How to eat khinkal. Khinkali: recipe and secrets of cooking a Caucasian dish

How to eat khinkali

Khinkali are large, tight dough bags with meat filling. Some will say that khinkali is just a strange dumpling from Georgia, and they will be wrong, because they only remotely resemble dumplings.

The main thing that distinguishes khinkali is that they are half or even more filled with meat broth. We can say that these are portion bags with hearty soup!

What is this dish of Georgian cuisine? Khinkali are large, tight dough bags with meat filling. Some will say that khinkali is just a strange dumpling from Georgia, and they will be wrong, because they vaguely resemble dumplings. The main thing that distinguishes khinkali is that they are half or even more filled with meat broth. We can say that these are portion bags with hearty soup!

Khinkali traditions

Real Georgian khinkali of large size - a couple of pieces per serving. They are made large so that it is convenient to eat with your hands. Learning how to sculpt khinkali, without constant training, is a long process. This is not hamburgers like you do at McDonald's. Folding is an art to be mastered. The more folds, the higher the skill of the master. You need at least 20, no less.

In real branded khinkali, it is supposed to use the meat of a mountain bull - tour as a filling. Highlanders have long cut bull meat with daggers to cook large, satisfying khinkali. They did not add anything to the filling except salt and pepper, except for a little wild dill.

The traditions of cooking this dish have been preserved in some regions of Georgia to this day, for example, you can find a line in the menu “Chunkali Khinkali”, which means cooking a national dish according to old grandfather recipes.

Now meat is no longer so selective, it is crushed in more modern ways and chopped greens are added. But the most important thing is to cook khinkali so that there is broth inside. So that the shell of the dough remains intact and airtight, and the broth does not spill out. You already know how to make cheese sauce at home.

Khinkali recipe

Minced meat ingredients:

300-400 g - minced meat (for 10-12 servings)
100-150 g ice water
1 - large onion
ground black pepper

For test:

4 tbsp - flour
1 tbsp - ice water
2 tbsp. spoons - odorless vegetable oil
1 teaspoon - salt

How to cook Georgian khinkali at home

There are two basic cooking rules:

Minced meat with a lot of "driven" water.

Tight, elastic dough that will withstand the boiling of the broth inside itself and will not tear either during cooking or in a plate.

Since it is rather problematic to get traditional meat for khinkali, you can deviate from the recipe and make minced pork or beef with pork. For example, take 200 grams of beef and 100 grams of fatty pork.

The main secret of minced meat for khinkali is ice water driven into minced meat. If you cook according to Georgian traditions, then the meat for minced meat should be finely chopped into slices or a heavy sharp knife, but you can deviate from traditions and crank it in a meat grinder with a large grate. The stuffing must be fresh. As the Georgians say, “If minced meat is more than two days old, it is no longer khinkali.”

The onion for minced meat must also be very finely chopped or passed through a meat grinder. Mix the minced meat and onion thoroughly, seasoning to taste with freshly ground black pepper and salt. Other spices are not added to khinkali so as not to interrupt the taste of meat.

Occasionally, in some recipes, the addition of cumin and saffron may occur, while the taste of khinkali changes noticeably, but in any case they will be tasty, juicy and very satisfying. Gradually add all the water to the minced meat, constantly stirring it.

The minced meat must be kneaded so that all the water is absorbed. No liquid should remain in the bowl, and the minced meat itself should be quite tight, homogeneous, easily collected into a lump. It takes about 20 minutes to make a good stuffing. We put the minced meat in the refrigerator for at least an hour or even two. In the meantime, we are making the dough.

Cooking dough for khinkali

You need to start cooking by sifting the flour - this is a prerequisite, and you need to sift the flour two to three times. Then it will be enriched with oxygen, it will become airy, light. We take a capacious enameled basin and pour 2 cups of flour into it through a fine sieve.

Add a teaspoon of salt, vegetable oil and constantly stirring the whole mass with your hands, pour in a glass of ice water in parts (pour water into a glass in advance and throw a couple of ice cubes into it). We interfere with the sticky mass for 10-15 minutes, until smooth and leave to stand for half an hour.

