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Georgian cuisine is very diverse and interesting, just like Georgia itself. The sauces alone are worth it. Traditional Georgian tkemali sauce can complement any dish and make it unusual and piquant. This sauce is usually served with meat and poultry. But it goes no less well with any side dishes. In this article I would like to look at some classic options for preparing tkemali in Georgian with photos.
Secrets of preparing delicious tkemali
To make the sauce incredibly aromatic and tasty, you need to follow simple rules:
- Plums or cherry plums of any color are suitable for preparation. The main thing is that the fruits are not very hard, but at the same time not overripe.
- Not all spices are suitable for this preparation. Tkemali is best complemented with hot pepper, coriander and suneli hops. The combination of these seasonings will give the sauce the desired taste and aroma.
- For some recipes you need to peel the cherry plum. To do this, you just need to scald the berries with boiling water or soak them in hot water for a few minutes. After such procedures, the skin is easily removed from the cherry plum.
- It is not recommended to cook the sauce for too long. Because of this, the taste will only suffer, and the vitamins will simply evaporate.
- Since tkemali has a natural composition, even children are allowed to consume the non-spicy preparation. Of course, not on its own, but with the main dish.
Classic recipe for tkemali from yellow cherry plum
It is very rare to find traditional tkemali. Most often, cooks add all kinds of spices and vegetables to the sauce, which only make it better. It’s simply impossible to count all the existing recipes. Therefore, we will consider only the most popular classic options for preparing the sauce, which even inexperienced cooks can do.
Yellow cherry plum begins to ripen at the end of June. You must not miss this moment and be sure to prepare a delicious preparation for the winter from it. Yellow plums make tkemali very bright and attractive. To prepare this sunny dish you will need the following ingredients:
- ripe yellow cherry plum – one kilogram;
- garlic - two or three heads;
- table salt to taste;
- granulated sugar - about 50 grams;
- hot red pepper - one medium pod;
- a bunch of fresh cilantro or 50 grams of dry;
- a bunch of fresh dill;
- ground coriander - one teaspoon.
Preparation of Georgian sauce:
- Wash the cherry plum and dry it on a towel. Then we remove the seeds from the berries and pass the fruits through a meat grinder. Or you can quickly chop the cherry plum using a blender.
- Pour the fruit puree into a saucepan with a thick bottom, add granulated sugar and salt and put the container on the fire. In this form, the puree should cook for about 8 minutes.
- In the meantime, you can peel the garlic, wash the herbs and prepare the necessary spices. Garlic can also be chopped with a blender, and the greens can be finely chopped with a knife.
- After 8 minutes, add all the prepared ingredients to the boiling mixture. Mix everything well and cook for a couple of minutes.
- At this stage you need to taste the sauce for salt and spices. You can add whatever is missing to your liking.
- Then you can start rolling up the sauce. It is poured hot into sterilized jars and bottles (glass). Then the containers are closed with sterilized lids.
Georgian recipe for tkemali sauce in a slow cooker
Most housewives are already so accustomed to multicookers that they practically do not use any pots or pans. Tkemali sauce can also be prepared simply and quickly using this wonderful device. But for this you need a special recipe that will help the preparation retain its taste and piquant smell.
To prepare tkemali in a slow cooker you need to prepare:
- any plums (can be slightly greenish) – one kilogram;
- fresh garlic - at least 6 cloves;
- hot red pepper - one pod;
- 70% vinegar - one teaspoon per liter of tkemali;
- one bunch of parsley and dill;
- hops-suneli - 2 or 3 tablespoons;
- salt and sugar to your taste.
This sauce is prepared as follows:
- Wash the plums, dill, parsley and peeled garlic under running water and place in a colander to drain all excess liquid.
- Then remove the seed from each berry.
- Place all prepared ingredients in a slow cooker, then grind the contents with a blender. If you are afraid of damaging the bowl, then chop the plums with herbs and garlic in a separate container.
- Now you need to add salt, all the prepared spices, sugar and salt to the mass. Also add chopped hot pepper if desired.
- Turn on the “Stew” mode and cook the product for at least 1.5 hours.
- When the preparation is ready, pour the hot sauce into sterilized jars and roll up with sterilized tin lids.
- The containers are turned over, wrapped in a blanket and wait until the preservation has cooled completely. The jars can then be transferred to a cool place or stored in the refrigerator.
How to cook tkemali with bell pepper
The main ingredient in the sauce is plums. But it’s not only up to them what the taste of this Georgian delicacy will be. Much depends on all kinds of additives. For example, a very tasty preparation can be prepared with the addition of tomatoes, bell peppers and apples of different varieties. Many people cook tkemali with bell pepper. This vegetable has an unusual taste, which only makes the popular sauce tastier.
So, first, let's prepare the necessary components:
- any plums or cherry plums – one kilogram;
- sweet pepper – 0.4 kilograms;
- fresh garlic - two heads;
- hot red pepper - two pods;
- spices and seasonings to your taste;
- granulated sugar and salt.
You can prepare tkemali from plums and peppers like this:
- First you need to wash all the vegetables and plums. Then the seeds are removed from the plums and turned into plum puree using a blender or meat grinder.
- In the same way, grind bell and hot peppers, and then garlic.
- The prepared mass must be ground through a sieve to achieve maximum homogeneity.
- Next, the plum sauce is placed on the fire and brought to a boil.
- After this, you should add the necessary spices and salt and sugar to the sauce according to your taste preferences.
- After this, the tkemali is boiled for another 20 minutes. Then they immediately begin to roll up the plum sauce.To do this, use only sterilized jars and lids.
Conclusion
Georgians don't cook tkemali from plums for the winter according to a specific recipe. They often experiment by adding different spices and vegetables to plum sauces. Thus, you can prepare a wonderful preparation from what you have on hand. In turn, we also improved the recipe that came from Georgia, adding our favorite spices. Each sauce is interesting in its own way. In this article we saw only a few options for this wonderful delicacy. Be sure to make several jars of tkemali for the winter. Your family will definitely not let the prepared sauce sit for long.