Siab Bazaar in Samarkand and Uzbek Cuisine

Imagine yourself in the fragrant, noisy Siab bazaar in Samarkand.

How to visit Siab Bazaar in Samarkand

The bazaar is the heart of the city and visiting it is always worthwhile. This is where traditional Uzbek ingredients and foods can be found and purchased.

Uzbekistan Cuisine: Typical Uzbek Foods and Recipes

Uzbek cuisine is fascinating and so tasty. This hearty fare is popular with meat lovers. Hot stews and soups are popular during the colder months while delicately flavored pilafs are delicious during the summer. From the Qizilqum desert in the west to the valleys and mountains in the east, fresh and beautifully flavored Uzbek dishes can be found.

The colorful bazaar, or marketplace, is where you can find all kinds of ingredients from fresh figs and watermelons to cheese and other dairy products, nuts, and dried fruit. Uzbekistan doesn’t really have shopping malls or large grocery stores with the exception of Tashkent which is more westernized. This is why the bazaar is the place to go for traditional Uzbekistan treats.

Uzbekistanis favor freshness and don’t tend to freeze much. Even the meat-based dishes available from the marketplace will be made from fresh meat. Lamb and mutton are the most popular choices in Uzbekistan, where there is no shortage of sheep, and feature in plenty of local dishes. 

Even if you are brand new to this cuisine, there are certain dishes you will recognize, such as rice pilaf with meat and vegetables, and meat kabobs on skewers cooked over the grill.

Local Fruits and Vegetables in Uzbekistan

The country is known for its delicious fruit and there are more than fifty kinds of fruits that grow there, from the delicate yellow figs to melons and cherries. 

There are more than 160 types of melons grown there! You can get fresh or dried fruits, along with those made into marinades and jams. Whatever is in season at the time is available from the bazaar and because fruit is so plentiful locally thanks to the climate, the prices can’t be beaten.

Sunny Uzbekistan is home to many varieties of fruits and vegetables, with juicy grapes, rounded eggplants, sweet peppers, persimmons, pomegranates, and so much more. Sellers at the bazaar often let people sample their products before buying so a stroll through this colorful market can be a worthwhile experience in more ways than one!