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, and surrounding areas.
History
The cuisine of the Volga TatarsVolga Tatars
The Volga Tatars are the largest subgroup of the Tatars, native to the Volga region.They account for roughly six out of seven million Tatars worldwide....
takes its origin from the cuisine of the Volga Bulgars, who once were nomads, but nearly 1500 years ego turned to agriculture and assimilated into local agricultural societies.
Tatar cuisine was influenced by the surrounding peoples – Russians
Russians
The Russian people are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Russia, speaking the Russian language and primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries....
, Mari, Udmurts, and also peoples of Central Asia
Central Asia
Central Asia is a core region of the Asian continent from the Caspian Sea in the west, China in the east, Afghanistan in the south, and Russia in the north...
, especially Uzbeks
Uzbeks
The Uzbeks are a Turkic ethnic group in Central Asia. They comprise the majority population of Uzbekistan, and large populations can also be found in Afghanistan, Tajikstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Russia, Pakistan, Mongolia and the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China...
and Tajiks. Dishes, such as plov (pılaw), halvah (xälwä), and sherbet (şirbät) entered long ago into the Tatar culture. Tatars became familiar with many elements of Russian cuisine
Russian cuisine
Russian cuisine is diverse, as Russia is the largest country in the world. Russian cuisine derives its varied character from the vast and multi-cultural expanse of Russia. Its foundations were laid by the peasant food of the rural population in an often harsh climate, with a combination of...
early in their history. However, culinary influences and greater variety of products have not changed the basic ethnic features of Tatar cuisine but have instead made it more diverse.
Geography and nature were also instrumental in the shaping of the Tatar cuisine. The location of the Tatars at the border of two geographical zones – the northern forests and the southern steppe, and also in the basin of two large rivers – the Volga and the Kama encouraged trade and considerably enriched the national cuisine. The Tatars became acquainted early in their history with rice
Rice
Rice is the seed of the monocot plants Oryza sativa or Oryza glaberrima . As a cereal grain, it is the most important staple food for a large part of the world's human population, especially in East Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, the Middle East, and the West Indies...
, tea
Tea
Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by adding cured leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant to hot water. The term also refers to the plant itself. After water, tea is the most widely consumed beverage in the world...
, dried fruit
Dried fruit
Dried fruit is fruit where the majority of the original water content has been removed either naturally, through sun drying, or through the use of specialized dryers or dehydrators. Dried fruit has a long tradition of use dating back to the fourth millennium BC in Mesopotamia, and is prized...
s, walnut
Walnut
Juglans is a plant genus of the family Juglandaceae, the seeds of which are known as walnuts. They are deciduous trees, 10–40 meters tall , with pinnate leaves 200–900 millimetres long , with 5–25 leaflets; the shoots have chambered pith, a character shared with the wingnuts , but not the hickories...
s, seasoning
Seasoning
Seasoning is the process of imparting flavor to, or improving the flavor of, food.- General meaning :Seasonings include herbs and spices, which are themselves frequently referred to as "seasonings"...
s, and spice
Spice
A spice is a dried seed, fruit, root, bark, or vegetative substance used in nutritionally insignificant quantities as a food additive for flavor, color, or as a preservative that kills harmful bacteria or prevents their growth. It may be used to flavour a dish or to hide other flavours...
s.
The Tatar cuisine relies heavily on the main agricultural products of the region – cereals and livestock. Fruits and vegetables were much less developed in the region's agriculture, although the relative importance of the potato began to increase from the end of the 19th century. Local vegetables included onion
Onion
The onion , also known as the bulb onion, common onion and garden onion, is the most widely cultivated species of the genus Allium. The genus Allium also contains a number of other species variously referred to as onions and cultivated for food, such as the Japanese bunching onion The onion...
s, carrot
Carrot
The carrot is a root vegetable, usually orange in colour, though purple, red, white, and yellow varieties exist. It has a crisp texture when fresh...
, horseradish
Horseradish
Horseradish is a perennial plant of the Brassicaceae family, which also includes mustard, wasabi, broccoli, and cabbages. The plant is probably native to south eastern Europe and the Arab World , but is popular around the world today...