After half an hour, add 1-1.5 cups of the remaining flour and again mix the dough until it stops sticking to your hands and to the saucepan, this is another 15 minutes. Leave the dough for another half an hour, after which, add the remaining flour and mix again already almost ready dough until smooth.

As a result, we get a very tight dough that does not stick to hands and a basin. We collect the dough into a ball, wrap it in cling film, put it in the refrigerator, walk for another 15-20 minutes. After this time, we make a rather large sausage from the dough, sprinkle with a little flour. We proceed to the next step - modeling and cooking, which also have their own characteristics.

How to sculpt khinkali at home

Georgian professionals in khinkali modeling usually cut off a small piece from a dough sausage, press it on the board with the palm of their hand and stretch a flat circle of dough with their hands. But this is a rather complicated way, it is available only to professionals. We are not professionals, and therefore we will make everything easier.

With a sharp knife we cut off a circle from the dough sausage, put it on a table sprinkled with flour and roll out a circle with a diameter of about 15 cm and a millimeter thick.

Now we put a tablespoon of minced meat in the middle of the resulting circle and begin to wrap it, making “tucks” in a circle in order to clog the neck of the bag as tightly as possible.

When the bag is formed, we twist the “neck” and lift it up so that it sags slightly under the weight of the minced meat and finally forms a container for the future broth. Put the finished khinkali aside on a floured surface.

How to cook khinkali at home

To do this, you need a pan, as much as possible. Pour water and salt it. We wait for a rapid boil and lower the khinkali into boiling water one by one with the “navels” up.

In order for them not to stick to the bottom, you can lower them on a slotted spoon strictly one at a time. It is better to cook about ten pieces at a time. In no case do we interfere with either a spoon or a ladle - you can damage the shell, and then you won’t get tasty khinkali.

It is best to shake the pan so that they do not stick to the bottom. Khinkali should be cooked for 10 to 15 minutes, depending on the volume. Serve hot sprinkled with black pepper.

How to eat khinkali

Cooking khinkali correctly is only half the battle. You have to learn how to eat them. They eat khinkali only when they are hot; when they cool down, they lose their original taste. The main advantage of this capricious dish is the meat juice inside a thin shell of dough - if a fragrant tasty liquid is poured out, khinkali loses its charm.

The ability to eat khinkali lies in not spilling a single drop of the precious meat broth when biting through the dough and not getting burned or dirty. They eat khinkali only with their hands, without a fork and knife.

They take the khinkali with their hands by the “tail”, holding the bag with the other hand, bite and first drink the broth, and then everything else, leaving the tail on the plate. It is not accepted to eat. Georgians even have a tradition of counting ponytails and determining the weakest eater.

The popularity of khinkali has spread all over the world, it is the most popular Georgian dish in the world. As a result of moving around countries, the influence of other national cuisines, certain changes were made to the composition of ingredients and methods of preparation, but this did not affect the need to follow etiquette. Many people have to wonder how to eat khinkali correctly, and it doesn’t matter if food is eaten in khinkali or at home. You also have to think about this when receiving an invitation to a restaurant with Georgian cuisine.

According to etiquette, you first need to let the food cool a little. Be prepared that this dish must be eaten with your hands, other methods are not allowed. Yes, khinkali is eaten with the hands, such a thing involves many difficulties. The following steps can be distinguished in this process:

take the product by the tail;
bite, then drink the whole broth from the inside;
put khinkali in your mouth and enjoy the taste.

Sometimes the size does not allow for a full load in the mouth, then several bites are taken, although traditions do not approve of this.

Do not let the product cool for too long, otherwise it will not taste good to eat. Too hot a dish can lead to a burn of the oral cavity, too cold loses all taste. Knowing the right temperature to load will help you avoid discomfort. We can say that the preservation of health depends on compliance with this rule.

The need to be able to choose the right temperature lies in the impracticality of the dish. If it is too cold, you can warm it up in a frying pan, microwave it for a couple of minutes, but the taste will be significantly different from freshly cooked hot food.

The broth has a special taste. When loading the filling into the dough, a hollow space is specially left for the formation of this delicious juice. You need to know how khinkali is eaten in order to avoid tearing the dough and spilling this juice on a plate. If you personally prepared khinkali, you can first load the filling so that there is not too much broth, this will help hone your skills. When a lot of khink is eaten, irreplaceable experience is gained, then the process will no longer be difficult. Most of the problems arise with how to bite properly in order to drink the broth.

