Now let’s cook
Kuyrdak. The name gives the game away: “қуыру” means to fry. Lamb, liver, heart, kidneys, tail fat and onion — and one kazan.
Ingredients
- 500 g lambBoneless lamb from the neck or the breast.
- 250 g lamb lungs (optional)Optional; if you cannot find them, leave them out.
- 250 g lamb liverFresh lamb liver; it cooks fastest, so it goes in last.
- 150 g lamb heartFresh lamb heart, a firm, lean muscle.
- 100 g lamb kidneysFresh lamb kidneys.
- 150 g lamb tail fatFat from the tail of fat-tailed sheep; it is rendered first, and the whole dish fries in it.
- 110 g onionYellow onion, chopped very finely by hand.
- 2.5 ml black pepperFreshly ground black pepper, added at the end.
- 7.5 ml fine saltFine table salt.
Method
Cut the lamb, heart, kidneys and, if using, the lungs into small pieces. Cut the liver the same way but keep it apart: it goes into the pot last. Chop the onion finely.
Dice the tail fat small, put it in a kazan or a heavy-based pot and keep it over a medium heat until the fat has rendered.
Add the lungs, heart, kidneys and lamb to the fat. Fry over a high heat for 15–20 minutes, stirring often, until the meat has changed colour on every side.
Add the liver, pepper and onion. Fry for about 10 minutes, stirring, until the liver is cooked through: the middle of a piece should hold 70 °C for at least 2 minutes.
Season with salt, stir, and pile the kuyrdak onto a platter straight away. Serve hot.
Where this dish comes from
Kuyrdak is one of the best-known dishes of Kazakh cuisine: it has long been made from the fresh meat and offal of a newly slaughtered animal. The name comes from the word “қуыру”, to fry. This recipe uses lamb with liver, heart and kidneys, while qara quyrdaq is made mostly from lungs and liver. Kyrgyz, Uzbek and Turkmen cooks make a similar dish.