Georgian cuisine occupies a special place in the world culinary art. Original, fragrant and insanely delicious dishes, the recipes of which were created many millennia ago, are popular not only in Georgia, but also far beyond its borders.
The dishes of Kakheti are to the taste of both eastern and western, both northern and southern peoples, because they are universal. By the way, many people think that meat dishes prevail in Georgian cuisine, but this is far from the case. Each mistress of this country knows several dozens, or maybe hundreds, of recipes for dishes and sauces from various vegetables and herbs: these are lobio, adjika, themali, phali. In Georgian, the latter means kale. However, as a dish, it is made not only from the specified, but also from many other vegetables, herbs and legumes. For example, phali can be made from beets, spinach, beans, eggplant, cauliflower or white cabbage.
In the nineteenth century, when many Russian officers served in Tiflis, this dish became known as mkhali, since the former name, in the opinion of the military, was not harmonious.
Those who at least once in their life tried Georgian phali, he probably could understand what the peculiarity of this dish is in the method of preparation and in spices. In fact, it can be made using a variety of vegetables and herbs, however, in all variations there are nuts and several fragrant spices.
Further in the article we will look at how phali are cooked in Georgian from various products according to a traditional recipe.
What is this dish?
As noted above, phali can be prepared from many herbs and vegetables: beets and its tops, spinach, carrots, nettles, eggplant, green beans and beans, and, in fact, from various types of cabbage. Depending on this, the described dish is called red, white, green, yellow, etc.
Since the name phali translates as "kale", it can be assumed that it was originally made from this vegetable. Later, as a result of experiments, other recipes were created. Nevertheless, in modern Georgian cuisine, the most popular kind of phali in Georgian is considered green, which is mainly prepared in early spring from fresh herbs. No local table can do without this dish. You can’t find a better seasoning for meat, besides, phali are very useful and promote digestion. In this article, we will tell you about the most popular recipes for preparing the described dish.
Cooking Technique
So, the basis for this dish can be almost anything. In Ajarian cuisine even rice is used. How to cook phali according to a real Georgian recipe? The product, which is the main one in this dish, is cleaned, finely chopped and cooked well. If it is fresh grass, then it is not necessary to boil it, you can only slightly blanch or pour over boiling water.
The most important thing in this dish, which can serve as an independent side dish, as well as a seasoning or appetizer for meat or fish dishes, is dressing sauce. It is prepared on the basis of wine vinegar, in which walnuts, garlic, hot peppers, onions, cilantro (coriander), suneli hops and salt are added to taste. By the way, the heat treatment of the main course should be minimal. In this case, there is no loss of vitamins in large quantities contained in herbs and vegetables.
How is phali served?
In principle, each housewife is free to decorate this dish for serving, however, the most common option is to form small cutlets or meatballs from it, in which they make indentations with the help of a finger and put pomegranate seeds.
As a rule, several types are made at once on the festive table, which means that they were thrown in different colors in Georgian, and served on the same dish. The result is a beautiful multi-colored assortment. By the way, the sauce is the same for everyone.
Phali from cabbage: recipe and method of preparation
In the first recipe, which we will describe to you, the main ingredient is a vegetable, from the name of which this dish originates. In a word, now we will learn how to cook one of the best appetizers of Georgian cuisine, namely, Georgian-style phali from cabbage.
Required Products:
- a small head of cabbage (700 g);
- two onion heads;
- two large cloves of garlic;
- 10 walnut kernels;
- one bunch of cilantro;
- a teaspoon of ground coriander and uzo-suneli;
- salt to taste;
- red chili peppers;
- pomegranate seeds for decoration.
How to cook?
Blanch the leaves of cabbage in salted water, fold in a colander and let the water drain. After they have cooled, cut off all hard parts. Cut the cabbage very thinly, and then knead with your hands, previously salted and pepper with red pepper.
Cooking sauce
Peel and rinse garlic, onions, greens under running water, then chop and mince. Do the same with nuts. Season it all with spices and mix gently until smooth. Then mix the sauce with cabbage. From the cabbage-nut mass, form balls and decorate them with walnuts and pomegranate. Before serving, you need to insist on a snack in the refrigerator for at least one hour.