How not to eat khinkali

In Georgian cuisine, a lot of attention is paid to etiquette; an ignorant person in khinkali will find a lot of things strange. Some people watch training videos before going to a restaurant so as not to fall into the dirt on their face. Everyone wants to eat well, so as not to look like a person who does not respect traditions against the background of others.

For lovers of alcohol, it is worth knowing that khinkali does not go well with wine and beer, they are usually eaten with vodka.

The rules for use include many points, some of them are not always observed even at home. But there are some that everyone needs to know:

khinkali is a dish that does not need to be eaten;
leave the tail, put it on a plate;
do not use a knife, fork and other tools, loading the product to its destination is only done manually.

Traditions

Khinkali has become a unique dish in Georgia, which has many features in cooking and eating. The cooking process is also replete with rules regarding loading minced meat into the dough, preparing the filling, leaving room for the broth. This is all done so that khinkal meat gives a person real pleasure. The structure of the dish should be shaped like in common photos, this will help you understand where to start eating.

The tradition of leaving tails from eaten khinkali on a plate has its own meaning. Many people love this dish for a long time, but do not know why it should be done. This is an important component, how to eat khinkali correctly, the number of eaten specimens is counted by tails. Who ate less, he pays for dinner.

Khinkali is called a man's dish, a rare woman is able to expose her body to a load of a large number of heavy elements.

If there is a khinkal on your way, and you decide to stop by to try a traditional Georgian dish, follow the rules. They are simple, but you need to remember the basics. The following requirements can be distinguished:

follow the rules for eating each instance;
do not use additional download tools;
check with your companion (if any) how payment will be made.

There is one dispute that is not directly related to the use, but takes place in the khinkali culture. It lies in the question of whether the product needs a load of greens. The answer is simple, there are two different recipes dating back many centuries. On the plains, the loading of greenery was carried out, and in the mountains this action was abandoned. The riddle is solved simply - it was simply impossible to find suitable greenery in the mountains.

When is the best time to eat khinkali?

Loading your body with heavy food before bed is a bad idea, so eating khinkali for dinner would be a bad idea. This is due to the ingredients used, the dish is distinguished by fatty broth and high-calorie meat. If you still don’t know much about the product, the video will help to make sure. If you have already figured out how to eat in a khinkali restaurant, you should choose the right time and occasion:

breakfast for the accumulation of vital energy;
lunch for recuperation after the first half of the day;
hangover for a quick return of the body to normal.

You need to know how to cook khinkali and you need to know how to eat it right

Many peoples in their national cuisine have a dish that is on a par with the Ural dumplings - in Asia it is manti, among the Buryats - poses, in Udmurtia - dumplings. In the Caucasus, these are khinkali - large dumplings stuffed with juicy meat. When this dish appeared in Caucasian cuisine, it is now difficult to establish. From time immemorial, the highlanders chopped sheep meat with daggers, turning it into minced meat, and cooked large, satisfying khinkali. They were made large so that it was convenient to eat with your hands, this tradition has been preserved to this day. The recipe changed, over time, the choice of meat was not so selective, the knives were replaced by a meat grinder, but even today khinkali is distinguished from other types of dumplings by a very thin shell of dough and a lot of juicy broth inside.

How khinkali is prepared

The process of making khinkali is quite complicated, and not everyone succeeds on the first try. Khinkali is never made in a hurry or hastily; this dish requires attention, time and some skill. The dough is kneaded in several steps, minced meat is prepared in proportion, khinkali is cooked in small batches. But it’s worth trying, even if you don’t get real khinkali - it will still be very tasty, fragrant and unusual.

You need to start cooking by sifting flour - this is a prerequisite, and you need to sift the flour two to three times. Then it will be enriched with oxygen, it will become airy, light. Take half a kilo of flour, half a glass of cold boiled water, one egg and a pinch of salt. The flour is divided in half. A slightly beaten egg and water with salt are introduced into one half, the dough is kneaded. Put it in a bowl, cover, and leave for 15 minutes. Then the dough is kneaded a second time, adding about a part of the remaining flour. Return to the bowl and leave again for 15 minutes. This is done two more times, each time letting the dough rest for 15 to 20 minutes.

