DISH RESEARCH · Soup
Dikhwa
Also known as: Assyrian Yogurt and Barley Soup, Dokhwa
Assyrian lamb and pearled barley stew in sour whole-milk yogurt.
About Dikhwa
Kathryn Pauline records her grandmother’s Assyrian Dikhwa, a lamb-and-barley yogurt stew. Her family account connects it with dinners and holidays in a Syrian village and Baghdad, and church celebrations in Beirut.
Sour whole-milk yogurt gives the stew its tang, while lamb supplies a rich savoury flavour. The family’s selected version focuses on these ingredients and barley, without the herbs used in some other versions.
The lamb becomes tender enough to fall from the bone, and pearled barley adds body to the yogurt base. Pauline describes her grandmother’s version as closer to a soup or stew than a thick porridge.
Allergens in this recipe
Contains: Barley (gluten), Egg, Milk.
Other allergen details are unconfirmed.
Ingredients vary by restaurant. Confirm your allergens with staff before ordering.
Ingredients in Dikhwa
Kathryn Pauline’s grandmother’s Assyrian lamb-and-barley Dikhwa.
- Bone-in lamb shoulderProtein
- WaterLiquid
- SaltSeasoning
- Pearled barleyBase
- Whole eggBinder
- Unstrained homemade whole-milk yogurtLiquid
Ingredient details & uncertainties
Allergen information is incomplete. Unconfirmed details do not establish that an allergen is absent.
- Bone-in lamb shoulder: Recipe-specific ingredient evidence; Allergen details unconfirmed. Source allows shoulder and/or stew meat; shoulder selected, linked to broader lamb record
- Water: Recipe-specific ingredient evidence; Allergen details unconfirmed. Explicit separate lamb/barley cooking and rinse water; broth discarded, additional yogurt dilution conditional
- Salt: Recipe-specific ingredient evidence; Allergen details unconfirmed
- Pearled barley: Recipe-specific ingredient evidence; Barley (gluten) source-confirmed
- Whole egg: Recipe-specific ingredient evidence; Egg source-confirmed
- Unstrained homemade whole-milk yogurt: Recipe-specific ingredient evidence; Milk source-confirmed. Broader yogurt record; source whole-milk homemade version retained; culture/subrecipe composition not expanded
Origins & food traditions
The family narrative documents Syrian, Iraqi and Lebanese settings; no exclusive national origin asserted.
Countries
- Syria
- Iraq
- Lebanon
- SyriaCatalogue link pending review
Cuisines & regions
- Assyrian Cuisine
- Syrian Jazira CuisineCatalogue link pending review
AI-generated illustration of one possible presentation. Recipes and ingredients vary; the image does not establish allergen content.