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There are many fish dishes in Georgian cuisine, but unfortunately we have heard little about them, much less tried them. What to cook from fish in Georgian read on.

Recipes of Georgian fish dishes

Bozartma from salmon

Ingredients:

• salmon
• onion
• cilantro, parsley, dill and tarragon
• lemon juice
• lemon

Cooking method:

1. Peel and gut the salmon, cut into portions.
2. Cut the onion into rings, mix with chopped cilantro, parsley, dill and tarragon.
3. Place half of the mixture of onions and herbs on the bottom of a large saucepan with a thick bottom, put portions of salmon on top, salt and cover with the remaining onions and herbs.
4. Pour the contents of the pan with water so that it does not completely cover the fish with herbs.
5. Close the lid and put on the smallest fire. Cook fish for about 30-40 minutes.
6. Serve the dish both hot and cold. When serving, sprinkle the fish with lemon juice and garnish with slices of the lemon itself.

Chakhokhbili from red fish

Ingredients:

• 1 kg red fish
• 2 pcs. onion
• 150 ml wine vinegar
• cilantro or dill greens
• 100 ml water

Cooking method:

1. Fillet red fish, cut into cubes and string on wooden skewers. Cook fish on the grill or in the oven.
2. Finely chop the onion, pour over with vinegar and leave to marinate for 20 minutes. Then pour in water and put to simmer over medium heat.
3. Fish, you can with skewers, put in a saucepan with onions, salt to taste and season with chopped herbs.
4. Close the saucepan with a lid and heat for about 2-3 minutes. Serve fish with onion sauce.

Recipe Tsotskhali

Ingredients:

• 1 kg tsotskhali - trout variety
• parsley and celery
• 1-2 teeth garlic
• 2 tbsp. l. yogurt
• pepper

Cooking method:

1. Gut the trout and wash. Cut into serving pieces. Place the fish in a large saucepan, season with salt and pepper. Pour in water and boil until tender.
2. Then remove the fish with a slotted spoon from the broth, onto a plate, sprinkle cold water and chill.
3. Finely chop the greens, then mash into a puree with a mortar.
4. Grind the garlic in a mortar or pass through a press.
5. Mix greens, garlic and matsoni.
6. Spread the sauce over the trout pieces and serve to the table.

Burbot in a pot with vegetables

Ingredients:

• 2 kg burbot
• 2 large carrots
• 0.5 kg cauliflower
• 300 gr. green beans
• 2 pcs. onion
• 0.5 kg spinach
• 2 pcs. red bell pepper
• 100 ml olive oil
• green cilantro, dill and basil
• pepper
• for the sauce: vinegar, dry spicy herbs, hops-suneli dried garlic

Cooking method:

1. Cut the burbot into 2 fillets. Salt the fillet, pepper, sprinkle olive oil and leave for 10 minutes. Then fry until tender and remove to a plate.
2. Boil spinach, cabbage, carrots and beans.
3. Grill the peppers, remove the skin and remove the seeds. Cut into straws.
4. cut everything boiled vegetables the same pieces.
5. Onion cut into 4 parts.
6. Grease the pots with olive oil. Put a layer of vegetables on the bottom of the pots, add salt to taste.
7. Cut the fillet into the required number of pots and put in each serving.
8. Lay the remaining vegetables on top.
9. Put the pots in the refrigerator for 12 hours.
10. Before serving, put the pots in the oven and bake for about 30 minutes. Before serving, pour warm sauce of vinegar, herbs and salt into the pots.

Flounder in wine sauce

Ingredients:

• flounder
• 1 st. table red wine
• 1 st. water
• parsley and cilantro
• onion
• Bay leaf
• 4 things. carnations
• 0.5 st. walnut kernels
• garlic

Cooking method:

1. Gut and clean the flounder, cut into portions. Put the fish in a bowl.
2. Finely chop the greens, cut the onion into cubes. Put onions, herbs, cloves, bay leaves on the fish, pour wine and water. Salt to taste.
3. Simmer the flounder under the lid over low heat for about 20 minutes.
4. Remove the finished flounder and strain the broth. Pour the broth into another saucepan, boil.
5. Crush the nuts with garlic in a mortar and put into the broth. Boil for 1-2 minutes and remove from heat.
6. Serve the flounder, pouring over the sauce and sprinkling with fresh herbs.

Cook fish according to Georgian recipes, delight your loved ones with delicious dishes and read new articles on What to Cook.ru. Prepare also other dishes, for example, according to the manna recipe or other recipes. It is interesting that manniks can be cooked on kefir and even without the addition of flour!

Good luck and bon appetit!

Always your Alena Tereshina.

Georgian cuisine It is, of course, diversity and abundance. An abundance of taste, products, spices, aromas. Khinkali, khachapuri, lobiani - you will want to try everything! And do not deny yourself this (you will regret it later)! Whatever route you choose, whatever souvenirs you plan to bring, you will be guaranteed at least a couple of extra pounds!

TRADITIONAL DISHES OF GEORGIAN CUISINE

Georgian cuisine dishes very filling, with lots of spices. They are easy to prepare and extremely tasty. You can cook anything yourself, you just need to practice a little for the best result. There are many dishes, they are varied, the cuisines of Eastern and Western Georgia are slightly different, but there are several dishes that everyone loves in every corner of Georgia.

Khachapuri

Khachapuri- It's a cheesecake. Each locality has its own signature recipes. In essence, they differ only in the shape and location of the filling. Mingrelian ones are considered classic - a round cake with a filling inside, and special in taste - Adjarian ones in the shape of a boat with an egg beaten before serving. Khachapuri is cooked everywhere, in any, even the smallest restaurant, you will definitely find them on the menu.

Snacks

Appetizers to try:
- lobio: this boiled beans seasoned with spices;
- pkhali: spinach, beet leaves, etc. seasoned with spices, walnuts and sauce;
- ajabsandal: something like a vegetable stew (an obligatory ingredient is eggplant);
- fried eggplant with garlic and nuts;
- kuchmachi: these are by-products (chicken or pork - stomachs, liver, lungs) cooked on ketsi - a special clay pan;
Mushrooms on ketsi, suluguni on ketsi. Whatever you choose, it's definitely worth a try!
Do not forget about mzhaveuli - all kinds of pickles, and, of course, suluguni cheese.