Traditionally, minced meat for khinkali is prepared from lamb with fat, but since it is almost impossible to find lamb in a large city, you can deviate from the recipe and make minced pork or beef with pork. The proportions of mixed minced meat are 300 grams of beef and 200 grams of fatty pork.

500 grams of meat is taken, it is passed through a meat grinder or finely chopped with a knife almost to the state of a paste. Three large onions can be finely chopped or scrolled through a meat grinder. Minced meat and onions are thoroughly mixed, seasoning to taste with freshly ground black pepper and salt. Other spices are not added to khinkali so as not to interrupt the taste of meat. Occasionally, in some recipes, the addition of cumin and saffron may occur, while the taste of khinkali changes noticeably, but in any case they will be tasty, juicy and very satisfying. Cold boiled water is poured into the mixed minced meat at the rate of half a glass of liquid per 500 grams of meat (meat, not minced meat - do not confuse). Then a few finely chopped sprigs of greens are added to the minced meat, usually cilantro or basil. The filling is ready, by this moment the dough should also be completely kneaded and ready for cutting.

Small pieces are separated from the dough, they are made into balls (like pies) and each is rolled into a thin layer, the thickness should be no more than 2 - 3 mm. You need to try to roll out an even circle - then it will be more convenient to make khinkali. In the middle of the circle put a spoonful of minced meat and lift the edges of the dough, collecting at the top like a bag. The more thin folds are obtained in this case, the more skillful the hostess is. The finished bag is lifted and gently shaken so that it stretches under the weight of the minced meat. Then twist the top and tear off the thick edge. Khinkali is made large, two or three pieces are used per serving.

Khinkali is cooked in several pieces in a large amount of boiling salted water. They are lowered into the water very carefully, trying not to damage the thin dough. Do not stir, after the khinkali pop up, you need to cook for another 10 - 15 minutes. They also take it out very carefully, with a slotted spoon, onto a flat dish and serve immediately.

This is a traditional recipe for both dough and filling. Experiments with the dough are undesirable, but the filling may change. There are recipes for khinkali with meat and porcini mushrooms, with the addition of suluguni, potatoes, but connoisseurs of Caucasian cuisine, like the highlanders themselves, claim that they have not come up with anything tastier than traditional khinkali.

How to eat khinkali

Cooking khinkali correctly is another half of the success. You need to know how to eat them properly. They eat khinkali only when they are hot; when they cool down, they lose their original taste. The main advantage of this capricious dish is the meat juice inside a thin shell of dough - if a fragrant tasty liquid is poured out, khinkali loses its charm. Caucasian dumpling etiquette needs to be learned, and at first, a meal can seem like a serious test. The ability to eat khinkali lies in not spilling a single drop of the precious meat broth when biting through the dough and not getting burned or dirty. They eat khinkali only with their hands, without a fork and knife. Tear off the top of the dough bag and enjoy juicy meat, delicious juice and tender dough. No matter how the dumplings burn your fingers, in no case should you wait until they cool down or put the bitten khinkali on a plate - the juice will pour out and you will just eat boiled meat with dough.

It is customary to serve khinkali with a lot of greens, fresh vegetables and spicy sour cream sauce. And of course dry red wine.

On a note

In different establishments, khinkali is prepared in different sizes - from small ones, slightly larger than ordinary dumplings, to huge ones, almost the size of a soup plate. If you decide to have a bite to eat in a khinkali, find out what size khinkali will be served to you - otherwise you can get into a mess.

To combine dough and meat occurred to almost all peoples. One can argue for a long time who borrowed this idea from whom, where dumplings came from to Russia, but the fact remains, we have dumplings and dumplings, the Chinese have bao tzu and dim sum, the Italians have ravioli, and in Georgia they eat khinkali. Although why only in Georgia, khinkali and in Russia are very popular. By the way, about how to make khinkali correctly, you can

How to eat them correctly, what to drink and which khinkali are the best, told AiF.ru Badri Lemonjava, brand chef of Ojakhuri restaurants, Megobari wine bar, Kulinari cafe and Khinkali House.

