GEORGIAN LOBIANI BAKED IN TONE
We recently returned to our bakery, Trepezi, in our neighborhood in Tbilisi to see how our baker, Zaur Skhirtladze, makes Lobiani (boiled bean bread). Lobiani is enjoyed all year round and especially eaten on the Georgian holiday of Barbaroba, or St. Barbara’s Day (December 17). The main ingredient of Lobiani is boiled kidney beans. Zaur told us that after boiling, … Continue reading
INTRODUCTION TO GEORGIAN SALADS
Georgia is blessed with wonderful fresh vegetables, ideal for making delicious, refreshing salads. Ingredients. The basic ingredients of a Georgian salad consist of tomatoes, fresh parsley, purple basil, green peppers, red onion and cucumbers. Cheese (Georgian Imeritian) or walnuts can also be added. You will also need ground coriander, salt, ground red pepper and ground marigold if you … Continue reading
GEORGIAN BREAD (PART 2)
To show how traditional Georgian bread is made we spent a morning with our local baker, Zaur Skhirtladze, who works at the bakery, Trepezi in our neighborhood in Tbilisi. A typical day at our Georgian bakery begins at 7.30 a.m. when Zaur lights the deep circular oven called a tone. The tone will take around one and a half hours to reach the … Continue reading
GEORGIAN BREAD (PART 1)
In Georgia, bread is called puri (pronounced “poo-ree”) and is traditionally baked in a deep circular clay oven called a tone (pronounced “ton-AY”). Traditional bread, especially the long pointed bread called shotis puri, is very popular and usually served with every meal. Most streets in Georgia have at least one traditional bakery. We went behind the scenes at … Continue reading
IMERETIAN CHEESE
Imeretian cheese from the Imereti region of Georgia is a very popular curd cheese made from cows milk. It has a soft and springy texture and a slightly sour, salty taste. It is a “quick cheese” maturing in just one or two days. A typical handmade Imeretian cheese is shaped as a flat disc, 2.5 to 3.5 centimeters thick. … Continue reading
CHURCHKHELA
Churchkhela is a traditional sausage-shaped candy originating from the Caucasus region. It is a very popular food, combining two of Georgia’s favorites – grapes and nuts. Made by repeatedly dipping a long string of nuts in concentrated fresh grape juice it is delicious and nutritious and often called the Georgian ‘Snickers’! Georgian warriors carried Churchkhelas with them because they contain enough calories for … Continue reading
EGGPLANT WITH SPICY MAYONNAISE
In this recipe we will show how to make a popular Georgian family dish of eggplant with spicy mayonnaise (Georgian: ბადრიჯანი მაიონეზით). This is primarily a summer dish and is served either warm or cold. Our version is quite spicy so you may want to reduce the quantities of spices or omit them. Ingredients (3 servings): 500 grams … Continue reading
TOLMA – STUFFED PEPPERS
Tolma (Georgian: ტოლმა ბულგარული წიწაკით), known as Dolma in Armenia and Azerbaijan, is a popular meal in Georgia and many other countries and there are many variations. It usually describes a filled, hollowed-out vegetable or a filling wrapped in a leaf. Vegetables used to contain a filling include tomato, eggplant, pepper, apple and zucchini. Leaf wrappings include vine and … Continue reading
TOLMA – STUFFED CABBAGE LEAVES
Tolma (Georgian: კომბოსტოს ტოლმა), known as Dolma in Armenia, Azerbaijan and Turkey, is a popular meal in Georgia and many other countries and there are many variations. It usually describes a filled, hollowed-out vegetable or a filling wrapped in a leaf. Vegetables used to contain a filling include tomato, eggplant, pepper, apple and zucchini. Leaf wrappings include vine and cabbage. … Continue reading
KHINKALI
Khinkali (Georgian: ხინკალი) is a very popular Georgian dumpling made of twisted knobs of dough, stuffed with meat and spices. It is considered to be one of the national dishes of Georgia. Different regions of Georgia make khinkali with different fillings. The most popular filling is a pork/beef mix. In the mountains, khinkali is often made with … Continue reading
EGGPLANT WITH WALNUTS AND SPICES
In this recipe we will show how to make a popular Georgian family dish of eggplant with walnuts and spices. This is primarily a summer dish and is served cold. Our version is quite spicy so you may want to reduce the quantities of spices or omit them. Ingredients: 500 grams of eggplants, 250 grams of walnuts, 1 … Continue reading
HAM CHASHUSHULI – რაჭული ლორის ჩაშუშული
In this recipe we will show how to make a ham dish from the Racha region of Georgia. Ingredients: 150 grams of smoked ham (we used Georgian ham from Racha), 2 large carrots, 2 large onions, 1 clove of garlic, ground pepper (black and red), quarter tsp of ground coriander, 50 grams tomato paste or … Continue reading
CHICKEN LIVER CHASHUSHULI
In this recipe we will show how to make a popular Georgian dish made with chicken liver, onions, wine and spices. Ingredients (3-4 servings): 500 gms of chicken liver, 30 ml of oil, 100 ml of white wine, 3 bay leaves, 2 tbs of white wine vinegar, salt and black pepper, 2 large white onions, 1 … Continue reading
MTSKHETURI GVEZELI – MEAT PASTRY
In this recipe we will show how to make a popular Georgian dish called Mtskheturi Gvezeli (Georgian: მცხეთური ღვეზელი). It can be filled with meat (beef or a pork/beef mix), potato, mushrooms or cheese. We have made the meat (pork/beef mix) version. Ingredients (around 10 servings): Dough – 1 kilo of flour (800 grams for the dough and 200 grams for … Continue reading
BAZHE SAUCE
Bazhe is a Georgian sauce made with walnuts, garlic and spices. In this recipe we show how to make Bazhe sauce with chicken. Ingredients (serves 2): 2 marinaded chicken breasts. A recipe for a typical marinade can be found here. Marinade the chicken and leave covered in a refrigerator for at least 12 hours. Ingredients for sauce: 400 … Continue reading
GEORGIAN CHACHA
Chacha (Georgian: ჭაჭა) is a strong spirit made of the grape residue (pomace) left after making wine. Chacha is often made at home in a mini still. By the American definition, it qualifies as “moonshine” but unlike the production of “moonshine” in the United States, distilling chacha is not illegal in Georgia and many families continue the tradition. To most … Continue reading
Georgian Recipes 