, turnip
Turnip
The turnip or white turnip is a root vegetable commonly grown in temperate climates worldwide for its white, bulbous taproot. Small, tender varieties are grown for human consumption, while larger varieties are grown as feed for livestock...
s, pumpkin
Pumpkin
A pumpkin is a gourd-like squash of the genus Cucurbita and the family Cucurbitaceae . It commonly refers to cultivars of any one of the species Cucurbita pepo, Cucurbita mixta, Cucurbita maxima, and Cucurbita moschata, and is native to North America...
s, beet
Beet
The beet is a plant in the Chenopodiaceae family which is now included in Amaranthaceae family. It is best known in its numerous cultivated varieties, the most well known of which is the purple root vegetable known as the beetroot or garden beet...
s and, in small quantities, also cucumber
Cucumber
The cucumber is a widely cultivated plant in the gourd family Cucurbitaceae, which includes squash, and in the same genus as the muskmelon. The plant is a creeping vine which bears cylindrical edible fruit when ripe. There are three main varieties of cucumber: "slicing", "pickling", and...
s and cabbage
Cabbage
Cabbage is a popular cultivar of the species Brassica oleracea Linne of the Family Brassicaceae and is a leafy green vegetable...
. Fruits were mainly grown in orchards on the right bank of Volga, including local apple
Apple
The apple is the pomaceous fruit of the apple tree, species Malus domestica in the rose family . It is one of the most widely cultivated tree fruits, and the most widely known of the many members of genus Malus that are used by humans. Apple grow on small, deciduous trees that blossom in the spring...
, cherries
Cherry
The cherry is the fruit of many plants of the genus Prunus, and is a fleshy stone fruit. The cherry fruits of commerce are usually obtained from a limited number of species, including especially cultivars of the wild cherry, Prunus avium....
, raspberries
Raspberry
The raspberry or hindberry is the edible fruit of a multitude of plant species in the genus Rubus, most of which are in the subgenus Idaeobatus; the name also applies to these plants themselves...
, and currants
Ribes
Ribes is a genus of about 150 species of flowering plants native throughout the temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. It is usually treated as the only genus in the family Grossulariaceae. Seven subgenera are recognized....
. The forests were a source for wild berries
Berry
The botanical definition of a berry is a fleshy fruit produced from a single ovary. Grapes are an example. The berry is the most common type of fleshy fruit in which the entire ovary wall ripens into an edible pericarp. They may have one or more carpels with a thin covering and fleshy interiors....
, walnut
Walnut
Juglans is a plant genus of the family Juglandaceae, the seeds of which are known as walnuts. They are deciduous trees, 10–40 meters tall , with pinnate leaves 200–900 millimetres long , with 5–25 leaflets; the shoots have chambered pith, a character shared with the wingnuts , but not the hickories...
s, hops
Hops
Hops are the female flower clusters , of a hop species, Humulus lupulus. They are used primarily as a flavoring and stability agent in beer, to which they impart a bitter, tangy flavor, though hops are also used for various purposes in other beverages and herbal medicine...
, cow parsnip
Cow Parsnip
The Cow Parsnip is the only member of the genus Heracleum native to North America. Its classification has caused some difficulty, with recent authoritative sources referring to it variously as Heracleum maximum or Heracleum lanatum , as H. linatum, or as either a subspecies, H...
, sorrel
Sorrel
Common sorrel or garden sorrel , often simply called sorrel, is a perennial herb that is cultivated as a garden herb or leaf vegetable...
, mint
Mentha
Mentha is a genus of flowering plants in the family Lamiaceae . The species are not clearly distinct and estimates of the number of species varies from 13 to 18. Hybridization between some of the species occurs naturally...
, and common wild leek
Leek
The leek, Allium ampeloprasum var. porrum , also sometimes known as Allium porrum, is a vegetable which belongs, along with the onion and garlic, to family Amaryllidaceae, subfamily Allioideae...
s. Mushroom
Mushroom
A mushroom is the fleshy, spore-bearing fruiting body of a fungus, typically produced above ground on soil or on its food source. The standard for the name "mushroom" is the cultivated white button mushroom, Agaricus bisporus; hence the word "mushroom" is most often applied to those fungi that...
s were not typical in traditional Tatar cooking, and they began to be used only recently, especially among the urban population. Cattle and sheep provided beef and mutton, both equally popular among the Tatars. Horse meat
Horse meat
Horse meat is the culinary name for meat cut from a horse. It is a major meat in only a few countries, notably in Central Asia, but it forms a significant part of the culinary traditions of many others, from Europe to South America to Asia. The top eight countries consume about 4.7 million horses...
was eaten boiled, salted, and cured
Curing (food preservation)
Curing refers to various food preservation and flavoring processes, especially of meat or fish, by the addition of a combination of salt, nitrates, nitrite or sugar. Many curing processes also involve smoking, the process of flavoring, or cooking...
