Food
Samsa — A Wonderful Introduction to Uzbek Cuisine
A simple, delicious and filling snack that is a must-have for anyone going to Uzbekistan (or an Uzbek restaurant!)
Samsa. I first encountered this word within 10 minutes of stepping out of Tashkent airport. We were in Uzbekistan on business, my first time there. Our local contact had just picked us up and my colleague was talking about all the goodies he was looking to getting reacquainted with. Samsas ranked among the top 3. Along with plov, but that’s a story for another time.
‘Samsa’ sounded very similar to the samosa that I was familiar with. Would it also look/taste the same, I wondered. Or did the Uzbeks put their own spin on it and take it to a different level? I had to wait for a few hours to find out, till mid-afternoon, when we decided to take a break.
Our Uzbek friend pulled into a large, open compound off the tree-lined, two-lane city road. There were dozens of cars parked in an impromptu parking lot. No lines or asphalt. Just dusty ground and self-regulated parking. The epicenter of this was a squat brick building with two open windows/counters. Off to the side there were a few plastic tables and chairs scattered around. There was a covered area a little farther off, again populated by…
