7 Georgian dishes that you must cook: recipes

If you've been wanting to cook something from Georgian cuisine for a long time, but the fear of spoiling it all has been taking over, then now is the time to take a chance and fix it. Especially since some of them are even easier to prepare than, for example, our Ukrainian borscht.

The FoodOboz editorial team has selected for you some elementary but delicious Georgian dishes that are definitely worth cooking.

1. Dolma

This simple appetizer is very similar to our stuffed cabbage rolls, which are based on the same rice and meat mixture wrapped in cabbage or grape leaves.

Serve it with garlic sauce Matsoni.

2. Khinkali

This dish is a bit like dumplings – boiled meat in dough or with other fillings of your choice.

You need to eat khinkali exclusively with your hands, holding them by the tails.

3. Kharcho

The first course, is very spicy, usually made with beef, and can be served with or without rice. If you don't like meat, you can cook it with any vegetables.

4. Chacha

A traditional grape vodka made from leftover wine materials. Try chacha if you like strong spirits, but remember that it is very, very strong.

5. Churchkhela

This is a dessert in the form of a string of nuts in a thick grape caramelized syrup. Preparing a treat is not so easy, but with a little effort, everything will work out.

Method of preparation:

1. Pour a little more than 1 liter of grape juice into a saucepan of suitable volume. Put on medium heat, bring to a boil, and cook for 10 minutes.
2. String the peeled nuts on a thread with a thin needle. Do not forget to make a few knots at the end of the beads so that the nuts do not come loose. At the other end, leave a fairly decent distance of thread so that you can hang and secure the necklace later.
3. Pour the flour and juice into a thin stream while stirring constantly into a pot of boiling grape juice.
4. Keep stirring, brew the juice with the flour mixture, and boil the jelly to the desired thickness, for about 10-12 minutes.
5. Dip the walnut beads in the grape jelly boiling over low heat one by one.
6. Put the first bunch in the pan, and keep it there for 10-15 seconds, carefully covering it with a thick mass. Lift it up and see how quickly the jelly will drain from the nuts. If it pours straight down, cook the jelly further so that it thickens properly.
7. This procedure can be done several times with a break of 5-10 minutes.
8. Hang it up, dry it for a week, and eat it.

6. Phali

This is an original appetizer in the form of flatbreads, the main ingredient can be almost any vegetable or herb, the most popular are beets and spinach.

Serve as a side dish to meat dishes, as an independent dish or as an appetizer.

7. Jonjoli

A very unusual appetizer in the form of a salad, which consists of salted olives, sauerkraut, and, most importantly, pickled flowers.