Who does not know about khachapuri? Probably, there is not a single lover of pastries who would bypass this dish. Khachapuri is a pie made from the most delicate dough with curd or cheese filling, which is considered the hallmark of Georgia. The fame of these delicious Georgian cheese pies spread very far outside the country. Try to cook one of the recipes of khachapuri with kefir cheese. Despite its excellent taste, it is very easy to prepare.
What is khachapuri?
The usual version of this pie consists of dough and cheese. But is it? The fact is that from Georgian "puri" is translated as "bread", and "hacha" - "cottage cheese". Indeed, the description of simple food for peasants, which was found in the chronicles, gives us an idea of what was originally prepared with khachapuri cottage cheese. Recipes of khachapuri with kefir cheese, which are most similar to modern ones, already existed in the 13th-14th centuries in Georgia.
Varieties and cooking options
There are a lot of types of khachapuri, because each region has its own special recipe. Of course, the main ingredients, dough and cheese, cannot be replaced with anything, but the difference lies in the method of preparation, the form, form of the dough and the addition of other ingredients. Let us dwell on the most popular and most famous.
So, the most common form is Imereti. What does he look like? This is a thin, very thinly rolled dough and a huge amount of cheese filling. It has a round shape, like a frying pan in which it is cooked.
Megrelian looks similar to Imereti, but in addition to cheese filling, another layer of cheese is placed on top of it. Usually they bake it in the oven or in the oven, making sure that the cheese on top is not spread and spread.
Gurian baked in the form of a crescent. In addition to cheese, grated or chopped boiled egg is added to the filling. In Guria, it will be baked for Christmas.
The most popular is the Adjarian khachapuri. It looks like a boat, so it is sometimes called “boat”. Its filling consists of butter, cheese and eggs, and butter with eggs is added when the khachapuri is almost ready. You need to eat it with your hands, tearing off pieces and dipping them into cheese filling.
Another interesting type of khachapuri is rachuli, whose homeland is the most beautiful region of the highlands of Georgia, Racha. These khachapuri are square in shape, and on top are smeared with egg yolk.
The most difficult to prepare, but also the most delicious, type is called Achma. In another way it is also called Georgian lasagna. It is a casserole of the thinnest layers of dough, which are laid out with butter and cheese.
Flour and cheese
There are no particular difficulties and nuances in choosing flour or cheese for khachapuri. Any flour is suitable here, the main thing is that it is of the highest grade. Cheese is usually used suluguni or Imereti or another, but always milk and so that it melts well. There are no special recipes for khachapuri with or without kefir cheese. Two main ingredients are always used: flour and cheese, and thanks to the huge number of varieties of this baking, you can give it a different shape or add something else to the filling. Sometimes even pastries are added to it, which does not contain cheese in the recipe. For example, lobiani - a closed pie with herbs, beans and spices - or kubdari - a meat pie made of pork and beef with spices, herbs and onions.
A good Georgian mistress always has khachapuri fragrant, airy and very tasty. The dough can be prepared in any way and contain various ingredients, depending on what is at home. Often cooked in kefir or sour milk.
Khachapuri with cottage cheese
Ingredients:
- three glasses of wheat flour;
- a glass of kefir, 3.2%;
- teaspoon of baking soda;
- two teaspoons of salt;
- vegetable oil - a tablespoon plus a little more to grease a baking sheet;
- 50 grams of butter;
- 300 grams of cottage cheese;
- two chicken eggs;
- three cloves of garlic;
- a bunch of green dill.
Ingredient preparation
First, prepare the cottage cheese. We spread it in a small bowl and grind it with a fork until smooth to avoid lumps. The cottage cheese should be creamy. Dill should be washed under warm running water, shake off excess liquid, put on a board, chop finely and pour into a separate plate. Peel, rinse and chop the garlic with a crush. We break one egg into the cottage cheese, add dill, garlic and a teaspoon of salt there, mix well until we get a homogeneous mass.