The first dishes of Georgian cuisine

The most famous soups are kharcho, chikhirtma, matsvnis supi and khashi.
Kharcho is cooked from beef, with the addition of rice, tkemali (plums), garlic, and spices. The soup is very thick, rich and incredibly tasty.
Chikhirtma- it is cooked mainly from chicken, then flour and eggs are added in a special way, and the result is a very unusual consistency, similar to flakes, and of course seasonings.
Matsvnis supi - prepared from matsoni. This is very light soup, it is especially pleasant to eat it in the heat, both cold and warm. But, he has a rather specific taste.
Khashi is practically liquid jelly. It is cooked from a certain part of the stomach and beef legs, served with garlic. soup with very unusual taste, especially good after a bath in combination with a glass of chacha.

Sauces

Georgian cuisine involves the abundant use of sauces. And there are plenty to choose from!
Adjika - spicy sauce from pepper with chechnok and spices.
Tkemali - cooked from plums, seasoned with spices and herbs.
Satsebeli - made from sweet peppers, tomatoes and spices.
Bazhi sauce - considered more festive, is made from cilantro, garlic, spices and walnuts, which are passed through a meat grinder. Diluted to the consistency of thick sour cream. It is usually served with chicken.

Second courses of Georgian cuisine

Khinkali - this dish is somewhat reminiscent of our dumplings, only larger and they are folded with the tail up. The filling is meat, most often different types of meat are mixed. They differ in that either greens are added to the minced meat or not. Ideal khinkali should have 19 to 21 folds on top, the so-called "navel". They eat khinkali with their hands, after taking a bite, they literally suck out the juice. Sauces are not used, only black pepper. "The navel" is also not eaten. It is believed that it is tasteless, moreover, by the number of ponytails, you can calculate the number of khinkali eaten. Of the drinks, beer is the most suitable.
Of course, after a detailed story about khinkali, everything that will be said below will no longer cause such abundant salivation, but still, Georgian cuisine still has enough delicious dishes.
For example, fried suckling pig or "gochi" in Georgian.
Mtsvadi - according to our barbecue, from different varieties meat.
Satsivi is a cold thick and spicy dish chicken broth, with nuts and spices.
Chakhokhbili - stewed pieces hens in tomato sauce richly flavored with garlic, spices and herbs.
Tobacco chicken, which is laid in a certain way under oppression, as a result of which the bones break, and the chicken acquires a characteristic pose, with spices and garlic.
Chakapuli - lamb stewed with tarragon and plums.
Of particular note is the dish home cooking with the beautiful name "ojakhuri". This is fried meat with potatoes on ketsi.

Flour dishes

Bread- called "shotis puri", looks like an elongated flattened cake, is cheap and sold at every turn. Especially delicious hot with cheese!
Mchadi are unleavened cakes, shaped like our cutlets, baked from cornmeal. Very tasty with cheese, sometimes cheese is baked inside as a filling.
It is also worth trying gomi - corn porridge. (Not to be confused with Gomi - Georgian vodka).
Pro khachapuri mentioned above. It is worth adding here a few words about puff pastry khachapuri (foaming) and achme - boiled dough with cheese. Achma is very interesting dish which is definitely worth a try.

Georgian desserts

Of course, in any cafe or restaurant there is sweet pastries for every taste. You can show off your knowledge and use the word "namtskhvari" - a cake. And from the traditional sweet desserts it is worth highlighting:
- gozinaki: finely chopped walnuts fried in honey;
- churchkhela: strung nuts that are dipped several times in a grape sauce, hung up like laundry on a line, and left in that position until dry.

Georgian drinks

Very tasty local drinks - lemonade and beer. "Natakhtari" and "Zandukeli" are the main producers, and, most often, they will be offered to you in restaurants. You can also buy lemonade from these companies at any store. Of the flavors, it is especially worth trying creamy "nagebi", tarragon and grape "saperavi".
mineral water large selection, pay attention to the likani and nabeglavi.
Beer is presented in a large assortment and from different producers.
Among alcoholic beverages wine comes first. The choice of wine is huge, it is difficult to advise, only by tasting you can find the very best. The restaurant is worth a try Home wine- it has a slightly different taste than bottled wine, and is more hoppy.
Vodka and chacha in assortment.
And last but not least, it's water. From the tap flows delicious water from high mountain springs, so cold that it hurts your teeth.

Well, for those who are just planning their trip to Georgia, we can advise you to practice cooking some national dishes. With all the variety of recipes that can be found on all kinds of culinary sites, I would like to recommend two books. First - V.V. Pokhlebkin " National cuisines of our peoples", which tells in detail and very interestingly about the features, differences and secrets. The second - T.P. Sulakvelidze "Georgian cuisine" with a large number of recipes for the most popular dishes. Try to cook and enjoy your meal!

In general, over the past trips I have accumulated a lot of delicious photos! I thought, such goodness should not disappear ... Absolutely all the dishes from the list, where there is a photo, were subjected to my personal tasting. No rewriting from Wikipedia in the style of "just to write, but more." If there is no photo, then this is the goal for my next trip. This dish will not be on the menu above either - it is more convenient to use the article to identify dishes by name.

Georgian cuisine dishes from dough

Khachapuri Imereti

Flatbread or cheese pie. Dough, dough and more dough. Have you returned from Georgia? - Throw away the scales.

Imeretian Khachapuri

Megrelian Khachapuri

It differs from the Imeretian one by the presence of cheese on top. The rest is exactly the same. We do not buy scales.

Megrelian Khachapuri

Cheese and butter patty with scrambled eggs in the middle. Beautiful and appetizing! For its characteristic elongated shape, it is often called a "boat". One such projectile - and you are neutralized until the evening.

