Tasty Delights Of Azerbaijan: Exploring Their Culinary Culture

Azerbaijan's food is influenced by its location at the crossroads of Asia and Europe, with a blend of Indian, Chinese, Turkish, Iranian, Middle Eastern and Mediterranean flavours. The country's rich and ancient cuisine is heavily spiced and meat-based, with mutton, poultry, beef and fish being commonly eaten. The country's varied climate allows for a wide range of crops and animals to be farmed, giving rise to a diverse cuisine. Azerbaijani dishes are often cooked and served in copper utensils and cookware, which is believed to enhance the flavour.

Azeri breakfast

A typical Azeri breakfast includes tandoor-baked bread, honey, butter, cream, fresh cheese, and copious amounts of tea with jam. The bread is baked in a traditional Indian-style clay tandoor oven and is thicker than naan, with a doughy centre and a toasted crust with a dash of sesame seeds. It is often accompanied by churned butter, fresh thick cream, and fresh sheep's cheese. Vegetables like tomatoes and cucumbers are also served, and the meal is washed down with unlimited black tea.

In addition to the traditional breakfast, you may also find Eastern European breakfast foods on the table, such as kasha, porridge, quark, and crepes.

Salads and side dishes

Azerbaijanis commonly eat raw vegetables and herbs as appetisers. Tarragon, for example, is a popular herb used in Azerbaijani cooking, known for its rich, aromatic flavour. Salads are often served with a side of white cheese, such as Motal cheese, which is produced in the Caucasus mountains using sheep and goat milk.

Pomegranates are a popular ingredient in Azerbaijani cuisine. One such salad enjoyed in Baku consists of boiled potatoes and a local form of mayonnaise, topped with pomegranate grains and served on a lettuce leaf.

Another popular salad is the Mangal salad (or Manqal), which consists of aubergines, peppers, and tomatoes roasted on an open flame or grilled on a Mangal (an Azeri barbeque). The vegetables are then peeled, chopped into cubes, and mixed with olive oil, vinegar, salt, and sometimes basil. This salad is best enjoyed with bread, especially tandir bread, and a piece of Motal cheese.

Choban is another popular salad in Azerbaijan, consisting of tomatoes and cucumbers.

Flatbreads, such as tandir chorek, are usually served alongside salads. One of the more popular flatbreads is lavash, which is commonly used to wrap kebabs.

Azeri pancakes

Azerbaijan's national cuisine is heavily influenced by the country's diverse agriculture and unique geographical location. The country's position between Europe and Asia, with access to the Caspian Sea, has allowed the people of Azerbaijan to develop a varied diet rich in produce, milk products, and meat.

The dough for qutab is made by combining several layers of cooked dough, similar to Indian prata. The pancakes are cooked with butter and tend to be rich and buttery. They are served with a yoghurt sauce flavoured with coriander, fennel, and sumac.

One variation of qutab is kutabi, a type of Azerbaijani savoury pancake filled with greens and herbs. Kutabi is pan-fried without oil and served with sides of yoghurt, sautéed onions, and mushrooms in a cream sauce. The dough is filled with fresh scallions, green garlic, sorrel, parsley, and dill.

Azeri desserts

Azerbaijan's desserts are as varied and delicious as its savoury dishes, ranging from traditional to modern recipes. Here are some of the most popular Azeri desserts:

• Pakhlava, also known as baklava, is a multi-layered sweet pastry stuffed with nuts and syrup. It is a specialty of Shaki in northwest Azerbaijan, and locals eat it during Novruz, the Iranian New Year in March.
• Kurabye are cookies that are ubiquitous in Azerbaijani bakeries. They are made with shortcrust dough and can be shaped like flowers with a dot of jam in the middle, or like sticks with a hollow centre filled with fruit jam and powdered sugar.
• Shekerbura is a popular sweet pastry filled with ground almonds, hazelnuts, or walnuts. The name means 'sweet patty' in Turkic.
• Badambura is similar to pakhlava but less sweet and sticky, filled with ground sugar, almonds, cardamom, and vanilla.
• Shirin Chorek is a classic Azerbaijani dessert made with yeast, eggs, butter, and turmeric powder. It is a sweet milk bread with a golden hue and subtle flavour.
• Kyata is a national dessert found in various shapes and is known for its delicious flavour. The Baku kyata is triangular or rectangular with jagged edges, while the Karabakh kyata is like a broad, flat bun with a filling.
• Guymag is a traditional dessert made with wheat, butter, and water. It is calorie-rich and often given to women who have recently given birth or to patients recovering from surgery. It can also be served warm for breakfast.
• Gogal is a pastry made of puff dough with either a savoury or sweet filling. The sweet version, shirin-gogal, typically includes a combination of butter, flour, sugar, or nuts crushed with sugar.
• Bamiye is made with choux pastry put through a meat grinder with a special nozzle, resulting in ribbed pasta dough. It is fried in vegetable oil and then submerged in sugar syrup until entirely saturated.
• Sheker chorek is a sweet bread that is easy to make and originates in Azerbaijan. The dough is kneaded with melted butter, formed into balls, coated with egg yolk, and baked.
• Shirvan puff is a classic tart with a nut filling. The dough is puffed up with butter to create air pockets, and the borders open up during baking to expose the filling.
• Fasali is made with fresh dough that is greased, folded into many layers, cut into rectangles, twisted, and flattened vertically to produce a thin, circular cake. It is cooked in butter in a frying pan and dusted with powdered sugar.
• Kulcha is a sweet and spicy pastry often cooked in a clay oven. It is popular in India, Pakistan, and Azerbaijan, where there are two distinct varieties: spicy kulcha from Shaki, and filled kulcha from Lankaran in the south.

Azeri drinks

Azerbaijan has a wide variety of traditional drinks, both alcoholic and non-alcoholic.

Non-alcoholic drinks

Black tea is the national beverage of Azerbaijan and is typically served after a meal. It is also offered to guests as a gesture of welcome, often accompanied by fruit preserves. Tea is served in small curved glass cups, similar to Turkish tea cups, and is drunk from saucers.

Ayran is another popular drink, made from yogurt mixed with salt and water. It is a refreshing balance to heavy meat dishes.

In the summer, sherbet is a common drink, made from boiled water, lemon, sugar, saffron, mint, basil, and fruits and berries. It is often served at weddings and other large events, alongside pilaf.

Compote is also a common drink, made by boiling various fruits and adding sugar to create a refreshing and sweet drink.

Mineral waters such as "Istisu", "Badamly", and "Sirab" are famous in Azerbaijan and are said to have therapeutic characteristics.

Alcoholic drinks

Azerbaijan also produces wine locally, with one of the most ancient and notable wine-making regions being Tovuz in northwestern Azerbaijan. Beer is also popular, with lighter lagers being the most common variety.

Although alcohol consumption is entirely legal in Azerbaijan, it is relatively moderate, with alcoholic drinks mainly playing a part in nightlife, festivities, and celebrations.

Frequently asked questions