Georgian cuisine is known for its combination of spicy and savory flavors. Meat is a staple of many dishes. Walnuts and various herbs such as cilantro, basil, and tarragon are in just about everything! Especially cilantro! There are some good vegetarian dishes, but nothing really for seafood. And desserts don’t seem to be a big part of their cuisine. Which is probably a good thing!
Badrijani Nigvzit - Grilled eggplant slices spread with a rich paste of ground walnuts, garlic, herbs, spices, and garnished with fresh pomegranate seeds. It was really good.
Chacha – a strong, traditional Georgian spirit, often called "Georgian grappa," made by distilling the grape residue left after winemaking. It is deeply woven into Georgian culture. We were offered it twice (so far). Once I downed it. The other time I dumped it out when no one was looking!
Satsivi - Chicken in walnut sauce. Georgian walnut sauces are made from ground walnuts and garlic, and blended with water. It is typically seasoned with coriander, savory (yellow flower), and vinegar. I had the same sauce but with mushroom. I also had it with salmon which was my favorite!
Churchkhela - Lumpy, colorful confections found hanging in markets. Concentrated grape juice (left over from the wine harvest) is poured repeatedly over strands of walnuts. Each layer is left to dry until a chewy, waxy exterior envelops the nuts. It was kind of weird, but not bad.
Janjoli – Pickled wild flowers! It is a type of wild flower/sprout that they harvest in the woods and pickle. We didn’t like it.
Khachapuri - Translated, it means "cheesy bread". The basic version is a flatbread made of leavened dough, filled with sulguni cheese which is a local cheese that is smooth and salty.
Khachapuri Adjaruli – A variation of Khachapuri from Adjaruli region. The best description I found was “a molten canoe of carbohydrates and dairy”! It is a “boat” of traditional Georgian bread filled with sulguni cheese and baked. When it is removed from the oven, they add hunks of butter and an egg on top. When served, you stir it all up and pull off chunks of bread to dip into it. So YUMMY!
Lobio - This version of Khachapuri is filled with beans. Its kind of like a bean burrito made with bread rather than a tortilla!
Lobio stew - A traditional Georgian bean dish. It is a mixture of red beans, onions, garlic, coriander, cilantro, and other spices. It was actually really good. Grady even liked it (and he doesn't even like beans!)
Traditional Georgian Pretzels - We got these on a walking tour, and had to go back the next day for more. It is similar to a soft pretzel but a little smaller and slightly sweet (no salt on it). We purchased in this tiny little shop where it is all they sell.
Pkhali - Can be made with various vegetables filled with their traditional walnut paste. Ours were done with red bell pepper and rolled up egg plant. I loved the bell pepper ones.
Sulguni - Local cheese made from cow's milk. Flavor is pretty salty and it is a very "young" cheese. This is the cheese used in khachapuri. It's great in khachapuri, but a bit too salty on its own.
Georgian cucumber and tomato salad - made with red onion, sunflower oil, and a lot of fresh herbs like cilantro and parsley. This one has the traditional walnut paste (thinned out some). You can get it without the walnut paste and just the seasonings and oil instead... but that would be stupid! The walnut paste is so delicious!
Ajapsandali - a traditional vegetarian stew made with simmered eggplant, tomatoes, bell peppers, and onions, seasoned with garlic, fresh herbs like basil, coriander, and parsley. Very tasty!
khinkali - a kind of dumpling made of twisted knobs of dough, stuffed with spiced meat or vegetables. Once we learned to eat them correctly, we became slightly addicted to them! The trick is to hold them by the "knob" and eat them. If you use a fork and knife, you lose all the juice from inside.
Sulguni Ketse - translates to "mushrooms baked in a clay dish". It's literally just mushrooms and sulguni cheese. It was one of my favorite dishes! I bet Colleen's running pace would improve if approached with this dish!
Nazuki - We bought this at a roadside stand. It is a Georgian sweet bread served warm. It is kind of like a cinnamon raisin bread with a heartier texture. It was delicious!