Adjarian khachapuri peeled

Relatively recently (at least they say so) a new variation of the traditional Adjarian khachapuri, the so-called. peeled khachapuri in Adjarian style. All the pulp on the sides (the one that is inside) is completely cleaned out. Eating such khachapuri can only be content with a crispy crust. Here, nutritionists can breathe a sigh of relief (after all, they know that fresh soft dough is pretty bad for digestion). Friends, do not overeat!

Adjarian khachapuri peeled

Lobiani

Pie stuffed with boiled beans. In the photo, the version in the "puff version".

Layered lobiani in

Meat pie with hot Georgian spices. Made in Svaneti.

Svan corn tortilla with cheese: fried together cornmeal and fresh cheese suluguni.

Chvishtari at Malat Cafe in Mestia, Svaneti

Khachapuri made from thin layers of boiled dough. A kind of Georgian lasagna. The main principle of preparation is unsweetened dough and salty cheese.

In Tbilisi

Cornbread. Only and everything. Pretty fresh for my taste.

Mchadi at Maspijelo restaurant in Tbilisi

Nazuki

Sweet "buns" (see the size) from the village of Surami (which is on the road from Tbilisi to Kutaisi). Real science can only be obtained here. The recipe is passed down from generation to generation.

Nazuki

• Penovani- puff khachapuri;
• Guruli- Gurian khachapuri from the Guria region, respectively. Baked in the shape of a crescent. IN cheese filling chopped boiled egg is added;
• Rachuli- khachapuri from the Racha region. Has a square shape. Topped with egg yolk;
• Chahrakini- pie with beet tops and cheese;
• Gomi - corn porridge. Salt and spices are not seasoned. Served with cheese or satsivi sauce;
• Elardji- if you add cheese to gomi, you get elarji.

cold dishes

An appetizer of vegetables and herbs mixed with nuts. Often the dish comes as an assortment of vegetables such as spinach, beets and eggplant. One serving is enough for a company of two or three people.

Pkhali at Khinkali House restaurant in Tbilisi

The Georgian name is "nigvziani badrijani". Badrijani in Georgian means eggplant. Main ingredients: eggplant, walnut, vegetable oil, garlic and spices.

Pickles. Served as an assortment. Perhaps, from all the variety it is worth highlighting the so-called. jonjoli (a plant from the Red Book) - pickled flowers of a shrub (or small tree) of the same name and Green pepper. The latter, of course, is sharp.

Mtsnili at Khinkali House restaurant in Tbilisi

Bean dish. Served in clay pot both hot and cold. In addition to beans, this dish also includes dry red pepper and herbs.

Lobio at Laila restaurant in Mestia, Svaneti

Suluguni

Cow cheese. The taste is quite salty and therefore it is better to combine it with something more insipid.

Sulguni cheese

Matsoni

Fermented milk product from milk (cow, sheep or goat) with the use of a special starter culture. I would call matsoni a full-fledged Georgian yogurt. Although it happens that they drink it.

Matsoni

• Chogi - vegetable snack from baked beets, onions and dried dogwood (such a berry);
• Gebzhalia- fresh mint, matsoni, khacho cottage cheese and chinti cheese;
• Mzhaveuli- pickled Georgian pickle;
• Imeretinsky cheese- a young cheese named after the region of the same name in Georgia. One of the most common lightly salted cheeses is the basis for most khachapuri;
• Nadugi- creamy curd cheese, tender and tasty;
• Gooda- spicy mutton (sheep) cheese.

First meal

Beef meat soup with rice, tomato and spices on a special sour base of dried tkemali plums. Distinctive feature- density characteristic of this dish. Moderately spicy.

Kharcho at the Maspijelo restaurant in Tbilisi

Chikhirtma

Chicken soup with flour, eggs and coriander. Usually cooked in broth poultry, sometimes lamb. A distinctive feature is the complete absence of vegetables. Not sharp.

Chikhirtma at Shavi Lomi restaurant in Tbilisi

Soup with beef broth. Rich broth, which is obtained by boiling beef on the bones with the addition of carrots, onions, garlic and herbs. Being a broth, it goes well with bread.

Tatariakhni from beef

Matsoni soup with mint

Soup with the addition of potatoes (or rice) with traditional Georgian spices.

Matsoni soup with mint

• Khashi- offal soup, cooked for a long time. Traditionally eaten in the morning on a hangover;
• Shechamandy - vegetarian soups. There are both lactic or fruit-sour, and nut-based;
• Ostry- like stri (second dish), only soup.

Second courses of Georgian cuisine

Georgian version of dumplings. Traditionally, they eat with their hands, while biting should be so as not to spill a drop of wonderful meat juice. Principle of action: took a bite, drank juice, ate the rest. The filling can be very diverse: from meat to vegetable. Cheap and tasty.

Meat on a spit, barbecue. Barbecue in Georgia is not marinated, and therefore it may seem a bit dry to many. In principle, in most cases it is so. But, mtsvadi in the photo was juicy.

Mtsvadi in one of the cafes in Ushguli, Svaneti

Pot-roasted pork with potatoes, onions and spices. I recommend trying it at the Maspingelo restaurant in Tbilisi, where this very photo was taken. To say it's delicious is an understatement! Portions should be enough for two.

Ojakhuri at Maspijelo restaurant in Tbilisi

An exceptionally Adjarian dish - you can try it in the restaurants of Batumi. In terms of composition, these are veal, mushrooms, onions, sour cream, cilantro and the hops-suneli seasoning, popular in Georgian cuisine. Served in a clay pot. A portion can be ordered for two.

Kaisa in Tavaduri restaurant in Batumi

A dish of young lamb or calf meat cooked in wine with lots of herbs and tkemali (wild plum). In the photo, the author's performance in the restaurant "Litera" in the Tbilisi House of Writers.

Chakapuli at Litera Restaurant

Kababi

Kababi is the same Turkish kebab, only in Georgian. Elongated cutlets sprinkled with onion and sumac (such a spice), wrapped in flat pita bread (or without it).