. Milk was used primarily in dairiy products, such as curd
Curd
Curds are a dairy product obtained by curdling milk with rennet or an edible acidic substance such as lemon juice or vinegar, and then draining off the liquid portion. The increased acidity causes the milk proteins to tangle into solid masses, or curds. The remaining liquid, which contains only...
s, sour cream
Sour cream
Sour cream is a dairy product rich in fats obtained by fermenting a regular cream by certain kinds of lactic acid bacteria. The bacterial culture, which is introduced either deliberately or naturally, sours and thickens the cream. Its name stems from the production of lactic acid by bacterial...
, etc. Poultry was widespread in local farms (chickens, geese), and eggs were a popular dish, eaten in various forms. Beekeeping
Beekeeping
Beekeeping is the maintenance of honey bee colonies, commonly in hives, by humans. A beekeeper keeps bees in order to collect honey and other products of the hive , to pollinate crops, or to produce bees for sale to other beekeepers...
in the forest-steppe belt produced an abundance of honey for local consumption.
Traditional Tatar cuisine
- hot soups,
- main courses,
- baked items with a savory filling (also eaten as main course),
- dough-based dishes (pastaPastaPasta is a staple food of traditional Italian cuisine, now of worldwide renown. It takes the form of unleavened dough, made in Italy, mostly of durum wheat , water and sometimes eggs. Pasta comes in a variety of different shapes that serve for both decoration and to act as a carrier for the...
), - sweet baked items and other sweets, usually served with tea.
Soups
Depending on the brothBroth
Broth is a liquid food preparation, typically consisting of either water or an already flavored stock, in which bones, meat, fish, cereal grains, or vegetables have been simmered. Broth is used as a basis for other edible liquids such as soup, gravy, or sauce. It can be eaten alone or with garnish...
(şulpa) used as the soup base, soups are divided into meat, chicken, fish, vegetable, mushroom, etc. The soup may be thickened with noodles, grains, or vegetables – separately or in combination. Particularly popular is noodle soup served with toqmaç (home made noodles) and enriched with pieces of boiled meat or chicken from the broth.
Soups are often served with meat balls or stuffed bun
Bun
A bun is a small, usually sweet, bread. Commonly they are hand-sized or smaller, domed in shape, with a flat bottom. A bun can also be a savory bread roll similar to a bap or barmcake....
s (öçpoçmaq
Öçpoçmaq
Öçpoçmaq is a Tatar national dish, an essential food in Tatar culture. Usually, öçpoçmaq is a triangular pastry, filled with minced beef, onion and potatoes. Öçpoçmaq is eaten with bouillon or with tea....
, pärämäç, bawırsaq). A festive and to a certain extent ceremonial dish for the Tatar is pilmän (pelmeni
Pelmeni
Pelmeni are dumplings consisting of a filling wrapped in thin, unleavened dough that originated in Siberia and is a dish of Russian cuisine. Pelmeni are common in Russia and have similar names in other languages: , pyal’meni; pilmän; , pel’meni; ; .- Ingredients :The dough is made from flour and...
in Russian
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
), a kind of dumpling
Dumpling
Dumplings are cooked balls of dough. They are based on flour, potatoes or bread, and may include meat, fish, vegetables, or sweets. They may be cooked by boiling, steaming, simmering, frying, or baking. They may have a filling, or there may be other ingredients mixed into the dough. Dumplings may...
filled with meat and always served in a clear soup.
Main courses
Main dishes are usually based on meat, grainsCereal
Cereals are grasses cultivated for the edible components of their grain , composed of the endosperm, germ, and bran...
