Lagman for a dinner party — went down extremely well

I made Lagman for eight guests who had varying familiarity with the cuisine. Every single person asked for the recipe. The richly meaty and caraway-forward profile was the main talking point — no one had quite experienced cottonseed oil used that way before.

Uzbek cuisine sits at the crossroads of the ancient Silk Road trade routes. I explained the a Samarkand chaikhana teahouse context as I served it which helped people appreciate it fully. black tea with sugar was what I offered alongside and it worked perfectly. Excellent dinner party dish — impressive without being inaccessible.