Kababi at Kakhelebi Restaurant

Vegetable sauté in the Georgian manner. The dish itself can be added to the Caucasian cuisine as a whole. Specifically, in Georgia, it is prepared from eggplant, tomatoes and sweet peppers with the addition of onions, garlic, cilantro and basil. When recommending dishes of Georgian cuisine to friends, I always mention my Batumi ajapsandali as one of delicious dishes that I had a chance to try in Georgia.

Ajapsandali in Batumi Cafe Gardens

Borano Kobuleti

Suluguni cheese fried in butter, complete with cornmeal and egg. It is better to order for breakfast - very high in calories. But, you can freeze your worm almost until the evening.

Borano Kobuleti

Megrelian kharcho is made from veal, walnuts and tomato paste with dry white wine. As seasonings are: cilantro, young coriander, saffron and suneli hops. Not to be confused with kharcho soup - these are two completely different dishes. They have only one thing in common: Megrelian kharcho and kharcho soup - those dishes of Georgian cuisine that you should definitely try at least once.

Megrelian Kharcho at Sazandari in Batumi

Mashed potatoes with Imeretian cheese. They are also called "elarji in Svan" (elardji is such independent dish). Prepared mainly in the Georgian region of Svaneti. By the way, it is better to season Georgian dishes in this region with Svan salt. That's more interesting.

A dish of veal or beef stewed in tomatoes. Moderately sharp. Served in earthenware. Ostry is the second name of the same dish. I personally did not manage to identify any significant differences in the recipe, and most importantly, the taste when tasting both. Maybe you know? - write, plz, in the comments.

A chicken dish stewed with tomatoes, onions, herbs and wine. The latter is hardly noticeable, if not completely absent.

Lamb dish with vegetables, potatoes, all kinds of herbs and spices traditional for Georgia. Reminds vegetable stew. Traditionally cooked in clay pots.

Minced meat with rice and herbs wrapped in grape leaves. Served with garlic gravy (matsoni - fermented milk product similar to yogurt or curdled milk).

Roast veal liver (heart or kidney) with herbs, Georgian spices and garlic. Translated into Georgian, jigari means "innards". In general, an amateur dish, although quite tasty (if you know how to cook it, of course).

Kupaty

Georgian sausages. First boiled, and then fried in a pan or charcoal.

Kupaty

• Muzhuzhy- Georgian jelly based on pork;
• Satsivi- one of the most difficult in terms of cooking dishes of Georgian cuisine. A poultry dish (mainly chicken) combined with chopped walnuts, sauce and seasonings. Do not try to order it in restaurants - real satsivi is cooked for at least 3 hours. Served cold.
• Kaurma- spicy lamb stew with vegetables and spices;
• Chkmeruli- chicken in a creamy garlic sauce cooked in ketsi.

Georgian bread

Shoti puri

Georgian bread baked in a large round oven "tone" (also called tandoor), which is a large clay vessel half buried in the ground.

Shoti puri at Maspijelo restaurant in Tbilisi

Georgian lavash. The dough contains only water, flour, salt and no yeast. Like shoti, it is baked in a clay oven at high temperatures, which makes it so soft and airy. Hello Dietitians!

Madauri at Sazandari restaurant in Batumi

Sauces

Nut sauce with spices. I can say that in my personal rating of sauces, bage rightfully occupies a leading position and has not lost it to anyone yet. If it is cooked correctly, then the pleasure is guaranteed. Airy, vaguely reminiscent of artichoke cream soup.

Tkemali (wild plum) gravy with spices, garlic and herbs. It goes well with fish, meat, poultry, side dishes of potatoes and pasta.

Churchkhela in the Walmart supermarket in Batumi

Homemade churchkhela in Kakheti

Grape juice boiled with cornmeal. Served chilled in the form of jelly.

Pelamushi at Cafe Gardens in Batumi

Homemade pelamushi

• Gozinaki- Dessert made from walnuts with honey.

Epilogue

It is highly recommended to check the degree of satiety after each meal eaten. "How?" - you ask. Well, for example, you can turn on this track * and try to dance to the beat. Weak? But Georgians can... You can get master classes directly in Georgia.

P.S.

Friends, if you know any dishes of Georgian cuisine that are not on this list, please write their names in the comments below. I will add them to my dictionary and make beautiful photo in one of the restaurants in Georgia. Why in Georgia? Yes, because as soon as Georgia has the most correct portions... 😉

Friends! Thank you for reading to the end. From me a bonus for showing interest, from you - registration via the link. So we say thank you to each other.

Copyright © Sergey Prokhorov

Apart from this or that, each country is famous for its special, a cuisine unlike any other, which she is proud of, appreciates, loves and would not exchange for anything in the world. So here it is Georgian cuisine is a symbiosis of goodies: successfully combined meat and vegetables, seasoned with a huge amount of variety of spices.

And what are here appetizing and satisfying flour products and sweets, and sauces, and cheeses! In general, we will not torment you for a long time and will try not only to unite, but also to describe everything the most delicious national dishes Georgian cuisine.

Georgian cuisine dishes

Just to Georgia it's impossible not to fall in love. Everyone who comes here once wants to visit this place at least once more. hospitable and tasty country. Men will be delighted meat dishes, and women and children will appreciate the rich selection Georgian sweets. And even if you are hardened vegetarian, dishes from various vegetables will undoubtedly fall in love with you rich taste and unusual presentation.

“Here you can safely forget about your diet and just enjoy delicious food,” our new colorful acquaintance about. It is difficult to imagine a better statement about the cuisine of this country. After all, almost all tourists cannot refuse such delicious meals and put on a few extra pounds.

Snacks

Snacks in Georgia are presented a wide selection of dishes. This includes variety of vegetable salads or plants with seasonings, both raw, stewed, boiled, fried and baked, as well as salted and even pickled. By choosing a certain sauce for them, you can try to create your unique snack right on the spot (if you prefer to cook and eat at home).

most popular enjoy the following dishes:

• Badrijani(fried eggplants with nuts) - in Georgia, a lot of goodies are cooked with eggplants. They can be pre-fried, and then rolled up, stuffed with walnuts; cook stew in combination with other vegetables or serve in fried and stewed form. Fans of blue ones will definitely like any of the listed options for dishes.