, and potatoes. Meat or chicken boiled in the broth is cut into small pieces and served as a main course, sometimes quickly fried in oil with onions, carrots, and bell peppers. Boiled potatoes are a favorite side dish, with grated horseradish served as an accompaniment. A chicken stuffed with eggs in milk (tutırğan tawıq) is a special dish for holidays.
Bäliş is the oldest traditional dish combining meat and grains. Pieces of fat meat (mutton, beef, goose, or goose and duck innards) are combined with grains (millet
Millet
The millets are a group of small-seeded species of cereal crops or grains, widely grown around the world for food and fodder. They do not form a taxonomic group, but rather a functional or agronomic one. Their essential similarities are that they are small-seeded grasses grown in difficult...
, spelt
Spelt
Spelt is a hexaploid species of wheat. Spelt was an important staple in parts of Europe from the Bronze Age to medieval times; it now survives as a relict crop in Central Europe and northern Spain and has found a new market as a health food. Spelt is sometimes considered a subspecies of the...
, rice
Rice
Rice is the seed of the monocot plants Oryza sativa or Oryza glaberrima . As a cereal grain, it is the most important staple food for a large part of the world's human population, especially in East Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, the Middle East, and the West Indies...
) and baked in a crock
Crock (dishware)
A crock is a pottery container sometimes used for food and water, synonymous with the word pot, and sometimes used for chemicals. Derivative terms include crockery and crock-pot.A gypsy's crock is a cooking pot.-External links:...
. Tutırma, an intestine filled with finely cut or chopped liver and millet or rice, is another combination of meat and grains.
Pilaw (plov) is served at dinner parties, especially in the city. A popular local version is the so-called Kazan pilaw prepared with boiled meat. Dishes combining boiled meat with noodles include qullama or bişbarmaq
Beshbarmak
Beshbarmak is a popular dish in Kyrgyzstan. Its analogue in Kazakhstan is called yet or "".The term Beshbarmak means "five fingers", because the dish is eaten with one's hands. The boiled meat is usually diced with knives and often mixed with boiled noodles. It is usually served in a big round...
, common for many Turkic peoples. Meat is stored in the winter naturally frozen; it is preserved for the spring and the summer by salting or curing. Horse meat is used to make sausages (qazılıq
Kazy
Kazy or kazi is a traditional sausage-like food of Kazakhs, Tatars, Kyrgyz, and other ethnic groups mainly of Central Asia, particularly those of Turkic origin. Kazy is a common element on a dastarkhan, a table set for a festive meal.-Preparation:...
); cured goose and duck are considered a delicacy.
Poultry eggs
Egg (food)
Eggs are laid by females of many different species, including birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish, and have probably been eaten by mankind for millennia. Bird and reptile eggs consist of a protective eggshell, albumen , and vitellus , contained within various thin membranes...
, primarily those of chickens, are a very popular dish in Tatar cuisine. They are eaten boiled, fried, and baked.
Grains are made into a variety of porridge
Porridge
Porridge is a dish made by boiling oats or other cereal meals in water, milk, or both. It is usually served hot in a bowl or dish...
s: millet, buckwheat, oatmeal, rice, peas, etc.
Baked foods
A wide variety of dough dishes is a feature of the traditional Tatar cuisine. Unleavened dough is traditionally used for buns, both sweet and savory, flatbreadFlatbread
A flatbread is a simple bread made with flour, water, and salt and then thoroughly rolled into flattened dough. Many flatbreads are unleavened: made without yeast or sourdough culture: although some flatbread is made with yeast, such as pita bread....
s, and biscuit
Biscuit
A biscuit is a baked, edible, and commonly flour-based product. The term is used to apply to two distinctly different products in North America and the Commonwealth Nations....
s. Leavened yeast dough is used to make bread (ikmäk, ipi), which is always served with meals. Bread was traditionally baked from rye flour, and only the wealthy could afford wheat bread. Today, both wheat and rye bread are found in stores.
Qabartma is a kind of yeast dough pancake that may be prepared in different ways: baked in a pan in front of an open oven fire, or fried in boiling oil in a cauldron. Qabartma is eaten hot, thickly spread with butter.