Two glasses of flour are passed through a sieve to saturate it with oxygen. We add baking soda there and mix well. We break the egg into a separate bowl, add sugar, kefir, vegetable oil and the rest of the salt to it. Beat all this thoroughly until smooth. Now add a little dry mixture, stirring continuously. When the mass becomes sufficiently viscous, pour a glass of flour on the kitchen table, put the dough on it and continue to knead until it becomes dense, plastic and sticks to your hands. From the finished dough we form a step and cover it with a clean towel. So we give him a little "rest".
Cooking!
We cut the finished dough into three or four parts, form a sausage from each piece and cut into another three or four parts. From each piece we make a ball, which we then roll into a cake about three to four millimeters thick. For each cake, spread a tablespoon of the filling in the center and collect the edges of the cakes by pinching them. Gently press down with your fingers and roll it out very carefully, then turn it over and go through the rolling pin again. You should get quite thin cakes, but make sure that the filling does not creep out. When all the khachapuri have been formed, we put a baking sheet, previously spread in butter, with the khachapuri laid on it in the oven already preheated to a temperature of 160 ° C.
Bake for about 15-20 minutes. Grease the finished cakes with a piece of butter until they have cooled.
Recipe for delicious khachapuri with kefir cheese
Ingredients:
- four glasses of flour;
- two glasses of kefir;
- a teaspoon of sugar;
- a teaspoon of salt;
- a teaspoon of quicklime soda;
- two tablespoons of vegetable oil.
Filling:
- hard cheese or suluguni, 600 grams;
- two eggs;
- two cloves of garlic;
- 100 grams of greens;
- 50 grams of butter.
To prepare khachapuri with kefir cheese according to the recipe, knead elastic soft dough, cover it with a film or towel and let stand so that the gluten swells and the dough becomes more obedient. In a separate bowl, rub the cheese, add the eggs, garlic, herbs and mix it. Divide the dough and filling into ten parts. The dough needs to be rolled out, put the filling, blinded to the center from the edges, and then carefully rolled out to a diameter of fifteen centimeters. Scones should be fried in a hot dry skillet over low heat. Ready khachapuri are smeared with melted butter on both sides.
With cottage cheese and cheese
Kefir dough cannot be called classic for fast kefir khachapuri with cheese, but it is as close as possible to the original recipe and it turns out very similar to the present. In shape, you can make khachapuri with cottage cheese open, in the form of envelopes or boats, or closed.
Ingredients for the dough:
- 250 ml of kefir;
- 300 grams of flour;
- one egg;
- a teaspoon of sugar;
- a teaspoon of salt;
- half a teaspoon of soda;
- 100 grams of butter.
Ingredients for the filling:
- 150 grams of fat cottage cheese;
- 250 grams of cheese;
- two tablespoons of sour cream;
- greens.
Nuances and cooking
Why are butter and kefir needed in the dough? They help him become softer in consistency. Do not forget to give the dough a little "rest" after kneading (at least 15 minutes) so that it becomes more malleable. Khachapuri from this test can be fried in a pan, or you can bake in the oven. They cook very quickly: as soon as the top is browned and the cheese is melted, they can be served. Of course, the original recipe uses yogurt - a mixture of sour cream and milk, but it can be replaced with kefir or another sour-milk product. For the filling, it is better to take salted cheese (suluguni, feta cheese or mozzarella).
So, to cook khachapuri with cottage cheese and cheese on kefir, first of all you need to melt the butter, add to it a beaten egg, kefir, salt, sugar and mix. Sift the flour, mix it with soda, and then mix the liquid ingredients with the dry ones. Knead the dough thoroughly, cover it to give it a "rest". Grate cheese on a coarse grater, add sour cream, cottage cheese and greens to it and mix. Divide the "rested" dough into pieces and roll out cakes from them. Lay out the filling, pinch the edges of the dough, roll out a little with a rolling pin, then turn over and roll out again. Put the cakes on a baking sheet and bake for fifteen minutes at 190 ° C or fry in a pan over medium heat on both sides. Khachapuri on kefir with cheese in the oven is baked very quickly. Serve them hot, pre-lubricated with butter.