By Nik, founder of 東歐嚴選｜kefir.link and former chef · Updated 2 November 2026
Dovğa is a national dish of Azerbaijan: a white, tangy soup of cultured milk, thick with chopped coriander and dill and soft grains of rice. Azerbaijanis eat it steaming in winter and chilled in summer. Here milk kefir forms the base and gives the broth its clean, sour edge.
A soup for weddings and quiet suppers
At Azerbaijani weddings, dovğa is carried out between the meat courses. At home it works as a starter, or as a light meal with lavash or other bread. The classic soup is meatless, though some regions add chickpeas or small meatballs. The herbs change with the season and the place: coriander, dill, mint and spinach are typical, and cooks also use sorrel, celery, chard or beet leaves.
The traditional base is qatıq, a soured milk. Kefir is now a common choice and it tastes a little different because kefir grains, not yogurt bacteria, ferment it.
Why the spoon never stops
Heat and acid make milk proteins clump together and squeeze out their liquid. If the stirring stops while the soup warms, the kefir splits into curds and whey, so Azerbaijani cooks keep a wooden spoon moving in one direction the whole time. The egg and the starch from the rice help hold the broth together. The rice goes in half-cooked, because raw rice would mean far longer at the stove with the spoon.
Many Azerbaijani cooks also add the salt at the end, since they say early salt makes the soup turn. Expect the soup to thicken a good deal as it cools, because the rice keeps swelling in the broth.
Finding dill without bringing home fennel
Fresh dill is the trickiest ingredient to find in Taiwan. Traditional markets sometimes have it, and some local herb growers harvest Taiwan-grown dill to order and ship it chilled. Look closely at the leaves, because some market stalls sell dill under the name for fennel. Dill has greyish-green leaves with long, fine forks and a cool, mild scent. Fennel is brighter green with shorter forks and smells sweet, like star anise.
Azerbaijani kefir herb and rice soup (Dovğa)
Ingredients
- 700 ml plain milk kefir Choose unsweetened, unflavoured kefir.
- 200 ml plain water For the soup base; use extra water to pre-cook the rice.
- 70 g short-grain white rice Uncooked rice.
- 1 egg
- 1 bunch fresh coriander
- 1 bunch fresh dill Look in traditional markets or order Taiwan-grown dill from herb farms; check it is not fennel.
- 1 garlic clove
- 1 tsp salt Add gradually to taste; you may not need it all.
You will need
- Small saucepan
- Heavy-bottomed saucepan and wooden spoon
- Sieve
- Measuring jug
- Small bowl and fork
- Knife and chopping board
- Food thermometer
Instructions
- Boil the rinsed rice in a small saucepan of water for about half the time on the packet, keeping the centre firm. If the packet says 15 minutes, check at about 8 minutes. Drain and leave to cool slightly while you prepare the herbs.
- Finely chop the washed coriander and dill with the peeled garlic.
- Mix the kefir and measured water in the soup pot with the heat off.
- Beat the egg in a small bowl and stir it thoroughly into the kefir mixture.
- Stir the chopped herbs, garlic and drained rice into the soup base.
- Cook uncovered over low heat for about 20 minutes, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon until the rice is fully tender. Do not let the soup boil vigorously.
- Use a food thermometer to check that the soup has reached at least 71°C (160°F) before removing it from the heat. If needed, keep heating and stirring until it does.
- Add salt a little at a time, tasting as you go. Serve warm, or chill as described in the notes and serve cold.
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