Uygur Lagman

Ingredients for 6 servings:

• 700 g flour
• 2 eggs
• 200 ml water
• Salt
• vegetable oil
• 1 liter meat broth
• 500 g lean lamb
• 1 radish(s), green
• 1 radish(s), white
• 1 kohlrabi (repa)
• 2 carrots
• 2 onions
• 2 bell peppers
• 1 celery
• 3 tomatoes, peeled
• 3 cloves garlic
• 2 potatoes
• 1 tsp cumin
• 3 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 star anise
• Salt
• pepper
• n. B. Fresh herbs (coriander, dill, parsley), chopped

Instructions

Working time approx. 2 hours; Rest time approx. 2 hours; Cooking/baking time approx. 30 minutes; Total time approx. 4 hours 30 minutes

Noodle stew from Central Asia – with description of noodle making

Beat the eggs in the water, season with salt, and gradually add the flour. Knead into a dough. The dough should be so firm that you can basically only work it with your fists. Cover with foil and let it rest for an hour. Then divide the dough into portions and roll it into fairly thick sausages. Unlike spaghetti, lagman noodles are not rolled but stretched. To do this, rub the sausages with a little vegetable oil, take one between both hands, and pull one end through the other hand until it has doubled in length. While the first roll rests, pull the rest in the same way. Then pull everything a second time in the same way. For the third round, roll it out on an oiled work surface. The length is now quite considerable, so the noodles are oiled again, laid out in a spiral, and left to rest again. For a ceremonial finish, wrap two or three strands of noodles around both hands, lift, and vigorously spin downwards. This is repeated several times until the noodles are so long that you can almost stand with your arms outstretched. Cook in briskly boiling, heavily salted water for about three minutes. When added to the water, the raw noodles should not touch the bottom of the pot. Drain or remove with a slotted spoon and refresh in cold water. Making noodles is very time-consuming. That’s why you can buy them ready-made from specialists at markets in Central Asia and save yourself the trouble. As an alternative, you can use spaghetti, but the taste is significantly different. For the soup, finely dice the meat, radishes, kohlrabi, onions, celery, and potatoes (5 mm). Cut the bell peppers into half rings and the carrots into strips. Roughly chop the tomatoes and very finely chop the garlic. First, brown the meat in hot fat. Next, add the carrots and crushed cumin with the black pepper. Follow with the celery and soy sauce. This works best in a wok, with the center constantly being cleared. Briefly fry the tomatoes, garlic, and onions, then the diced radish and kohlrabi, and the pepper strips. Pour in the meat broth, add the star anise, and simmer for about 30 minutes. Ten minutes before the end, add the diced potatoes. Season with salt and, if desired, a little sugar. To serve, place the cold noodles in large soup bowls, pour in the hot broth, let it heat briefly, and then top with the meat and vegetable mixture. The ratio of noodles to sauce is roughly 1:1. Serve sprinkled with chopped fresh herbs.