-
1
Simmer the Beef
90 Mins • Simmering
Gentle simmer, about 95°C (200°F); beef cooked through to at least 74°C (165°F)
Put the beef in a large pot, cover with the 2 litres of cold water and bring to the boil over high heat. Skim off the grey foam as it rises — this keeps the broth clear. Add the peppercorns, turn the heat down to the gentlest simmer, cover and cook for about 90 minutes, until the beef is so tender it pulls apart with a fork. Stir in 5g of the salt in the last 30 minutes. Do not let the pot boil hard, or the broth turns cloudy and the meat dries out.
Skim twice in the first 15 minutes — that is when most of the foam appears, and a clear broth is the base the milky soup is built on.
Done when: Beef pulls apart easily with a fork; broth clear and golden.
-
2
Soak the Grains and Mix the Noodle Dough
15 Mins + 30 Mins Rest • Soaking & Kneading
Room temperature, about 20°C (68°F)
While the beef simmers, rinse the millet, rice and barley together in cold water and leave them to soak in a bowl. Sift the flour into a wide bowl, add 1g of salt, make a well in the middle and pour in the 60 ml of cold water a spoonful at a time. Mix with your hands until a stiff dough forms — it should feel firm, like a dumpling dough, not soft like bread dough. Knead on a floured board for 5 minutes until smooth, then wrap in cling film and rest for 30 minutes. The rest relaxes the gluten so the dough rolls out thin without springing back.
Do this step while the beef is on the stove — the dough needs its rest and the beef needs its simmer, so the timing works out neatly.
Done when: Grains plumped in their soaking water; smooth, firm dough that holds its shape when pressed.
-
3
Add the Grains to the Broth
30 Mins • Simmering
Gentle simmer, about 95°C (200°F)
Lift the beef out of the pot onto a plate and keep it warm under foil. Drain the soaked millet, rice and barley and tip them into the simmering broth with the chopped onion. Simmer gently for 25–30 minutes, stirring now and then so the grains do not settle and stick, until the barley is tender and the broth has thickened a little. The grains should be soft but still hold their shape.
Stir from the bottom of the pot — barley sinks as it cooks and catches easily if it sits still.
Done when: Barley tender all the way through; broth lightly thickened and cloudy with grain starch.
-
4
Roll, Cut and Cook the Noodles with the Corn
12 Mins • Boiling
Rolling boil, 100°C (212°F)
Roll the rested dough on a well-floured board into a sheet about 2 mm (1/16 inch) thick and cut it into short ribbons about 5 cm (2 inches) long. Bring the broth back to a rolling boil, shake the excess flour off the noodles and drop them in a handful at a time, stirring gently so they do not clump. Add the corn kernels and cook for 8–10 minutes until the noodles are tender and silky. Shred or dice the warm beef into bite-size pieces and return it to the pot.
Cook the noodles in the broth, not in plain water — they absorb the beef flavour and arrive in the bowl already seasoned.
Done when: Noodles tender and silky, holding their shape; corn bright yellow; beef warmed through.
-
5
Stir in the Milk, Ayran and Kurt
10 Mins • Gentle Heating
Gentle heat, about 80°C (175°F) — do not boil
Take the pot off the heat and let it settle for 2 minutes. Warm the milk gently in a separate pan until it is hot to the touch, about 80°C (175°F), and stir in the crumbled kurt and the butter until they melt. Whisk the ayran with a ladle of the warm milk, then pour the milk mixture into the pot in a slow stream, stirring all the time. Taste and add the remaining salt. This is the moment the soup turns milky-white and gently sour — the flavour that makes it nauryz kozhe and not a plain beef soup.
Never let the soup boil after the dairy goes in — boiling splits the milk and ayran into grainy curds. If it starts to bubble, lift the pot off the heat at once.
Done when: Soup creamy white and lightly sour, smooth with no curdled flecks; grains and noodles evenly mixed.
-
6
Rest and Ladle into Bowls
10 Mins • Resting
Serving hot, above 60°C (140°F)
Cover the pot and leave the soup to rest for 10 minutes off the heat so the flavours settle and the grains drink in a little more of the milky broth. Ladle into deep bowls, making sure each bowl gets beef, noodles, grains and corn. Scatter the chopped dill over the top and serve at once, with baursak on the table. At Nauryz the soup is traditionally ladled into seven bowls for the elders first, then shared with everyone at the table.
If the soup thickens as it rests, loosen it with a splash of hot milk, not water — water would wash out the milky sourness.
Done when: Bowls steaming, soup thick enough to coat a spoon, dill bright green on top.
auto_awesome Finishing Touches & Plating
Ladle the soup into deep bowls so every bowl gets beef, noodles, grains and corn, scatter the dill over the top and serve steaming hot with a basket of baursak. Eat it at once, while the broth is still creamy — it thickens as it cools.
Kazakhstan
3h 45m
Italy