  Frankly speaking, we did not like the fried eggplants. Maybe they were not cooked very well, or we expected too much from this dish.

• Lobio(beans) - is a fairly popular product in Georgia. Possible various variations dishes from all kinds of beans that grow in the country. But the most popular is the dish of the same name - lobio, cooked in a small clay pot. The composition of this dish, in addition to beans, necessarily includes dry red pepper and herbs.
• pkhali- in fact, this is an appetizer of boiled vegetables, spices and herbs, decorated with pomegranate seeds. Most often made on the basis of spinach or eggplant.
• Kaimagi- a prototype of sour cream familiar to us, but with its own bright taste and a consistency close to thick cream. It is made from dairy products and is not only tasty, but also healthy food. Georgians themselves use kaimagi with cornmeal cakes and cheese.
• Pickles- decoration of any Georgian table. They are prepared from almost any available vegetables and even from plant inflorescences (for jonjoli they use the buds of the Colchis cleaver, a small tree that grows only in the Caucasus, collected in the spring). Pickles from bean pods, green pepper and tomato are especially held in high esteem.
• Mushrooms on ketsi- champignons fried in a special clay pan seasoned with pepper. The dish is brought in the same vessel in which it is prepared. In addition to mushrooms, the menu usually also includes suluguni cheese on ketsi.
• Kuchmachi- tasty, although enough spicy dish from offal. The most commonly used chicken heart and liver, but sometimes veal. Garnished with pomegranate seeds and fried onions.

First meal

According to the choice of first courses in Georgia, travelers will have, though small, but very delicious variety. Even though in each region the soup is prepared and served a little differently, we are sure that everyone will choose the most worthy option for themselves.

By the way, in the first dishes do not add vegetables, so you can not look for the usual potatoes or carrots. Soup still works thick, but by adding eggs or flour-based sauces to it. The first course is served hot.

• Chikhirtma hearty soup, usually made from chicken meat, cornmeal, eggs, herbs and spices. Eggs in the dish dissolve completely without curdling due to their oxidation with a small amount of citric acid.
• Kharcho- a thick beef soup with rice, spices, herbs, garlic and tkemali (dried plums). Sometimes kharcho is made from pork or lamb, but beef is still considered traditional meat. Often the soup is served very spicy.
• Khashi- a rich soup, in texture reminiscent of diluted jelly. Cooked for quite a long time (about 8 hours) from beef leg and offal. Khashi served with garlic and herbs. Favorite hangover cure.

Second courses (main)

Because Georgia is basically "meat country", fish dishes are not often found in restaurants and cannot be attributed to the national cuisine.

Let's list main or second dishes, familiar to Georgians:

• Ojakhuri- potatoes cooked and served on a ketsi (frying pan) with meat, herbs and spices. Very pretty, tasty and hearty meal.
• Khinkali- the most famous dish in the world. Outwardly and to taste they resemble huge dumplings with a tail, sprinkled with black pepper. The filling is the most diverse: from meat to vegetable. They eat khinkali with their hands, holding the tail. First, they bite and drink the juice, and then directly proceed to the meal.
• Borano- a very high-calorie dish consisting of Adjarian cheese, butter, corn flour and eggs. It has an unusual taste.
• Mtsvadi(barbecue) - prepared from various types of meat. Usually tenderloin is not pre-soaked.
• Satsivi- chicken stew in tandem with walnuts, sauce and spices.
• chicken tobacco- chicken cooked under oppression (tapaka). Served with garlic and spices.
• Chakhokhbili- stewed meat stew. Most often prepared from pieces of chicken with garlic, herbs and seasonings.
• Ostry or chashushuli - a veal or beef dish. Prepared with tomatoes, herbs and garlic. Often very sharp.
• Kupaty- delicious sausages, essentially reminiscent of the familiar to us homemade sausage. First they are boiled (literally 1 minute), and then fried in a pan or coals.
• Chanakhi- a hearty dish consisting of stewed meat with vegetables. It is prepared in a clay pot.
• Chakapuli- young meat stewed in spices and herbs. Lamb is usually used.
• Chkmeruli - tender chicken under creamy garlic sauce cooked on ketsi.
• Gomi- delicious corn porridge of a homogeneous consistency with melted suluguni cheese.
• Fried trout in pomegranate sauce - sourness of the sauce gives spicy taste this dish.

Sauces

Sauces in Georgia are very delicious and interesting. They like to add in many dishes for saturation. And many tourists, having tasted and fallen in love with a certain sauce, even go home with a bottle of newly made goodies.

Main of them:

• Bage- the king of all sauces. It is the bage served on holiday tables Georgians, bringing it to the consistency of sour cream. Prepare the sauce from a mixture of walnuts, spices and garlic. Ideal for meat and fish dishes.
• Adjika A very spicy sauce that uses red peppers, spices and garlic. This Georgian adjika never included tomatoes.
• Tkemali A sour and spicy sauce that goes well with just about anything. It is prepared from plums of the same name tkemali (cherry plum), various spices, herbs and garlic.
• Satsebeli- a delicious sweet and sour sauce, reminiscent of the usual ketchup. It consists of: tomatoes, sweet peppers and spices. Suitable for almost all dishes, especially meat and fish.

Flour dishes (baking)

Many tourists have Georgia is associated with barbecue, hot spices, various sauces, wine. And only when you get here, you understand - real queen country is rightfully bakery. Delicious and fragrant khachapuri, hearty bread, pies with a variety of fillings ... All this becomes integral part Georgia, winning the worldwide love of travelers.

As one Georgian told us, a family of 4 people can eat 5 or even 6 such shotis puri (bread) per day.