Liquid batter is also prepared with and without yeast. Pancake
Pancake
A pancake is a thin, flat, round cake prepared from a batter, and cooked on a hot griddle or frying pan. Most pancakes are quick breads; some use a yeast-raised or fermented batter. Most pancakes are cooked one side on a griddle and flipped partway through to cook the other side...
s (qoymaq) are made from unleavened batter using wheat flour. Bliny-style pancakes are made from yeast batter using different types of flour (oats, peas, buckwheat, millet, wheat, or mixed). Yeast-batter qoymaq is thicker than the Russian bliny. It is usually served for breakfast, accompanied by melted butter in a small dish.
Various baked items with a savory filling are specific for the Tatar cuisine. The oldest and simplest is qıstıbí, also called küzikmäk. This is an unleavened pancake folded into two and filled with cooked millet. Since the end of the 19th century, qıstıbí has been made with mashed potatoes. Bäleş made from unleavened or fermented dough is filled with pieces of fatty meat (mutton, beef, goose, duck, etc.) mixed with grains or potatoes. Bäleş used to be made for special occasions in the shape of a low truncated cone with an opening on top. Subsequently the name began to be used for ordinary pies with different fillings, similar to the Russian pirog
Pirog
thumb|right|A fish pyrih .Pirog is a large Russian pie that can have either a sweet or savoury filling....
. Another traditional Tatar pie is öçpoçmaq
Öçpoçmaq
Öçpoçmaq is a Tatar national dish, an essential food in Tatar culture. Usually, öçpoçmaq is a triangular pastry, filled with minced beef, onion and potatoes. Öçpoçmaq is eaten with bouillon or with tea....
, a triangular shell originally filled with a mixture of fatty meat and onions. Later pieces of potato began to be added to the filling. Pärämäç (peremech) is a round-shaped minced meat pie, fried and served hot sprinkled with melted butter. Except for the round shape, it is similar to the çibörek (cheburek
Chiburekki
Chiburekki is a fried turnover with a filling of ground or minced meat and onions. It is similar to the peremech of the Volga Tatars, but made with a single round piece of dough folded over the filling in a half-moon shape...
) of the Crimean Tatars
Crimean Tatars
Crimean Tatars or Crimeans are a Turkic ethnic group that originally resided in Crimea. They speak the Crimean Tatar language...
.
Bäkkän (or täkä), particularly widespread in rural areas, is an individual oval or crescent-shaped pie (like large pirozhki
Pirozhki
Pirozhki , sometimes transliterated as piroshki , is a generic word for individual-sized baked or fried buns stuffed with a variety of fillings. The stress in pirozhki is properly placed on the last syllable: . Pirozhok is the diminutive form of the Russian cognate pirog , which refers to a...
), filled with various vegetables (mainly pumpkin, also carrots or cabbage). Sumsa is a similar pie, usually with a meat and rice filling. A special festive dish among urban Kazan Tatars is göbädiä, a tall round pie with a multilayer filling, which includes rice, dried fruit
Dried fruit
Dried fruit is fruit where the majority of the original water content has been removed either naturally, through sun drying, or through the use of specialized dryers or dehydrators. Dried fruit has a long tradition of use dating back to the fourth millennium BC in Mesopotamia, and is prized...
s, and qort (a kind of dried salty cheese).
Sweets
The Tatar cuisine offers a variety of baked sweets, usually served with tea: çelpek (deep-fried pancakes), qatlama (a baked roll with a variety of fillings – poppy seeds, sesame seeds, qort, nuts), qoş tele ("bird's tongue", deep-fried squares or diamonds of unleavened dough), lawaş (fried dumplings filled with raisins), paştet (sweet pies filled with jam or dried fruitDried fruit
Dried fruit is fruit where the majority of the original water content has been removed either naturally, through sun drying, or through the use of specialized dryers or dehydrators. Dried fruit has a long tradition of use dating back to the fourth millennium BC in Mesopotamia, and is prized...
s) etc. Çäkçäk (chakchak
Çäkçäk
Çäkçäk ), frequently anglicized as chak-chak , is a Tatar sweet. It is particularly popular in Tatarstan and Bashkortostan, and is recognized as Tatarstan's national sweet in Russia....
, chak-chak, or chek-chek) is a mound of honey-drenched sweet pastry balls, common among all Turkic peoples. It used to be a ceremonial food brought by the bride to the reception at the bridegroom's home. Today it is a common sweet. Honey is very popular in baking and on its own, served with tea.
