How to make delicious Chakderme
is one of the most authentic and delicious traditional Turkmen dishes, very similar to Istanbuli Polo but with a very different and unique flavor. Using rapeseed oil is a good choice for cooking this dish because of its suitable smoke point and neutral flavor
Below, I have prepared the recipe for this popular dish for you, and at the end, I have also included a picture of it in progress.
Turkmen Chakdarmeh Recipe (with Rapeseed Oil)
Ingredients:
- Mutton: 500 grams (preferably beef or pork)
- Rice: 3 cups
- Large onions: 2 (chopped)
- Tomato paste: 3 tablespoons
- Rapeseed oil: as needed
- Salt, black pepper and turmeric: as needed
- Water: as needed
Preparation:
Frying the meat: First, in a pot (it is better to use a cast iron pot or traditional pots), pour some rapeseed oil and fry the chopped onions until golden. Then add the sliced meat and fry well with turmeric and pepper until the meat changes color.
Cooking the meat: Add the tomato paste to the meat and fry for a while until the paste turns brown. Then add 2 to 3 cups of boiling water to the pot, cover it and let the meat cook completely over low heat.
Preparing the rice: In the meantime, prepare the rice that you have soaked in advance.
Adding the rice: After cooking the meat, the remaining water in the pot (meat extract) should be enough so that when you add the rice, the water is about a finger’s breadth above the rice. Measure the salt and add the rice to the pot of meat.
Steeping: Once the rice water has evaporated, reduce the heat to very low, cover the pot with a lid, and let the chakdarme steep for 40 to 50 minutes over low heat.
Serving: Serve this dish on a tray or large traditional platters.
