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Seasonings occupy a special place in the cooking of different countries. A favorite dish ceases to belong to one region, spreads throughout the world and becomes very famous. Among them is the famous Abkhaz adjika.
Anyone who has tried it at least once will recognize the aroma of the seasoning. The recipe for real Abkhaz adjika has one feature. The base for the seasoning was prepared by rubbing the ingredients by hand on a flat stone with another stone. This is how an amazing dish with a spicy taste appeared. At the time of cooking, dried pieces of hot pepper were thoroughly ground with garlic and coriander seeds, gradually adding salt and blue fenugreek. This herb has many names; it adds a nutty flavor to any dish to which it is added. Therefore, it can be replaced by ordinary hazelnuts, pre-roasted and chopped, or walnuts. Sometimes it is allowed to replace fenugreek with hay or shamballa.
By the way, blue fenugreek seeds are the main component of the khmeli-suneli seasoning. And one more nuance. Pepper in Abkhazian villages was not just dried, but smoked, hanging it over the fireplace. It was used to make a dry base for preparing Abkhazian spicy adjika.
Then various transformations could be made with this base or blank. Greens minced through a meat grinder, more chopped garlic and suneli hops were added to it.There are as many variations as there are housewives. But the end result was a spicy, amazingly smelling Abkhaz appetizer.
Preparing a classic seasoning from Abkhazia
How to prepare a modern version of adjika from Abkhazia at home? After all, this seasoning is so widely used that there is not a single dish that would not benefit from a duet with adjika. Let's turn to culinary specialists for help. Adjika in Abkhazian traditional recipe includes all the basic principles of creating seasoning, although each cook’s taste may be slightly different:
- The ingredients must be ground. Currently, this function is performed by a blender, meat grinder or kitchen mortar. It is worth saying that pounding in a mortar is used even in fashionable restaurants. This technique leads to the release of essential oils and makes adjika Abkhazian is very aromatic.
- Traditional adjika does not undergo any processing and is served raw.
- The Abkhaz adjika recipe does not imply the addition of tomatoes, zucchini, mushrooms and other vegetables.
However, in order for Abkhazian adjika to have a long shelf life for the winter, modern interpretations allow such components and cooking of vegetables.
Ingredient proportions for classic adjika recipe:
- take 0.5 kg dry hot pepper;
- coriander seeds (cilantro), dill, parsley;
- peeled garlic – 1 kg;
- hops-suneli – 500 g;
- coarse salt is suitable in the amount of 1.5 cups.
When choosing ingredients for Abkhazian seasoning, pay attention to the aroma.
Herbs, spices, everything must smell amazing, otherwise the seasoning will turn into a regular spread.Real adjika from Abkhazia has a special taste and smell.
We begin the cooking process by preparing hot peppers. It needs to be doused with boiling water and then cleaned. To peel means to remove the seeds. If this is not done, then it will be difficult for a city dweller to eat Abkhaz adjika. Dry pepper is subjected to this treatment, and the drier it is, the better.
If you purchased fresh, then it is washed with water and laid out in one layer on a wide dish so that the fruits do not touch each other. Leave the pepper in this position for 3 days.
- After the allotted time has passed, the pepper is peeled, cut and seeds removed. All these operations are done with gloves.
- The garlic is ground, after removing the husk.
- Seeds of coriander (cilantro) and other plants should be crushed in a mortar. The released essential oils will give the seasoning a special aroma.
- All components are once again passed through a meat grinder to achieve a homogeneous mass.
- Lastly, add salt and mix.
Now the mass is left for 24 hours, then put into small containers for convenient consumption. This recipe for making fresh pepper is not suitable for canning Abkhazian adjika for the winter. The seasoning is stored for only a few days.
Green seasoning in Abkhazian style
It turns out that the aromatic snack from Abkhazia can also be green.
This is one of the variants of Abkhazian adjika with fresh herbs. The remaining ingredients (pepper, garlic and salt) are required, only green hot pepper is used. Abkhazian green adjika is very tasty and goes well with cheeses, fried chicken and fish.
How many ingredients do we need to prepare:
- green hot pepper – 3 pods;
- young garlic - 3 large heads;
- you need a lot of greens - 3-4 bunches of each type (celery, coriander or cilantro, parsley, dill);
- nut butter and salt - 2 tablespoons each.
Green Abkhazian is often prepared adjika with walnutsto highlight the original taste of the dish. Therefore, for our recipe we will need walnut oil. Original seasoning additives, if desired, include fresh mint and thyme.
Let's start with pepper. The best option is when it is prepared in advance. Green peppercorns are dried on a string for a month. Then it is washed or soaked in boiling water, and the stalks are cut off. The next stage depends on how spicy the adjika should be at the exit. If you need to make a very hot version, then the seeds are not removed. If you want a gentle spiciness, then the seeds need to be cleaned.
Be sure to rinse the herbs with clean water and peel the garlic cloves.
Add these ingredients to the pepper and grind everything together in a meat grinder. To avoid lumps, repeat this procedure a couple of times. Place the mixture in a bowl and add coarse salt and nut butter.
Prepare the jars in advance. They should be clean and dry, as should the lids.
Place green adjika in jars, seal and transfer to a cool room.
Your winter warming adjika in Abkhazian style is ready for the winter.
Useful tips for housewives
The Abkhazian adjika, the recipe for which you choose, will become a real decoration of the dining table. Try to follow these simple recommendations to please your guests and family with this wonderful seasoning:
- You should not add other vegetables to the seasoning; this will completely change the taste and aroma of the national dish.
- If you need to process peppers and don’t have gloves, then periodically generously lubricate your hands with vegetable oil - sunflower, olive.
- Do not use a coffee grinder to grind herb seeds. Thus, you will lose an important component of Abkhaz adjika - the aroma of essential oils. Pound them with a pestle and mortar.
- Finely ground salt, like iodized salt, is not suitable for preparing adjika from Abkhazia.
- Add a little adjika while cooking soups. They will acquire a spicy, rich aroma.
It is not necessary to cook adjika in large quantities. If you have not prepared for the winter, then the ingredients are available at any time of the year. Make the right amount when needed.
