Khinkali: A Eurasian Delight

Georgia is a small country that sits on the Black Sea, nestled between Russia and Turkey. I tried very hard to figure out if Georgia is technically part of Europe or part of Asia, but everywhere I looked I ran into the term "Eurasia", which seems to be convenient word to use when one is not certain as to which continent a country belongs.  I'm going with Europe for the sake of labeling this post, but honestly your guess is as good as mine.  Georgia's position at the crossroads of Eastern Europe and Western Asia gives it's cuisine a wide range of influence, and khinkali is a perfect example of that.  

Khinkali are Georgian meat-filled dumplings.  They are typically made with lamb, beef or pork.  I made mine with ground lamb and mixed in onion, dill, parsley, caraway and a little bit of water.  I made a very simple dough and cut it into three inch rounds.   I added a spoonful of lamb mixture and then pleated the dough and pinched it together at the top to seal the dumplings and make a "knob" at the top.   The concept of boiled or steamed dumplings reminds me of Chinese cuisine, while the lamb and dill filling is very reminiscent of Greece and Turkey. 

 The dumplings boiled for about fifteen minutes and then I served them with a sprinkle of black pepper.

Here came the true test:  I read that if you execute khinkali correctly, the dumplings will be filled with a delicious broth.   In order to eat khinkali, you must hold the dumpling by the knob and bite from the bottom, trying to drink in as much of the juices as possible.  Georgians eat everything but the knob, which they keep on their plate to show off how many dumplings they have consumed.  

Here is a photo of Ted tasting his first khinkali:

I have to say, I did a pretty good job!  The dumplings were filled with a tasty broth, and they were fun to eat.   Perhaps "Eurasian" is the right term for describing Georgian cuisine afterall.

We scored the meal a 3.75.

Another Day, Another Peanut Sauce

I have addmittedly been dragging my feet on this project as of late.  After our amazing night in France, I just haven't been able to bring myself back to Africa.  I also have not been able to bring myself (sans kiddos) to the Tropical Market in Roxbury to pick up the "Noix de Palme" that I need to make the national dish of Gabon.

But a few family members and friends have recently inquired how the cooking has been going.  And that was just the nudge I needed to get off my lazy butt and do it.  

So, I went a little out of order and cooked Domoda, aka Groundnut Stew, the national dish of Gambia.  Gambia is situated in West Africa, and is the smallest country on the continent (on the mainland anyway).

  

picture courtesty of wikipedia.com

I found a great recipe for Domoda last week, but on the day of meal preparation I discovered that the website had been taken down.  I found a recipe with similar ingredients on countryreports.com.  The instructions were a little vague, so I just decided to wing it.  In addition to going off-recipe, I was also gabbing on the phone with my friend Kate the entire time that I was chopping, sauteing, mixing and boiling.  Oh, and I was drinking a gin and tonic.  This dinner was pretty much doomed.  

But low and behold, my Domoda turned out just fine!   I'm learning that it's pretty tough to screw up peanut sauce.  I'm also learning that I am not a huge fan of peanut sauce.   Without the addition of hot pepper in some form, it is beyond bland.  Below is the recipe I adapted from countryreports.com.  

Gambia scores a 2.25.

Domoda (Groundnut Stew) - Main Dish

Ingredients

5 tablespoons peanut butter 1 large onion, chopped 1 liter water 2 whole lemons, squeezed 4 medium sized bitter tomatoes 1/2 kilogram meat or chicken 1/4 kilogram pumpkin, chopped in large pieces 1/2 kilogram rice 3 tablespoons tomato paste 2 small fresh tomatoes Salt Pepper Black pepper

Directions

1. Wash and cut meat into bite size pieces. 2. In a thick bottom pan, seal meat in hot fat and cook out tomato puree. 3. Add water and seasonings. 4. Boil for 20 minutes and reduce heat. 5. In another pan, boil bitter tomatoes and pumpkins--keep warm. 6. Add other ingredients to groundnut stew 7. Bring to boil for 10 minutes, stirring continuously to avoid sticking. 8. Reduce heat and simmer for 45 minutes. 9. Prepare boiled rice while stew is simmering. 10. Serve with boiled rice and garnish with cooked vegetables.

We'll Always Have Paris

Ted and I made a sad but rational decision that our dream of a romantic Parisian vacation should be put on hold for a few years.  For that reason, our dinner in France needed to be extra special.  We went back and forth on the menu for a couple days and finally came up with this:

• French Onion Soup
• Beef Bourguignon
• Cheese Plate for Dessert (of course!)

This was the most labor intensive meal I've made (with the exception of China).   It was also one of the best meals, but we'll get to the rating in a little bit.  I started in the kitchen at 4:30pm on a Saturday afternoon.  Here is the timeline of my evening....

4:30 - 5:30pm:  Peel and slice onions. Stand over stove and sauté onions in butter until soft and brown, nearly 45 minutes.

5:30 - 6:30pm:  Ted declares that, since I am cooking and since this is our night in France, I really should have a glass of Bordeaux in my hand.  I happily agree.  I prepare kids' dinner and put it on the table.  Add remaining ingredients for French Onion Soup and leave it to simmer.

6:30 - 7:30pm:  Ted cuts beef into cubes while I blanch bacon.  I sauté bacon, then brown beef on all sides, then brown carrots and onions (which I had prepped earlier in the day).  I put the beef, bacon, veggies, tomatoes, and bouquet garni (also prepared earlier in the day) into a heavy-bottomed pot with the wine and stock.  Don't know what a bouquet garni is?  Neither did I.  You can read about it here.  At this point the stew is supposed to simmer for a couple hours, and I believe it's time to sit back with another glass of wine and a bowl of soup and get ready for the Pat's game.  Not the case.

7:30 - 8:30pm:  I read through the recipe, and realize with horror that the carrots, onions, tomatoes, and bacon that I have spent valuable time browning and blanching - will ultimately be taken OUT of the dish. Julia Child must have been some kind of sadist!   I couldn't believe that all of that hard work was going to be sucked down the disposal.  Or, perhaps I am just now learning how great chefs create flavor.  Either way, I poured myself another glass of wine before I started the next step...

The kids are tucked into bed so at least now I have company in the kitchen again!  I have to blanch, rinse, peel, slice and score two dozen tiny pearl onions.  Then simmer them in chicken stock.  At the same time I quarter mushrooms and set them on the stove top to sauté in oil.

8:30pm:  Finally - it's soup time!   I do not own ovenproof crocks, so instead of baking individual terrines of soup, I broiled the emmentaler cheese on the baguettes separately.  I filled two bowls, topped them with the cheesy bread, and we cozied onto the couch in front of a fire to enjoy.

9:00pm:  Beef Bourguignon time!  But still work to be done.  Strain and discard veggies, stir in beurre manié, add onions and mushrooms.  And finally, the hard work pays off.  We serve the beef with roasted potatoes and savor every single bite...

10:00pm:  As if this indulgent night was not rich enough, we sat down with our second bottle of wine and a cheese plate.  The three distinct cheeses were accompanied by grapes, toasted baquette points, and a delicious shallot confit.

It was not a leisurely candlelit five-course dinner in a fine French restaurant... but it was a fun and challenging evening in the kitchen with Ted.  And it was so gratifying to taste how the hard work paid off.  The whole French experience scored a 4.5.