Most Popular flour dishes:

• Shotis puri(bread) - very tasty, eaten quickly and imperceptibly. Sold in the form of a long flat cake with a round "pancake" in the center. It is baked in special large outdoor ovens - tone. The most appetizing in the form of heat with the addition of cheese.
• Mchadi- small unleavened cakes made from cornmeal. The locals love to eat them with cheese.
• Imeritinsky khachapuri- a round pancake with cheese inside.
• Megrelian khachapuri- differs from Imeritinsky by the presence of cheese on top of the cake.
• Adjarian khachapuri- the most beautiful and appetizing. Served in the form of an open boat, with cheese, egg and a piece of butter inside.
• Khachapuri on a spit- khachapuri with cheese, which is cooked and served on a skewer.
• Royal khachapuri- a huge khachapuri with cheese, not only inside, but also outside.
• Penovani- the most popular type of khachapuri. It looks and tastes like a cheese puff.
• Achma- hearty dish. In fact - the same puff, but made from boiled layers of dough, which are smeared with butter and cheese.
• Lobiani- baked bean pie. Usually quite spicy.
• Kubdari- a pie with meat, with the addition of hot spices.
• Gurian pies- an unusual dish resembling a bagel. An egg and cheese are placed inside.

Read our separate article.

Cheese

Cheese in the country quite a bit of, and the most varied. All of them differ in taste, texture and cooking process. To the most popular worth considering:

• Imeretinsky- it is customary to cook khachapuri from it. Delicious on its own as well as various dishes. Refers to slightly salted species.
• Suluguni- salty cheese, which is considered pickled. It has a few eyes and an elastic consistency.
• Nadugi- cottage cheese mass with an incredibly delicate creamy taste. Often served in a thin suluguni envelope.

Dessert

How not to remember Georgian desserts? Even those who are not very fond of sweets will find here something to pamper and surprise themselves.

• churchkhela- walnuts or hazelnuts strung on a thread, generously doused with a mixture cooked from grapes, sugar, wheat and corn flour. There are different types and colors depending on the grape variety. Always a very tasty, sweet and unusual dessert.
• Gozinaki(kozinaki) - pieces of walnuts fried in honey.
• Pelamushi- made from grape juice and cornmeal. Serve chilled and sprinkled with nuts.
• Baklava- a complex and painstaking dessert. Prepared from thin layers of dough, which are smeared with sweet syrup and nuts.
• Nazuki- big delicious bread with honey and raisins.
• Tklapi- sweet and sour dessert, in fact - marshmallow, which is dried in the sun.

If you are afraid to go to because of the specific sharpness and spice of the dishes, we assure you: here you can find perfectly normal food(In extreme cases, make your own). In addition, cafes and restaurants often listen to the wishes of customers, make food less spicy or do not throw any seasonings. In popular tourist places, they obviously cook what travelers are more accustomed to ( without spiciness and fat). By the way, a huge amount of greenery in almost any dish - this is the norm for Georgia.

Trying all the national dishes of the country, at one time visiting it, is quite difficult and almost unrealistic. Don't order too many dishes if there are only two of you. After all, portions in Georgia are really huge.

We advise you to pay attention, first of all, on flour. Of the brightest that we tried, we will separately highlight adjarian khachapuri. It's easy and delicious can serve as breakfast for two. Worth the pleasure 6 lari GEORGIAN LAR RATE:
6 lari = 1.99 euros;
6 lari = 2.28 dollars;
6 lari = 151.32 rubles;
6 lari = 63.84 hryvnia;
6 lari = 5.1 Belarusian rubles.
. We tried the most delicious Adjarian khachapuri in Batumi, in the restaurants "Retro" and "Cerodena".

And this is how the most expensive kebab in Georgia looked like for us. Not only did he have to wait a very long time, he was also tough and burnt.

If you came to Georgia to enjoy local barbecue you will most likely be upset. Due to the fact that meat is usually not pre-soaked, it turns out dry and a little hard.

We tried many different kebabs, and concluded for ourselves - the most delicious turned out to be pork from the cafe "Dukansky Caucasus" on the highway to Passanauri (on). If there is no opportunity or desire to go on an excursion, try pork skewers in Batumi at the Sachashnike restaurant or in Tbilisi at the Mravalzhamieri restaurant.

Of the soups, the most delicious was chicken(chihirtma). At first, however, it was a little strange and unusual to eat soup without vegetables. The most delicious chikhirtma was served in 5 lari GEORGIAN LAR RATE:
5 lari = 1.66 euros;
5 lari = 1.9 dollars;
5 lari = 126.1 rubles;
5 lari = 53.2 hryvnia;
5 lari = 4.25 Belarusian rubles.
Rates and prices may not be accurate.. Huge portion enough for two. It is best to try chikhirtma in the Tbilisi restaurants "Mravalzhamieri" or "Maspindzelo", and in Batumi in the restaurant "Bremen".

Khinkali frankly speaking to us didn't like. Either we didn’t eat them there (not in the “khinkal houses”), or this dish simply wasn’t ours. By the way, despite the fact that khinkali are considered large dumplings, in any cafe or restaurant you can choose them with: vegetable, cheese, cottage cheese, potato, etc. fillings. Their cost starts from 0.45 GEL GEORGIAN LAR RATE:
0.45 lari = 0.15 euro;
0.45 lari = 0.17 dollars;
0.45 lari = 11.35 rubles;
0.45 lari = 4.79 hryvnia;
0.45 lari = 0.38 Belarusian rubles.
Rates and prices may not be accurate. per piece, but less than 5 orders are usually not accepted. Want to really try delicious khinkali- go to . Almost the only place where we ate normal meat khinkali is the village of Pasanauri.

But what we really liked was this ojahuri. We ordered it often and in different places. He was almost everywhere perfectly delicious, with juicy pieces of meat. Serving prices start at 7 lari GEORGIAN LAR RATE:
7 lari = 2.32 euros;
7 lari = 2.66 dollars;
7 lari = 176.54 rubles;
7 lari = 74.48 hryvnia;
7 lari = 5.95 Belarusian rubles.
Rates and prices may not be accurate..

Imeretian cheese, as we noticed, are very fond of not only tourists, but also the Georgians themselves. We recommend that you try it too. Personally, we took this cheese and it turned out to be quite salty. As the owner of the apartment in which we lived later said, in fact, it can be different. We treated ourselves to almost unsalted Imereti cheese at her place.