Beverages
Äyrän (ayranAyran
Ayran or laban is a cold beverage of yogurt mixed with cold water and sometimes salt; it is popular in many Central Asian, Middle Eastern and South-eastern European countries....
) is a dairy drink made by diluting qatıq (katyk
Kazakh cuisine
Kazakh cuisine is the cuisine of Kazakhstan. Traditional Kazakh cuisine revolves around mutton and horse meat and as well as various milk products. For hundreds of years Kazakhs were herders who raised fat-tailed sheep, Bactrian camels, and horses, relying on these animals for transportation,...
, sour milk) with cold water. Quas (kvass
Kvass
Kvass, kvas, quass or gira, gėra is a fermented beverage made from black...
) is a beverage made from rye flour and malt that the Tatars have borrowed from the Russians
Russians
The Russian people are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Russia, speaking the Russian language and primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries....
. A kompot
Kompot
thumb|Dried plum kompotthumb|Apple and quince kompotKompot is a traditional drink in Central and Eastern European countries. It is a light, refreshing drink most often made of dried or fresh fruit boiled in water with sugar and left to cool and infuse...
of dried apricots
Dried fruit
Dried fruit is fruit where the majority of the original water content has been removed either naturally, through sun drying, or through the use of specialized dryers or dehydrators. Dried fruit has a long tradition of use dating back to the fourth millennium BC in Mesopotamia, and is prized...
is a popular dessert at dinner parties.
Another non-alcoholic sweet beverage is şirbät (sherbet
Sharbat
Sharbat or Sherbet is a popular Middle Eastern and South Asian drink that is prepared from fruits or flower petals. It is sweet and served chilled...
) made from honey. In the 19th and early 20th century it was a purely ceremonial drink, served to wedding guests as the "bride's sherbet" in the bridegroom's home.
Tea is a typical hospitality beverage among the Tatars. They drink hot, strong tea, usually with milk. Tea with baked sweets (qabartma, pancakes) sometimes replaces cooked breakfast.
Cooking methods and utensils
Food is prepared in traditional Tatar cuisine mainly by boiling, fryingFrying
Frying is the cooking of food in oil or another fat, a technique that originated in ancient Egypt around 2500 BC. Chemically, oils and fats are the same, differing only in melting point, but the distinction is only made when needed. In commerce, many fats are called oils by custom, e.g...
, and baking
Baking
Baking is the technique of prolonged cooking of food by dry heat acting by convection, and not by radiation, normally in an oven, but also in hot ashes, or on hot stones. It is primarily used for the preparation of bread, cakes, pastries and pies, tarts, quiches, cookies and crackers. Such items...
. Frying is primarily used for dough-based foods, much less for meats, which are typically boiled (except meat for pilaw, which requires quick frying). Both boiling and frying were traditionally done in a cast-iron cauldron
Cauldron
A cauldron or caldron is a large metal pot for cooking and/or boiling over an open fire, with a large mouth and frequently with an arc-shaped hanger.- Etymology :...
built into the side of the large kitchen stove. Baking was done in an oven. Cooking over an open fire was not common. This method was used for making pancakes (täçe qoymaq) and fried eggs (täbä).
Cast-iron utensils and crock pots
Crock (dishware)
A crock is a pottery container sometimes used for food and water, synonymous with the word pot, and sometimes used for chemicals. Derivative terms include crockery and crock-pot.A gypsy's crock is a cooking pot.-External links:...
were commonly used in the oven. Large deep cast-iron pans served to bake bäleş and göbädiä. Wooden utensils were widely used for various tasks. Bread dough was kneaded in wooden troughs and then allowed to rise in wooden or wicker bowls. Butter was made in wooden churns. Honey and qatiq were stored in wooden containers. Commercially manufactured kitchen utensils, including metallic and enameled pots and pans, china, and glassware, became increasingly accepted starting in the middle of the 19th century.
Tea service has always been the subject of special attention among the Tatar. Tea is drunk from small cups (so that it remains hot). Typical Tatar cups are small and low, with a rounded bottom and a saucer. The traditional Tatar tea service invariably includes a samovar
Samovar
A samovar is a heated metal container traditionally used to heat and boil water in and around Russia, as well as in other Central, South-Eastern, Eastern European countries,Kashmir and in the Middle-East...
