PREPARING THE FILLING
Shishbarak
The shishbarak is filled with beef or lamb cooked with onions, salt, pine nuts and a variety of spices. Some recipes call for a few small red onions, or a small onion. In all recipes the pine nuts are sautéed before being added to the meat, which is cooked in olive oil, vegetable shortening or clarified butter for richer flavoring.
Meat Filling
2 tablespoons unsalted butter or olive oil
1 medium onion, finely chopped
½ pound lean ground lamb or beef
3 tablespoons lightly toasted pine nuts
½ teaspoon Mixed Spices (see below for a list of included spices), or ¼ teaspoon each ground cinnamon and ground allspice
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Mixed Spices, according to Uvezian’s Recipes and Remembrances:
4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1 teaspoon cloves
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Combine ingredients in jar with tight-fitting lid, mix well and let stand over night.
Chuchvara
The chuchvara is filled with some variation on lamb, lamb fat, beef or occasionally chicken, onions, chickpeas, potatoes, pumpkin and greens. Pork products are not part of the national cuisine because the country is predominantly Muslim. Although ground meat in Uzbek recipes should generally be very coarsely ground, that used in chuchvara should have the consistency of American ground hamburger meat. The meat used is generally fatty.