What is tasty to try in Georgia? What dishes are considered truly national and what do all these strange names on the menu mean?
Soups
Kharcho is a spicy national soup made of beef and rice, always seasoned with a large amount of different greens, garlic and nuts, which gives it a unique rich flavor.
The main highlight of the soup and at the same time its basis is a specially sun-dried tkemali plum puree, which complements the exquisite taste with sourness. All these ingredients make kharcho thick, spicy and very satisfying.
Khashi is a fatty broth based on beef leg and garlic. It is cooked for a very long time, 8-10 hours and is somewhat similar to our liquid jelly.
Khashi is believed to strengthen bones, is good for joints, and helps with fractures. Many perceive him as a savior after a long feast and a terrible hangover. Also, this soup gives strength and energy for the whole day, so it is customary to eat khashi in the morning.
Chikhirtma is another Georgian variety of broth, but already made from chicken or turkey. The composition of chikhirtma, in addition to meat, includes corn flour for thickening, a lot of spices, herbs and eggs.
It is the last ingredient that makes cooking this dish difficult, since the eggs tend to curl up in hot, but you need them to dissolve in the broth. To facilitate this task, a few drops of lemon or pomegranate juice are added, which gives the soup a special flavor.
Sauces
Tkemali is a spicy and sweet and sour sauce made from tkemali plums, garlic and herbs. In real tkemali, there must be fragrant cilantro and marsh mint, which gives the sauce freshness.
Tkemali complements almost all dishes, so if you like it, you can always order it. And by the way, everyone who comes to Georgia always returns home with a bottle of tkemali. And where is it better to buy it in Batumi, read here.
Satsebeli is Georgian tomato and green ketchup. Real homemade satsebeli is made from ground nuts and tomatoes, but in the restaurant interpretation it is bred from tomato paste, cilantro, parsley, dill and garlic.
Baje is a mild sauce that goes well with any meat and fish. It is made with nuts, lots of spices and garlic. It looks yellowish-white in color, and the consistency resembles sour cream.
Adjika – Georgian adjika is not just spicy and spicy, but very spicy and burning, as it is prepared from selected red peppers, garlic and spicy spices.
Dessert
Churchkhela is a tasty, healthy and very ancient delicacy, which is often called Georgian Snickers. Churchkhela is made from hazelnuts or walnuts and specially prepared grape juice – badagi.
Churchkhela is different in taste and color, as each grape variety brings its own exclusive touch, but it must definitely be soft and slightly viscous. By the way, Georgia has patented churchkhela, along with chacha and suluguni, as a national brand. So now these are truly national dishes and no one will argue with that.
Pelamushi is another interesting and popular Georgian dessert. It is brewed from corn flour and grape juice, and some add raisins or nuts. After the pelamushi is ready, it is poured into molds and allowed to cool, and beautifully decorated when serving.
Gozinaki are the gozinaki that everyone loved in childhood, but then none of us had any idea that this was a Georgian sweet. Of course, every housewife has her own traditional gozinak recipe, but the main ingredients are still roasted walnuts and honey.
Baklava is still the same baklava we know, but with its own secrets in cooking, so it tastes slightly different.
Snacks
Pkhali is a very healthy Georgian snack for every taste. The basis of phali can be both vegetables and greens, but most often they are made from eggplant or spinach, and greens and nuts are already added to them.
Badrijani is the most popular snack in Georgia. A beautiful roll of fried eggplant and nut filling, necessarily decorated with pomegranate seeds.
Jonjoli is a type of pickle made from the white flowers of the cleca tree. Lightly fermented flowers are original in taste with a sour note and a hint of spices that are added to the leaven.
Mchadi are ruddy flatbreads made from cornmeal. They taste better when hot and with cheese. By the way, mchadi is very satisfying, so don’t order a lot, otherwise you won’t master the main course.
Suluguni is a slightly salty, porous and elastic cheese. It is the most common of Georgian cheeses and almost everyone likes it, order without hesitation.
Nadugi is a delicate creamy snack similar to cottage cheese, often served in suluguni envelopes.
Kaimagi is something between sour cream and cream, but with its own unique rich taste. It is very healthy and is made only in the villages from fresh dairy products. If you love sour cream, you must try it!
Main dishes
Khinkali – large dumplings of the original form. They eat khinkali exclusively with their hands, first they bite a little, then they drink the meat juice from the inside and only then they start tasting the meat. By the way, the tail from the khinkalka is considered not tasty and is always thrown away.
Satsivi – soft homemade chicken with walnut bage sauce, but with other spices and spices.
Khachapuri is a world-famous Georgian national dish, which in translation means a flatbread with cheese. Depending on the type of dough, form and method of preparation, khachapuri is distinguished in Adjarian, Megrelian, Imeretian and Achma. The most common is khachapuri from puff pastry in the form of an envelope called penovani.
Adjarian khachapuri is not just the most delicious khachapuri, it is a mini work of art of Adjara. Crunchy pastry in the form of a boat, inside of which there is a lot of cheese, butter and a whole yolk, is associated with the sea and the sun on the Black Sea coast. When ordering, choose peeled Adjarian khachapuri, then there will be less rolls and you can master it entirely.
