Shorpo

1. 1A clear, brothy soup built on simmered mutton (or beef) on the bone
2. 2Large chunks of meat and whole-cut vegetables (potato, carrot, onion)
3. 3Minimal spicing — letting the meat and broth flavor dominate
4. 4Served as a one-bowl meal of broth, meat and vegetables together
5. 5A nomadic-pastoral staple of the steppe

Simmering bone-in meat

Long gentle simmering of bones and meat extracts a rich yet clear, well-flavored broth — the heart of the dish

Skimming

Removing foam keeps the broth clear, which is characteristic of the soup

Staged vegetable addition

Adding vegetables in chunks later keeps them intact and not mushy

Served

In a deep bowl, broth with meat and vegetables

Temperature

hot

Portion

single large bowl, often a full meal

Pairs with

non / flatbread · fresh herbs · tea

• Mutton → Beefadmissible

  Both are traditional for the broth

• Bone-in meat → Boneless lean meatinadmissible

  Loses the body and richness the bones give the broth

• Clear simple broth → Heavily spiced thick stewinadmissible

  Over-spicing or thickening turns it into a different dish

• Potato/carrot → Other root vegetablesadmissible

  Vegetable mix can flex

• Boiling too hard, clouding the broth instead of keeping it clear
• Over-spicing and losing the clean meat-forward flavor
• Using boneless meat and getting a thin, weak broth
• Overcooking the vegetables into mush

A clear meat-and-vegetable soup of the Central Asian steppe, shared by Kyrgyz, Kazakh and Uzbek nomadic-pastoral cultures and considered a daily staple.

Shared by: Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan

1. 1.Kyrgyz and Central Asian steppe culinary tradition

Confidence: high