Lavash
Paper-thin unleavened flatbread, blistered and scored in the tradition of the hearth.
Step-by-step →Stew · All regions
KHASHLAMA
Խաշլամա
Lamb and vegetables steamed in their own juices with almost no water — the quietest great dish in the repertoire.
2 h 30 min
Total time
Serves 6
Yield
4
Steps
Step by step
HOW IT IS MADE
- 01
Build the layers
Line a heavy pot with sliced onion, then lamb, then tomato, pepper and potato in layers, salting each one lightly as you go.
- 02
Add almost no liquid
Pour in a splash of beer, wine or water — no more than a glass. The vegetables release enough juice to cook everything.
- 03
Seal and forget it
Cover tightly and cook on the lowest heat for two hours without stirring. Resist the urge to lift the lid.
- 04
Finish with herbs
Add crushed garlic and a fistful of chopped coriander and basil, cover again for five minutes and serve straight from the pot.
At a glance
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Energy
- ≈ 480 kcal per serving
- Preparation
- 20 min
- Cooking
- 2 h 10 min undisturbed
- Season
- Late summer, when tomatoes and peppers are best
- Occasion
- Outdoor cooking, village lunches, family Sundays
Cook's notes
GET IT RIGHT
- Almost no water — the vegetables must make the liquid themselves.
- Do not stir; layers keep their shape and the potatoes stay whole.
- Lamb on the bone gives far more body than boneless cubes.
- Add garlic and herbs only in the last five minutes.
Variations
Beef khashlama
Slower and leaner; allow an extra hour.
Beer khashlama
A glass of dark beer instead of water gives a slightly bitter depth.
Questions
ASKED IN THE KITCHEN
Is it a soup or a stew?
Somewhere between: there should be broth, but the vegetables are the plate.
Can I make it in the oven?
Yes, covered, at 160 °C for about three hours.
History & Culture
WHY THIS DISH
Khashlama shares its root with khash — both come from the verb meaning to boil — and it belongs to the shepherd's kitchen, where a single pot over a slow fire had to feed everyone without attention.
It is the dish of village summers and mountain picnics, cooked outdoors in a cast pot while the meat and the garden vegetables of that exact week decide the flavour.
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