Bozbash

Bozbash

Bozbash (Azerbaijani: bozbaş; Persian: آبگوشت بزباش; Tat: guşto buzbaş) is an Iranian dish consisting of meat stew (also described as a soup) popular in Armenia, Azerbaijan and Iran.

History and etymology

Bozbash is a word of Azeri Turkish origin. It may be derived from Azeri Turkish boz ("light gray") and bash ("head"), which in turn may point to the light color of the dish when its cooked. However, Mohammad R. Ghanoonparvar notes that "no scientific etymology" has been offered to this effect by Gerhard Doerfer.

Bozbash is the Azeri Turkish name of the Iranian dish abgoosht-e sabzi. Ghanoonparvar notes that bozbash was introduced "relatively late" into Iranian cuisine; Mirza Ali-Akbar Khan, the chef of Naser al-Din Shah Qajar (r. 1848–1896), was reportedly the first to mention it. He classified it as part of a group of meat stews and soups, often eaten cold.

Ingredients and preparation

Ghanoonparvar notes in relation to bozbash:

It is made with meat (usually lamb), red or white beans, green vegetables, herbs (e.g., parsley, fenugreek, mint), onions and leeks, dried limes (līmū-ye ʿomānī), and spices (mainly salt, pepper, and turmeric). These ingredients are simmered together in water over low heat for several hours. As with most ābgūšts, when the ingredients are thoroughly cooked, the solids are usually removed and mashed to a pulp, known as gūšt-e kūbīde. The broth and the pulp are then served separately with flat bread and a pickled green-vegetable relish.

In Armenian cuisine, there is a special kind of bozbash not commonly seen, Shoushin bozbash, made from lamb, quince, apple, and mint. This variation of bozbash is "practically unknown outside the Caucasus".

Sources

• Bender, David A. (2014). "Bozbash". A Dictionary of Food and Nutrition (4 ed.). Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0191752391.
• Davidson, Alan (2014). Jaine, Tom (ed.). The Oxford Companion to Food (3 ed.). Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0199677337.
• Ghanoonparvar, Mohammad R. (1989). "BOZBĀŠ". In Yarshater, Ehsan (ed.). Encyclopædia Iranica, Volume IV/4: Bolbol I–Brick. London and New York: Routledge & Kegan Paul. p. 425. ISBN 978-0-71009-127-7.