We definitely recommend trying churchkhela(from 2 lari GEORGIAN LAR RATE:
2 lari = 0.66 euros;
2 lari = 0.76 dollars;
2 lari = 50.44 rubles;
2 lari = 21.28 hryvnia;
2 lari = 1.7 Belarusian rubles.
Rates and prices may not be accurate.). This unusual delicacy is absolutely does not look like to something that can sometimes be found on the shelves of stores in post-Soviet countries. Churchkhela in Georgia popular dessert, which is eaten by both adults and children. The most delicious is sold in Batumi in a specialized store, "Badagi". In addition to churchkhela, there are beautiful ones that are well suited as a present.

And finally: if you want to taste real Georgian food, look for places visited by Georgians themselves.

In particular, they have already written, but I will tell you about Georgian cuisine, because Georgian food is a real cult, attraction and a reason to travel.

Regions of Georgia and their cuisine

Not only Georgians live in Georgia: there are also Kakhetians, Adjarians, Svans, Mingrelians, and everyone cooks something of their own. Drink wine in Kakheti, try khachapuri-boats in Adzharia, eat satsivi in ​​Megrelia, stock up on real suluguni in Svaneti.

Snacks

Lunch or dinner in Georgia is a multi-hour action with food, wine and endless toasts. If the feast is just beginning, try snacks, but remember that there are many more dishes ahead.

• Pkhali - balls of spinach, beets, cabbage with the addition of walnuts and spices.
• Ajapsanali - vegetable stew. Eat with bread (bread is another story) and drink wine.
• Lobio - a pot of beans. Sytnoe full meal, and this is just the beginning.

Bread and khachapuri

Bread - business card any country, everywhere it is prepared in different ways. In Georgia, there may be special bread on the table for certain dishes - for example, mchadi cakes for chikhirtma, round mrgvili and long dedas-puri for kharcho, satsivi and lobio, ready-made shish kebab is laid out on shoti boats and covered with another cake so that the meat does not cool down. eat bread different peoples and, of course, khachapuri.

Russian-Georgian gastronomic dictionary:

• Shoti - an elongated large tandoor flatbread, slightly salty I, it is served with most Georgian dishes.
• Mchadi - small dense corn pies, served with soups.

Now let's deal with khachapuri. The dish, known far beyond the borders of Georgia, as I thought before, is a small square envelopes with suluguni cheese inside. These are sold in any bakery in Russia. When I arrived in Georgia, I realized that things were more complicated. By classic recipe, inside khachapuri there may be not only suluguni, but also other cheeses. And the square puff pastry is foaming. Khachapuri is different.

Russian-Georgian gastronomic dictionary:

• Megrelian khachapuri (or in Georgian affectionately: megruli) are round cakes with cheese on top.
• Khachapuri a la Imerta (imeruli) - round cakes with cheese inside.
• Khachapuri in Gurian style - flatbread with a crescent moon.
• Khachapuri in Adjarian (as for me, the most delicious) - boats with cheese, egg and butter.

Adjarian khachapuri requires special handling. A bread boat with cheese is cooked in the oven, then they take it out, break an egg into the cheese middle and add a piece butter. When the dish is served, it is still very hot, so you can see how the butter melts and the yolk hardens. You need to stir the fillings with a fork or knife and eat, tearing off the bread at the edges and dipping it into the filling. Of course, by hand.

Meat, sauces and spices

The main dish in Georgia is always meat, whether it is the well-known shish kebab (here it is called "mtsvadi") or unexpectedly Georgian tapaka chicken ("tapaka" is translated as a frying pan). But there are dishes that are more authentic. Let's get to know them.

Russian-Georgian gastronomic dictionary:

• Chakhokhbili - tomato and poultry stew.
• Satsivi - chicken in walnut, cinnamon and saffron sauce.
• Chashushuli - beef stewed with vegetables.
• Chakapuli - lamb stew with tarragon.

Everything is very, very tasty! When you come to Georgia, you want to make your stomach bottomless in order to try all the national dishes. No matter how hard you try to cook it yourself, it really won't work. In Georgia, food has a special taste and aroma due to spices: suneli hops, cilantro, tarragon (aka tarragon), basil, Svan salt.

Georgian sauces are a separate issue. They serve stewed and fried meat, poultry. Everyone knows adjika - a spicy mixture of pepper, suneli hops, cilantro and dill, but there is something else.

Russian-Georgian gastronomic dictionary:

• Tkemali is a sauce made from red or green plums, herbs and garlic.
• Satsebeli - tomato sauce with garlic and spices.
• Garo - walnut sauce with onion and egg.

Khinkali

There is a main dish in Georgia, to which neither bread nor sauce is supposed to be served: khinkali, Georgian dumplings-manti. It is customary to eat a lot of them - if you order two pieces in a restaurant, then the waiter will probably be surprised and ask for the quantity again. Georgia is not the place to restrain gastronomic desires. Khinkali are cheap, satisfying and varied. We try meat from different regions and those with potatoes, cheese and mushrooms.

Russian-Georgian gastronomic dictionary:

• Kalakuri are the most common khinkali: dough, two types of meat, broth, black pepper and fresh herbs.
• Mtialuri - the same, but without greenery.
• Pasanauruli - minced meat instead of minced meat.
• Kakhetian - with pork.

There is khinkali - a special ritual. There should be a lot of them, they should be hot. No sauce needed. You can just sprinkle black pepper on top. Take only by hand. Hold the tail, bite off, drink the broth, eat the dough and meat, leave the tail. A sign of special skill is not to spill a single drop of broth on the plate.

Soups

If there was too much wine at dinner yesterday (and in Georgia wine flows like water), then the next day you need to be treated with hot and rich Georgian soup. The most popular are spicy tomato beef kharcho and thick chikhirtma with chicken and egg. Hot soup is usually served with cold chacha or vodka. Yesterday's feast grows into today's and becomes an endless Georgian feast.

