Lagman

While we were in Kazakhstan adopting our son we got to try some really amazing foods. Our favorite of these was Lagman. It is a wonderful noodle dish that is a bit like spaghetti and yet completely different than spaghetti. Confused yet? It is like spaghetti in that it is a noodle dish with what we thought was a tomato based sauce on top of it. While the sauce does contain tomatoes they are really not the main ingredient.

The noodles in Lagman are much thicker than sphaghetti noodles. They are more of an egg noodle like you would find in chicken and noodles. I have heard of people trying to make lagman using packaged sphaghetti noodles but that is completely the wrong way to go. The noodles are what really make this dish what it is.

In the past year and a half I have tried a few Lagman recipes but none of them were quite like what we had in Kazakhstan. So I combined a few different recipes adding and removing ingredients until I came up with the following recipe. This makes a wonderful Lagman that was just like what we had in Kaz.

Lagman Recipe

Noodle dough:

4 cups flour

1-1/2 tsp. salt

2 eggs

1/2 cup water

Tudzuk (stew):
1/2 cup butter

4 cups thinly sliced onions

2 lbs. meat (lamb or beef)*

4 cups cubed potatoes

2 cups thinly sliced carrots

4 cups sliced tomatoes

1/4 cup minced garlic

2 cups red bell peppers, seeded and thinly sliced

6 cups thinly sliced cabbage

1 tbsp. salt

2 tsp. pepper

16 cups (1 gallon) water

To make the dough, stir together the flour and salt, then make a well in the center. Whisk together the water and eggs, then pour this into the center of the flour. Stir the dough until a thick mass is formed, then turn out onto a smooth surface and knead for about 10 minutes until the dough becomes smooth and pliable. Divide the dough into two pieces, then cover one of the pieces while you work with the other. Let the dough dry. Once dry, roll out the dough to 1/4 inch thickness, then cut into thin strips.

Begin to prepare the stew. In a large soup pot, melt the butter over medium heat, then saute the onions for ten minutes, until they turn light gold. Add the potatoes. Add the meat and fry until it gives off its juices. Add the carrots, tomatoes, garlic and red bell peppers; mix well and fry, stirring frequently, until the vegetables are half-cooked. Stir in the cabbage, salt and pepper, then cover with cold water. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, until the vegetables are cooked through.

Boil the noodles for two minutes, then transfer them from the water to a colander. Drain the noodles, spoon a layer into each serving plate, and pour the stew on top of them; if you wish, you may add a second layer each of noodles and stew. Serve hot.

*I used flat iron steak to make my lagman and it worked wonderfully. I personally do not care for lamb but many traditional versions of lagman do use lamb.

This is not the best quality photo but it gives a good idea of what lagman should look like. (i need to work on my food photographing skills)