Real men's food, what is it? Russian people will answer for sure that these are dumplings! But not only in our culture there are similar dishes. So, among the peoples of Central Asia there is a similar food made from minced meat wrapped in dough, called manti. And the Chinese make bao-tzu pies, which are close relatives of dumplings. And even Italians create such a variety of pasta as ravioli - another representative of "male food". But the most famous products from the dough and meat are still Georgian khinkali.
It's important to know
In fact, this word combines several dishes related to the national cuisine of the Sakartvelo country. And since the population of Georgia consists of various nationalities, there are many ways to prepare khinkali: Avar, Lezgi, Shepherd. Since this dish is also common among neighbors, the recipes of these relatives of dumplings are also in use in Azerbaijani, Derbent and Dagestan ways. They differ in the filling, the method of casting, as well as the manner of use. But, since we are primarily interested in the very idea of cooking such a dish, in our article you can learn how to cook khinkali at home.
Choose meat
How does the cooking process of any such dish begin? Before you prepare delicious khinkali, you must choose the right stuffing. Traditionally, they use meat chopped with an hatchet or, in extreme cases, ground in a meat grinder, although this approach is not considered very authentic. In case we are talking about the shepherd version, it is indisputable that you need to use lamb to cook khinkali. The Georgian recipe provides for the use of beef, but in some cases you can depart from the canon and use lean pork or even chicken.
Naturally, it is better to opt for a fresh rather than frozen product. So, we take meat: scapula, back, or, if you like fatter, you can take the neck - in it the muscles alternate with layers of connective tissue and fat. It must be chopped into small pieces, so that in the end a fairly homogeneous stuffing is obtained.
How to cook real khinkali? Georgian craftsmen from ancient times brought the real art of chopping meat with the help of two special poleaxes. At the same time, with both hands, they chop in an even rhythm, chopping, and due to shock, the muscles soften and crush, and the blades themselves cut them into pieces. But you should not try to repeat such a trick yourself if you have not previously had any skills in handling culinary hatchets. It is better to use a manual or electric meat grinder for these purposes . If various knives for grinding are provided in it, it is necessary to choose the one that allows you to get not homogeneous minced meat, namely pieces of meat. But you should not grind it with a blender - the resulting meat porridge can spoil the finished dish.
Make minced meat
So, the first step has been taken. The meat is selected, prepared for the creation of minced meat and is waiting for additional components. And they can be quite diverse. If in addition to onions and salt and pepper, dumplings usually do not add anything, then Georgian cuisine does not exist without herbs and spices. We will add them to the stuffing. But you should not forget about ordinary onions. You need to chop it into a small cube, and if you do not like the feeling of slices when eating, then you can use a device such as a blender. Onion in minced meat is primarily required flavor and juiciness.
About spices
They are loved and appreciated in Georgia. Two approaches are possible here: you can take ready-made mixtures, or use your own blend, combining traditional seasonings into the desired bouquet. Both of these options have the right to life, and the choice depends only on your desire and habit. Which of the large list of spices should be used? Cilantro is traditional for Georgian cuisine, it is also coriander, dried mint, thyme, zira, parsley. All of them will add a unique flavor to your dish. And among ready-made mixtures, look for seasonings such as hops-suneli or uzo-suneli.
If the first one is actually a collection of the above herbs, besides which Imereti saffron, celery, hyssop are also included in it, then uzo-suneli is nothing more than dried blue fenugreek. A little trick in using spices: before adding them to the minced meat, thoroughly calcine all the seasonings in a cast-iron dry frying pan - so they will better reveal their aroma.
How to cook khinkali in Georgian? It is important to pay special attention to the stuffing, it is necessary to use as much fresh greens as possible. Cilantro, parsley, dill, sprigs of mint and hyssop, leaves of thyme or sage will be just a wonderful addition to meat. And you should not save on their quantity - Georgians use many times more greens in their kitchen than vegetables. Also, garlic chopped into cubes or minced through garlic can serve as an addition to the minced meat. But you can object: is this dish intended only for meat-eaters? Of course not. In this case, how to cook khinkali for vegetarians?