Dessert

If after a plentiful Georgian dinner there is a place for a sweet, it should be filled with churchkhela and gozinaki. Churchkhela - walnuts or hazelnuts strung on a string in a frozen sweet grape jelly. You can buy it in tourist shops, where it hangs in colorful clusters, but grandmothers sell the freshest and most delicious on the streets of cities or in mountain villages. It can be seen that it was just cooked: soft, bends like rubber, without white coating and with the freshest nuts inside. If you find one, then definitely take it: it will be the most delicious churchkhela in your life.

Wine

The national drink of Georgia is wine: Saperavi, Mukuzani, Kindzamaruli, Khvanchkara. There are also rarer wines from local varieties. All winemaking is concentrated in Kakheti, where you can go on an exciting wine tour: Georgia has the Georgia Wine Route - a road with views of the vineyards and signs to wineries, cellars and family wineries. The most popular wine here is dry red or semi-sweet wine made from the Saperavi grape variety, but there is also an interesting white wine.

Russian-Georgian wine dictionary:

• Red wine:
  • Saperavi is a grape variety and the name of a simple dry wine.
  • Khvanchkara is a semi-sweet of the two local varieties, usually the most expensive on the wine list.
  • Kindzmarauli - semi-sweet from the region of the same name.
  • Pirosmani is a semi-dry wine from the Saperavi variety, named after a Georgian artist.
  • Mukuzani is a dry wine from the town of the same name, Saperavi variety.
• White wine:
  • Rkatsiteli is a grape variety and the name of a simple dry wine.
  • Tsinandali - dry wine from Rkatsiteli and another variety, aged in a barrel.
  • Alazani valley - semi-dry from the Alazani river valley.

Georgian wine fine any. Even if you don't understand, try it. From Saperavi, from Rkatsiteli, from little-known varieties, red and white, dry and semi-sweet, well-known manufacturers and small wineries.

What if you are not a wine lover after all? Drink chacha - Georgian grape vodka, which is often infused with fruits and herbs.

Soft drinks

If you do not drink alcohol - there is mineral water, soft drinks and juices.

Mineral water is not only: less known, but no less useful are Nabeghlavi, Sairme and Bakuriani.

Natakhtari, Zadazeni and Lagidze lemonades are sold in stores and on the street, which is especially pleasing in the heat. There are classic ones with the taste of tarragon, pear or lemon, or you can find creamy or grape. The most important thing in Georgian lemonade is its naturalness. This is not just a soda, but an ecological product: only water, sugar and fruit syrup.

Another popular drink is freshly squeezed pomegranate juice. Such a rich, tart, concentrated pomegranate I tried only here. Benches with juicers stand right on the street.

Top 5 Georgian goodies

So, what you should definitely try in Georgia:

1. Khinkali. From different types meat, with cheese and potatoes, with and without herbs. Learn to eat them with your hands and not spill the broth. Do not forget to leave a ponytail from the dough. Do not ask for khinkali utensils, bread or sauce.
2. Kharcho. A rich, spicy soup that will save you from a hangover.
3. Khachapuri. Megrelian, Imerta, Gurian, and especially Adjarian. Learn how to eat cheese boats correctly, order the largest ones and eat to the last drop of salty cheese.
4. Wine. White and especially red. Semi-sweet and dry. Company and home. Any wine is fine here, regardless of grape variety, region and price.
5. churchkhela. Fresh, from walnuts grape juice. Learn to choose the most delicious by eye. Don't be afraid to buy.

Food prices

Georgia has cheap food. Portions are big. You can have lunch and be full for 5 USD or 15 GEL (Georgian lari currency, about 300 rubles). The most profitable dish is khinkali, one dumpling costs from 0.2 USD or 0.6 GEL (12 rubles), you can eat four or five. Kharcho costs from 1.5 USD or 5 GEL (100 rubles). Churchkhela from 0.3 to 1 USD or 1-3 GEL (20-60 rubles). Wine in a restaurant from 3.5 USD or 10 GEL (200 rubles), in a supermarket - half the price.

Where to buy groceries

Tbilisi has both large supermarkets and small shops. Near the Vokzalnaya metro station (Station square) there is the largest Deserter market, where they sell all kinds of spices, fruits, nuts, cheeses, churchkhela.

In small towns and villages, it is worth paying attention to local markets, while not bypassing street vendors of fruits, nuts and spices.

Wine is sold in small shops in the historical center - Old Tbilisi, but it is cheaper to take it in supermarkets, for example, the popular Smart chain. In Kakheti, wine can and should be bought directly from wineries.

Where to go for dinner

There are many places with excellent Georgian cuisine and atmosphere. Here are a few good cafes and restaurants in Tbilisi.

Mahakhela

The restaurant is open 24/7 and specializes in traditional cuisine. Always crowded, always delicious. For local Adjarian khachapuri, I would come back again and again, and there are so many types of khinkali here that you can’t try it in a week.

Restaurant in Mtatsminda park

When you climb Mount Mtatsminda in Tbilisi, be sure to have lunch at a restaurant in the depths of the park. It is run by an elderly family couple: they themselves cook and bring food, treat them with homemade wine and chacha. In summer you can sit outside, in winter - in a small room where a fireplace-stove is stoked.

Legvi

Don't search here traditional dishes Georgian cuisine: salads and sandwiches are on the menu together, and the bar list is filled with cocktails. The main reason to come to this trendy loft restaurant lies in the picturesque view of the mountain waterfall among the rocks, which opens from the huge floor-to-ceiling windows. But the interior still has bottles of chacha, and bread for sandwiches is small khachapuri.

Restaurants on the street near Peace Bridge

The glass bridge is a landmark of Tbilisi that you cannot pass by. Between it and Kote Afkhazi street is a small but bustling tourist street Erekle II. There are restaurants with traditional cuisine here literally in every house.

Restaurants on Dadiani Street

Dadiani is another tourist street in the old town with many Georgian restaurants. Here, shops sell fruits, churchkhela, cheese and wine.

***

The food and wine in Georgia is undeniably delicious. It seems that it is simply impossible to try something tasteless here. Restaurant food here is like homemade, and hospitality and wine are a reason to return again and again.