Afghanistan Food Recipes

Afghanistan food recipes which are user friendly are not easy to find. Here, I am inputting mostly those Afghanistan food recipes which I know work and have tried out on my own family and friends. For Afghan culture's sake, I do have to include a few Afghan dishes which I don't actually care for.

(I need a tea break, so I'll come back to put in some more recipes)

If you are here, you may already know that the main food Afghanistan facts are that the staple Afghan foods are naan and rice. So we have to include the main Afghan food recipes for the foods you'll definitely be eating at an Afghan wedding!

AFGHAN RECIPE FOR BREAD

Here's the best recipe I've found for making Afghan naan (bread) outside of Afghanistan. It is slightly altered from Mic's original contribution to All Recipes, but he is a genius!

Ingredients:

• 1 package active dry yeast (1 tablespoon)
• 1 cup warm water
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 3 tablespoons milk
• 1 egg, beaten
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 4 1/2 cups bread flour
• 1/4 cup butter, melted (used when grilling)

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Let stand about 10 minutes, until frothy. Stir in sugar, milk, egg, salt, and enough flour to make a soft dough. Knead for 6-8 minutes on a slightly floured surface, or until smooth. (I just set my food mixer on 7 minutes, and let the machine do all the work.)

Place dough in a well-oiled bowl, cover with a damp cloth, and set aside to rise. Let it rise 1 hour, until the dough has doubled in volume.

2. Punch down dough. Pinch off small handfuls of dough, about the size of your fist. Form into balls, and place on tray. Cover with a towel, and allow to double, about 30 minutes.
3. While the dough rises the second time, pre-heat your grill to high heat.
4. At grill side, form one ball of dough into a thin oval. Lightly oil grill with melted butter. Place dough on grill, and cook for 2-3 minutes, or until puffy and lightly brown. Brush the top side with butter, then flip the naan. Brush cooked side with butter, and cook until the second side is also lightly brown. Remove from grill, and continue cooking all dough balls until finished. Cover the cooked naan with a towel to keep it moist and warm. Try not to eat too much!

STREET FOOD (AFGHAN FAST FOOD)

The two main Afghanistan fast foods are boulanee and boulanee katchalu. One is made with leeks, the other with potato. Chips (french fries) are also awesome fresh from the cooking pot in the bazaar. They are sprinkled with a special french fry spice.

Boulanee

PASTA

KEBABS

There is an Afghan proverb about kebabs:

"Ser ba ser Seer-as."

Meaning: The secret of the kebab is garlic."

Kebabs in Afghanistan are mainly lamb or beef. We often make chicken kebabs at home. However, the same marinade recipe can be used for all three meats. To make them Afghan style, make sure to cut the meat as perfectly square as you can, including large chunks of fat on the skewer! (We choose to skip the fat parts!)

Afghan Marinade recipe for Meat Kebabs:

• Minced garlic - lots of it, like 10 cloves or more!
• Minced fresh ginger - 'bout a teaspoon
• Oil - 'nuff to cover
• Vinegar - 'equal amount to the oil
• Soy Sauce - couple tablespoons to 1 cup (optional, because Afghans don't actually use Soy sauce)

Marinate the meat at least 2 hours, slide onto the skewers, and grill to your preference.

Serve in fresh hot naan, with plenty of chili pepper spice! Wash down with coke-a-cola, tea, or water.

Chapli Kebab

Well, a page on Afghanistan food recipes would not be complete without Chapli Kebab.

• 1 lb. ground lamb or beef
• 1-2 bunches green onions, finely chopped
• 3/4 cup flour
• 1/2 sweet bell pepper, green or red, finely chopped
• 2-4 green chilis, finely diced
• 3-4 tablespoons fresh cilantro, finely chopped
• 2 tsp cilantro, ground
• salt to taste
• vegetable oil for frying

Mix all ingredients in a bowl. Shape meat patties into 1/4 inch thick oblongs, or a round shaped patty. Fry in oil on both sides until cooked through. Serve with tomato and onion salad and fresh naan. Garnish with fresh cilantro and lemon wedges.

RICE PILAUS

VEGETABLE DISHES

FRUITS AND DESSERTS

Sheer Yakh

BEVERAGES

Doogh(okay, I'm including this one for Afghan culture's sake, but I actually dislike it intensely. It's just very traditional, and quite a specialty, so if an Afghan ever offers this to you, try really hard to drink it.)

Need more Afghanistan Food Recipes? I admit, this is just a sampling. Let me know what else you'd like to try, and I'll upload it here!