According to legend, khinkali appeared in the mountainous regions of Georgia. The shepherds grazed cattle in the highlands, it was important for them to take provisions with them for several days, and in addition to cheese, bread and vegetables, they also had to cook hot food. The simplest solution is dough with meat and hot nutritious broth, which is formed during cooking. With the help of khinkali, they kept warm and received the required amount of calories and vitamins, because khinkali also contains spices, herbs, and garlic.

Initially, khinkali was made from flour, lamb, garlic and onions. And the meat was chopped with two knives. Those ancient khinkali were called "dakipels". Later they began to add other spices (in addition to onions and garlic), pepper, cilantro. Since the dish spread to those regions where not only sheep were grown, the filling began to change. Therefore, now khinkali with beef, pork is a common thing and even already a classic. On the Black Sea coast, you can find khinkali with fish; somewhere they cook it with cheese, mushrooms and potatoes. Yes, and minced meat in our time is made using a meat grinder.

Many people call khinkali Georgian dumplings, but this is not true. There are no historical backgrounds to draw an analogy between Chinese dim sum and Italian ravioli. I think that this is an original dish, the birthplace of which is Georgia. In appearance, manti are most similar to khinkali, but they do not have so much broth. Let's leave this question to the discretion of historians.

How to eat khinkali

Khinkali is eaten only with the hands, although now many hold the tail with a fork. The main thing is not to pierce the main body of the khinkali with a fork, otherwise the whole broth will leak. You need to take a bite of khinkali and drink the broth, but you have to be careful - the broth is hot. And yes, the tail does not need to be eaten, it usually remains a little raw inside.

I think that khinkali are good without any sauce, everything you need is already in the dish, the taste is balanced. Although often they are served with sour cream or satsibeli. The only addition that khinkali needs: freshly ground black pepper - sprinkle right before serving. If khinkali with suluguni cheese, you can put a piece of butter on top.

It is best to drink khinkali with beer or chacha. You don't need wine.

If suddenly you could not finish the khinkali immediately and the dish has cooled down, then we do not recommend heating it in water or a microwave. It is better to fry khinkali in vegetable oil. Many people like fried khinkali even more than boiled ones.

Khinkali with beef

Photo: Restaurant "Odzhakhuri"

Recipe of Badri Lemonjava, brand chef of Ojakhuri restaurants

For test:

500 g flour
250 g water
10 g salt

Step 1. Finely chop the onion, peppers and garlic, mix with minced meat and spices, add a little water to make the minced meat elastic

Step 2 Knead the dough from the flour, the remaining water, salt, it should turn out dense and tight.

Step 3 Cover the dough ball with a paper towel and leave it in the refrigerator for an hour.

Step 4 Separate a piece of dough weighing about 35 g, roll it out to a diameter of about 10-12 cm

Step 5 Put the minced meat in the center and folding the edges to get a bag with a tail, blind the khinkali. Trim off excess dough on top with scissors.

Step 6 Cook khinkali in boiling salted water for about 5-7 minutes, wait until they float. We take it out, put it on a plate, sprinkle with pepper.

Khinkali with lamb

Photo: Restaurant "Kazbek"

The recipe of Mamiya Jojua, the chef of the restaurant "Kazbek"

For 15-17 khinkali:

For test:

500 g flour
250 g water
10 g salt

For filling:

Step 1. Mix flour with salt, add cold water to the mixture. Gradually knead the dough

Step 2 Knead the dough thoroughly, it should become elastic, but harsh. Let it rest under the film

Step 3 Roll out the dough, roll into a tight sausage and let rest for at least 15 minutes.

Step 4 For the filling, chop the onion and cilantro very finely. chop meat

Step 5 Mix minced meat, onion and cilantro, salt and pepper, add a little water and mix

Step 6 Cut the sausage dough into large pieces, roll each piece into a cake with a diameter of about 15 cm

Step 7 Put the filling in the center of the cake and seal the edges in the form of a bag

Step 8 Boil khinkali in salted water for 6-8 minutes.