White Bean Phali
In Georgia, as you know, beans are often consumed. This plant-rich protein product can form the basis of many tasty and healthy dishes, both hot and cold, and snacks. We will tell you how to cook phali from beans in Georgian using canned white lobio.
Essential Ingredients:
- 1 can of white beans;
- 100 grams of walnuts in peeled form;
- 2-3 small cloves of garlic;
- cilantro (1 bunch);
- a bunch of green onions;
- saffron and sunnel hops - one tablespoon each;
- hot chili peppers;
- salt;
- pomegranate seeds for decoration.
How to cook phali from beans?
After opening the cans, the legumes will need to be thrown back onto a sieve to allow excess glass liquid. Next, place the beans in a deep bowl and gently knead using a fork or pestle.
First you need to prepare dressing sauce. To do this, peel the garlic from the film and knead it in a mortar with salt and nuts until smooth. Add finely chopped cilantro, onion, suneli hops, Imereti saffron and hot red pepper to the nut-garlic paste .
Next, you need to combine the bean paste with dressing and mix lightly. You can serve phali from beans to the table only after 1.5-2 hours after cooking. Spread the mixture on a plate with a slide, level it with a knife or spoon and cover with pomegranate seeds and finely chopped nuts. We decorate a hill with a sprig of cilantro.
Eggplant Phali
These are one of the most beloved vegetables by Georgians. Hot first and second courses, casseroles, salads, sauces, snacks and even jam are prepared from eggplant. One of the popular Georgian dishes is eggplant phali. To prepare it, you must acquire the following products:
- medium-sized eggplant (3 pieces);
- a large bunch of cilantro;
- vegetable oil (for lubrication);
- 10 peeled walnuts;
- salt and pepper (to taste);
- ½ tablespoons ground coriander;
- three cloves of garlic;
- grains of one pomegranate.
Next, we will learn how to cook eggplant phali. The recipe is presented below.
Cooking method
Rinse the eggplant under running water, dry it thoroughly and make a few pricks on it with a fork. Grease the fruits with oil and bake in the oven until soft (40 minutes). After the eggplants have cooled, peel them off. Mash the pulp with a fork. Then you need to make the sauce. To do this, peel the garlic, peel my cilantro, dry and chop finely. We pass the garlic and nuts through a meat grinder. All this is mixed with eggplant paste until smooth, salt, pepper, add ground coriander, etc. Serve phali from eggplant by sprinkling it with pomegranate seeds. You can also use walnut kernels for decoration.
Beetroot and Cabbage Dish
Talking about this delicacy, one cannot but mention the beet-cabbage version. It is very useful and gives a beautiful look to any table. To prepare it, you need large beets, half a small head of cabbage, onions, walnuts in large quantities (about 200 grams), coriander and parsley, green adjika, spices.
Cooking method
Coarsely chop the cabbage and beets and boil together in salted water, then drop them onto a sieve and let the water drain. After the vegetables have cooled, they must be twisted through a meat grinder. Perform the same procedure with onions and walnuts. Mix it all thoroughly and add finely chopped cilantro and adjika. If necessary, salt. Form small balls from this mass. Give them an oval shape and put on them rings of red onions. Garnish with a few pomegranate seeds and a fluffy sprig of cilantro.
So you have learned how to cook another type of phali. The recipe, as you can see, is quite simple. It is only necessary to observe all the rules, and your table will decorate another amazingly tasty and healthy dish.
Green phali
After reading this article, you will certainly want to immediately start making this dish according to one of the above recipes. However, do not rush, because we have not yet told how to cook green phali, and it is the most delicious and healthy. To cook it, you need either spinach or beet tops (leaves). You need to take at least ten bunches, grams of two hundred walnuts, two or three cloves of garlic, two tablespoons of wine vinegar, a bunch of cilantro. From seasonings you need sun hop, black and red pepper, salt.
We told the cooking principle more than once, so you can make your own phali. The recipe, as you can see, varies depending on the main product, however, the sauce always remains unchanged. Enjoy your meal!