Another variant
The traditional recipe allows the use of minced products such as cheese or mushrooms. At the same time, this is not about the solid milk product familiar to us. Cheese in the understanding of Georgians is, rather, an analogue of feta cheese. And in the khinkali filling, it is worth using its brine variations such as the Adyghe, Suluguni or any other soft cheese. We grate it, add salt and pepper, as well as herbs. In the case of using such a filling, do not overdo it with spices - it will be more delicate. Also, real Georgians will favor mushroom stuffing. It should be made from mushrooms fried with onions, oyster mushrooms or any other pleasing to your heart. Cut them finely, fry with onions and garlic, add spices. How to cook khinkali at home? You need to know the most important rule - the forcemeat must be very juicy, because the key to the correct recipe is not only in meat and dough, but also in the fragrant broth that turns out inside each “bag”, which is poured into the mouth when biting. Therefore, we are not lazy, firstly, to knead the minced meat and beat until elastic and plastic, and secondly, in the process of kneading, add about half a glass of cold water for every kilogram of meat / cheese / mushrooms. You can also use ice crumbs. We add water gradually, without stopping kneading, so that the minced meat absorbs it and does not acquire an excessively liquid consistency.
Cooking dough
We leave the filling to rest under a clean towel, and we ourselves begin to work on the dough. It goes in khinkali the most that is not simple. You can take as a basis the recipe for dumplings, created on water and flour, and this will be the right choice. But you can also make it in Georgian and replace the water with whey, so the dough will be even softer and tastier. Approximate proportions for it are as follows: per kilogram of flour we take two standard glasses of water or whey, as well as 10 grams of table salt and the same amount of sugar.
To knead the dough we use any flat surface. Sift the flour on it, make a depression, put salt and sugar in it. After that, we begin to pour a liquid in a stream, while mixing. At first, you can use a spoon for this, but then it's better to do it with your bare hands. Knead carefully until the dough begins to stick off of the hands. After that, you need to give him a rest, putting in the refrigerator for an hour. And you can begin to sculpt. And this is almost the most difficult thing in how to cook khinkali at home.
Interesting note
The fact is that, following the tradition, each Georgian “dumpling” should have exactly 12 folds. How to achieve this? Firstly, the size of the khinkali itself is larger than the usual Russian counterparts. They can be about the fist of a child, or even more - as the soul lies. But to get an average size, we pluck a piece from our matchbox from our dough. Now it needs to be rolled out. The optimum thickness is about 2 millimeters. Do not worry, the dough is quite elastic and will not tear.
Now we put the minced meat on our round. It should be enough to cover exactly half the dough. And here is the most important: we form folds. To do this, we divide the future khinkali into sectors, like a
clock dial. We use fingers for the conditional "midnight", and then we find the place where 1 hour would have been. We connect them and tightly stuck together. We get the first fold. And now we go further clockwise, adding along the fold-hour. The result should be a nice bag, tightened on top.
How to cook?
Among culinary experts there is often a debate about how to cook khinkali: steamed, boiled or fried? A matter of taste, but boiling in boiling water is considered traditional.
Throw them directly into the container with boiling water and mix gently, being careful not to damage the delicate walls. After literally 8-10 minutes, the khinkali is ready to cook. You can serve them on their own, or season with sour cream, chopped cilantro, seasoning with hot pepper or even add one of the traditional Georgian sauces: adjika, tkemali, or sprinkle with grated
Imereti cheese.Tips
Well, if you made too much stuffing and dough, there is nothing left to do but cook frozen khinkali. Like dumplings, they are remarkably stored in the refrigerator for a long time, almost without losing their taste. One “but”: when sculpting, put the finished khinkali on a board sprinkled with flour, and in this form put in the freezer for an hour or two. They harden a little, after which they can be folded into a bag.
So khinkali will not stick together, and they can be easily boiled later. Now put a plate in front of you with fragrant bags emitting steam, sprinkle them with parsley or cilantro, dip each in sour cream and drink
Georgian wine, red as blood, and heady as life.
Conclusion
Now you know how to cook khinkali at home, which means you can cook such a delicious dish for your loved ones.