Khinkali with pumpkin and adjika

Photo: Eat Khinkali & Drink Wine Restaurant

Recipe by Keti Svanadze, Chef at Eat Khinkali&Drink Wine

1 portion

300 g flour
150 g chilled water
5 g salt

For filling:

300 g pumpkin
100 g onion
50 g cilantro
50 g Abkhaz adjika

Step 1. Sift the flour on the table, make a depression and pour water, add salt, knead a tight dough. Put in a cool place for at least 1 hour

Step 2 Finely chop the onion, fry in a pan until golden brown

Step 3 Cut the pumpkin into small equal parts, bake in an oven preheated to 200 degrees for an hour

Step 4 Finely chop cilantro

Step 5 Mash the baked pumpkin with a fork, mix with adjika, add onion, cilantro, mix gently

Step 6 Roll the dough into a sausage, cut into equal parts weighing about 40 g and roll out the cakes. Put 50 g of filling in each and mold khinkali

Step 7 Boil for 15-20 minutes.

The most famous dishes of Georgian cuisine are khachapuri and khinkali. And if everything is clear with the first ones - in order to eat a tortilla with cheese, you don’t need to have special skills, then the formidable appearance of a huge dumpling (by the way, never call khinkali that in the presence of Georgians!) makes hungry lovers of national Caucasian cuisine tremble, especially if This is the first time you are trying this dish. Today Passion.ru will reveal all the secrets of the most masculine dish in the world.

The khinkali recipe is very simple. All you need is flour, salt and water to prepare the dough, minced meat (beef, pork or lamb) for the filling. If desired, cheese, herbs or mushrooms can be added to khinkali, although the traditional recipe contains only dough and meat. Sounds easy! However, Georgians argue that the main thing in the preparation of khinkali is not the content, but the form. The classic way of modeling, which is used by all Georgian housewives without exception, is to make a small tail of dough at the top: it is convenient to hold khinkali for it while eating, it is also a distinctive feature of khinkali.

You will need:

minced meat (pork, beef or mixed) - 1 kg onion - 5-6 heads egg - 1 pc. flour - 500 g water - 300 ml garlic - 3-4 cloves salt pepper

How to cook:

Finely chop the onion and garlic, mix with minced meat, add water (about 150 ml) to make the minced meat elastic. From the flour, the remaining water, salt and one egg, knead the dough, it should turn out to be dense and tight. Cover the dough ball with a napkin and leave for half an hour at room temperature. Roll out the dough and cut out rounds with a diameter of 12-15 cm. Put the minced meat in each round and gather around the edges in a circle to make a bag with a “tail” on top. Pin the edges tightly. Dip the khinkali in a pot of boiling salted water, after surfacing, cook for 5-7 minutes, remove with a slotted spoon. Sprinkle generously with ground black pepper when serving.

An elementary, it would seem, dish has its own set of rules for eating, and they are quite strictly observed.

How to:

Let the khinkali cool down a bit. Take it by the "tail", bite and drink the broth that is inside. Then you should put khinkali in your mouth as a whole and enjoy the taste. If the size of the khinkali (or mouth) does not allow you to do this, you can eat in several bites, traditions do not welcome this, but do not condemn it either.

You can't do this:

in no case do not use a knife and fork, khinkali is eaten only with your hands; do not grab hot khinkali, instead of enjoying a delicious broth, you will get a burn of the oral cavity; don't let the khinkali get cold, eating cold khinkali is bad form; do not eat khinkali with bread, this is an independent dish; do not eat the tail; do not drink khinkali with wine, they are eaten only with vodka.

There are fundamental points in the preparation of khinkali. If you are going to stand behind the stove - take into account:

for the preparation of khinkali, you can use only fresh minced meat (not "older" than two days); the shape of the dish should be unchanged - it is a bag with a "tail"; the shape of the filling is a ball; the ideal color for khinkali is light beige; the more folds on khinkali, the better, try to make at least about 15-20.

The funniest of all khinkal traditions is associated with ponytails. Do you remember that they should not be eaten? So, each “eater” puts the ponytails on his plate. At the end of the meal, the participants count the number of ponytails, the one who turned out to be “weaker” than everyone else, that is, he ate the least khinkali, pays for the entire dinner. That is why khinkali is considered a male dish - women definitely cannot win in such amusements. By the way, in Georgia, khinkali is also used as a hangover remedy - and this option does not separate khinkali lovers by gender. Although we hope you will rarely use it.