Georgian cuisine is traditional national culinary style in Georgia. Feature of the Georgian cuisine is the use of certain products distributed in the Caucasus, and therefore the presence of certain foods, the popularity of which has worldwide fame. Georgian recipes Satsivi, Lobio, Khinkali, Ghomi, Kharcho,Chakhokhbili, Chanakh, Shkmeruli, Gozinaki,Churchkhela and many others have long been prepared outside of Georgia.
Georgian cuisine at its compilation of recipes and dishes of ideology is based on the contrast of spicy and hot. Vegetables widely used in separate dishes and as a complement to meat dishes. Continued existence of the Georgian nation at the crossroads of many cultures and influences led to the fact that, none of the types of meat has no the predominant value in Georgian cuisine. Georgian meat dishes can be made from pork, lamb, beef, poultry, etc. For example Muzhuzhi made from pork or lamb, Chanakhi from lamb, Kharcho from beef Chakhokhbili from chicken, turkey, rabbit or lamb.
Most vegetable dishes are prepared from the beans, eggplant, cabbage, cauliflower, beets and tomatoes. Often the recipes are seasoned with spices. For example: spices in Georgian dish Lobio changing depending on the recipe and season. In other recipes, changing the composition of vegetables, spices and sauces are the same, for example, Mkhali and Borani. In general, the Georgian cuisine is widely used sauces that are fundamentally different from Europe as the composition and technology of cooking.
There is a difference between the traditional cuisine of Western and Eastern Georgia. For the West Georgia is characterized by the use of Mchadi (bread made from corn flour), as well as corn meal or a special meal from a special kind of millet -Gherghili, cooked mush - Ghomi, which add cheese Sulguni(Suluguni). East Georgia is characterized by the widespread use of the wheat bread. In addition, in Western Georgia, the majority of meat is poultry.
Fish dishes a little common throughout Georgia with the exception of areas along rivers. In Georgian dishes typically used Barbell, Khramula, Shamaia, Beardfish belonging to the family Cyprinid and differ only sweet and fatty meats. In fast rivers lives mountain trout (Mtis Kalmakhi), which is exquisitely tasty flesh and has no specific "fish" taste. These features of the local raw fish combined with the relatively rare and little use of fish compared to meat in the Georgian kitchen left a mark on the character of preparation of fish in Georgian cuisine. Examples of well known Georgian fish dishes: Catfish in Kindzmari, Fish Muzhuzhi, Rammed with Tkemali,Satsivi of fish, Bozartma of Salmon, etc.
Georgian cuisine inconceivable without nuts - walnuts, peanuts, hazelnut, almonds, but most of the walnuts. These particular raw materials - the constant component of various condiments and sauces, are equally well suited to dishes of poultry, vegetables and even fish. Nuts are used in meat soups and pastries, cold saladsand in a hot main course.
It is especially necessary to emphasize the use of herbs in dishes. Herbs in Georgian cuisine acquired great importance. They are used all year round (cilantro, tarragon, basil, savory, leeks, chives, mint, etc.).
Also feature the Georgian table is a frequent and abundant use of cheese. First of all, attention is drawn to the composition of cheese. Dozens of varieties of cheese produced in Georgia. For example Sulguni (Suluguni), Imeretian Cheese, Gouda,Kobis Kveli, Tushuri, etc..
Not only the taste scale, but also ways of Georgian cheeses are very different from European ones. If in European kitchens variety of cheeses are mainly belonging or snack, or dessert table, the Georgian cuisine they are used in the preparation of hot meals, as second and first. In Georgian cuisine cheese boiled in milk or tenderize, roasted on a spit in a frying pan and into the oil, baked in pastry, soaked, pounded, flavored with oil and spices.
In Georgian cuisine widely used an open fire and skewers for cooking, not only meat, but vegetables, fish and even cheese dishes. Also widely used clay ovens in the form of a pitcher named Tone (both for baking pastry and frying whole pigs). More specific for Georgian Cuisine is using of small and large stone clay pans – Ketsi, for frying and baking, as well as metal pans Tapha wide frying poultry under pressure (Tabaka).
