Name: Chuchvara
Prep time: 50 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 1 h 5 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Uzbek
Ingredients: For the dough: 2 cups all-purpose flour; 1/2 cup cold water; 1/2 tsp salt; For the filling: 250g lean lamb or beef, very finely minced; 1 medium onion, grated; 1/2 tsp ground black pepper; 1/2 tsp ground cumin; 3/4 tsp salt; For the broth: 1 liter lamb or beef bone broth; 1/2 tsp dried basil; Salt to taste; To serve: sour cream, fresh cilantro, black pepper

Tiny Uzbek dumplings bobbing in a clear, herb-perfumed broth — smaller and more delicate than manti, eaten as a first course or light meal, each one a single perfect bite.

The Cultural Story

If manti is the celebration dumpling, chuchvara is the everyday one. Smaller, boiled rather than steamed, served in broth rather than dry — chuchvara occupies the same warm corner of Uzbek cuisine as tortellini in brodo does in Italy. The dumplings are made with the same thin dough as manti, but the filling is finer and the fold simpler: a small square of dough folded into a triangle, then the two base corners pinched together to form a ring shape. The result looks like a miniature tortellino. In Uzbek households, chuchvara is made on cold days, or when someone is tired, or when the family wants something comforting that is not plov. The broth matters as much as the dumplings: a properly made lamb or beef bone broth, clear and golden, with dried basil and black pepper. The sour cream served alongside is not optional — a spoonful stirred into the bowl turns the broth rich and slightly tart. Some families add a splash of wine vinegar. The folding of chuchvara is a task often assigned to children who sit around the kitchen table in production-line style while adults talk.

Ingredients

For the dough: 2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup cold water
1/2 tsp salt
For the filling: 250g lean lamb or beef, very finely minced
1 medium onion, grated
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1/2 tsp ground cumin
3/4 tsp salt
For the broth: 1 liter lamb or beef bone broth
1/2 tsp dried basil
Salt to taste
To serve: sour cream, fresh cilantro, black pepper

Instructions

1Make dough: combine flour and salt, add cold water and mix until a stiff dough forms. Knead 8 minutes. Rest covered for 20 minutes.
2Make filling: combine finely minced meat with grated onion, pepper, cumin, and salt. Mix very well.
3Roll dough as thin as possible — nearly translucent. Cut into 5-6cm squares.
4Place a small amount of filling (about 1/2 teaspoon) in the center of each square. Fold diagonally into a triangle, pressing edges to seal completely. Then bring the two wide corners of the triangle around to meet each other and pinch together, forming a ring.
5Bring broth to a simmer in a large pot with dried basil and seasoning.
6Drop chuchvara into simmering broth in batches. Cook for 8-10 minutes until the dough is tender and the filling cooked through. They will float when done.
7Serve in deep bowls with plenty of broth. Top with fresh cilantro, black pepper, and a dollop of sour cream.

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