.
The introduction of modern gas stoves and microwave ovens has led to the adoption of new cooking techniques, mainly increasing the popularity of frying (meat, fish, vegetables). The modernization of kitchenware has deprived cauldrons, cast iron pans, and many wooden utensils of their traditional role. The average family now uses a wide range of aluminum and enameled cookware.
Modern cuisine
The Tatar cuisine, while preserving the national traditions, has undergone substantial changes. Economic and cultural changes have introduced many new dishes, enriching the traditional cuisine. More fruits and vegetables are now used than traditionally, fish has become more popular, mushrooms, tomatoes, and pickles are in common use. The opening up of international trade has given access to fruits and vegetables that were previously regarded as exotic, i.e., bananaBanana
Banana is the common name for herbaceous plants of the genus Musa and for the fruit they produce. Bananas come in a variety of sizes and colors when ripe, including yellow, purple, and red....
s, kiwi
Kiwi
Kiwi are flightless birds endemic to New Zealand, in the genus Apteryx and family Apterygidae.At around the size of a domestic chicken, kiwi are by far the smallest living ratites and lay the largest egg in relation to their body size of any species of bird in the world...
, mango
Mango
The mango is a fleshy stone fruit belonging to the genus Mangifera, consisting of numerous tropical fruiting trees in the flowering plant family Anacardiaceae. The mango is native to India from where it spread all over the world. It is also the most cultivated fruit of the tropical world. While...
, eggplant, etc.
National cuisines of other peoples of the former Soviet Union, especially the Russian cuisine
Russian cuisine
Russian cuisine is diverse, as Russia is the largest country in the world. Russian cuisine derives its varied character from the vast and multi-cultural expanse of Russia. Its foundations were laid by the peasant food of the rural population in an often harsh climate, with a combination of...
, have influenced the modern eating habits of the Tatar. On the other hand, the uniqueness of the national Tatar dishes ensures their continued popularity among other nations.
Anglicized names of Tatar dishes
- Äyrän – ayranAyranAyran or laban is a cold beverage of yogurt mixed with cold water and sometimes salt; it is popular in many Central Asian, Middle Eastern and South-eastern European countries....
- Bäleş – belesh
- Bäkkän – bekken
- Bawırsaq – bavyrsak
- Börek – burekBurekBörek is a family of baked or fried filled pastries made of a thin flaky dough known as yufka . It can be filled with cheese, often feta, sirene or kaşar; minced meat, or vegetables...
- ÇäkçäkÇäkçäkÇäkçäk ), frequently anglicized as chak-chak , is a Tatar sweet. It is particularly popular in Tatarstan and Bashkortostan, and is recognized as Tatarstan's national sweet in Russia....
– chakchak - Chee-börek – ChiburekkiChiburekkiChiburekki is a fried turnover with a filling of ground or minced meat and onions. It is similar to the peremech of the Volga Tatars, but made with a single round piece of dough folded over the filling in a half-moon shape...
- Göbädiä – gubadia
- ÖçpoçmaqÖçpoçmaqÖçpoçmaq is a Tatar national dish, an essential food in Tatar culture. Usually, öçpoçmaq is a triangular pastry, filled with minced beef, onion and potatoes. Öçpoçmaq is eaten with bouillon or with tea....
– echpochmak, ochpochmak - Pärämäç – peremech
- Pilmän – pilmen
- QıstıbíQistibiQistibi is a popular traditional dish in Tatarstan and Bashkortostan. Qistibi is made from the roasted flat cake with various fillings inside. The dough should be non-fermented. The most popular filling is mashed potato but it may also be ragout or couscous. Filling is being placed on the one half...
– kystybyi - Şulpa – shulpa
- Toqmaç – tokmach
- Tutırğan tawıq – tutyrgan tavyk
- Tutırma – tutyrma
See also
- Crimean Tatar cuisineCrimean Tatar cuisineThe Crimean Tatar cuisine is primarily the cuisine of the Crimean Tatars, who live on the Crimean Peninsula in Ukraine.Crimean Tatars have lived on the Black Sea peninsula of Crimea at least since the 13th century...