Besides a truly national characteristic of the Georgian cuisine is the use of acidic, acidic and fatty or acidic with eggs environment to create distinctive taste and texture of the Georgian soups and sauces to enrich the application range of dishes. Vegetable soup is not thick in Georgian cuisine, but their consistency much denser than ordinary soups. This is achieved very often by using egg yolks or whole eggs.
Eggs are pre-mixed with any acidic environment to prevent there coagulation by heating. For acidic environment used: natural acidic fruit juice, vinegar or Matsoni (sour milk). Used especially as acidic thickened puree plums Tkemali(Kvatsarahi) or the same gelled and dried mashed Tkemalicalled Tklapi. Acidic medium is used in soups and when there are no eggs, but there are quite a lot of fat and meat. It is not only refines and a variety of flavors of dishes, but also significantly increases their digestibility.
Georgian cuisine is unthinkable without the sauces. At the same time Georgian sauces are fundamentally different from the European sauces with their composition as well as technology. For Georgian sauces of all kinds as the basis used exclusively plant material. Most often it is sour berry and fruit juice or puree Tkemali, blackthorn, pomegranate, blackberry, barberry, or tomatoes. There was widespread also have peanut sauces, which serve as the basis of crushed nuts, divorced, or broth, or plain water or wine vinegar. Also for some sauces used crushed garlic as the basis. The garlic comes as an additional component in most sauces. In many sauces and gravy, all of the major items (sour juice, nuts, garlic) are connected in different proportions. Along with the foundation of the Georgian sauces is also a large collection of spices, mostly spicy greens, herbs, plus a small amount of dry spices. The composition of spicy greens are cilantro, basil, tarragon, savory, parsley, dill, mint, and more in the dry spices - paprika, coriander seeds, cinnamon, cloves, etc. Each sauce is used a different set of spices, that is, not all of the spices together, and usually three or four of them. It is this set in each case gives the sauce in combination with varying bases and a variety of special taste and aroma, typical only for the Georgian cuisine.
Technology of Georgian sauces usually boils down to two basic operations: the boiling fruit juice (or puree) and crushing nuts, garlic, spices until a smooth paste or emulsion. After brewing and pounding all the components that make this sauce, mix together. Most Georgian sauce the consistency of liquid as opposed to, for example, European sauces that have a thick consistency, sometimes more dense than the thick sour cream.
Usually one and the same sauce can be applied to entirely different basis (meat, vegetables and even fish) and depending on it to make different dishes. That is, for example, use the sauce Satsivi. Sometimes the range of the sauce may be limited to vegetable dishes, but these dishes should be different in composition major vegetables, in this case, the principle remains the same - the same sauce to a different basis. Thus, the cabbage, eggplant, beets, beans can be used the same sauce - Tkemali. On the other hand, the same can be applied on different sauces. This technique also allows different dishes by name. For example, to exactly the same fried chicken can be submitted Satsebeli sauces, Bazhe,Tkemali, Garlic-Wine, Nut sauces, etc.
It is a variation of sauces and main products is achieved largely variety dishes of Georgian cuisine. Most often serve as the basis for products such as beans, eggplant, potatoes, poultry, are able to create very close to neutral, but not quite a neutral taste background favorable for the manifestation of it aroma, flavor, spice Georgian sauces.
Georgian sauces often act as stand-alone courses and are used in this case with the bread. Sufficient calories, vitamins, essential content, high taste completely explain this use.
A few words about the taste scale Georgian sauces. The most distinctive feature - its tart acidity produced by the natural fruit and berry juices. Very often it is mistaken for "sharp" and linked to the alleged rampant use of spices, especially pepper. Meanwhile, a sour-tart taste has nothing to do with the "sharpness". Of course, it enhances the aroma and flavor, which is reported Georgian sauces used in these herbs, but the very nature of their foundations and sour spices, these are not sharp.
Set of spices in the creation of Georgian cuisine has not so much burning as aromatic-spicy, refreshing effect. Hence, in Georgian cuisine dominates the use of fresh and dried herbs instead, not so much classical as local as fresh herbs are more gently.
The only truly searing spice in Georgian cuisine - this is a red pepper, but it is. as garlic, is used, the Georgians rather moderate, although the time. And the red pepper and garlic is always used as a supplementary rather than a main ingredient in spice mixtures and, besides, they always tempered by the fact that they were sure to accompany foods such as crushed nuts and matsoni, which are intended to reduce the original bitterness.