Satsivi with turkey and walnuts
5 servings
30 minutes
Satsivi with turkey and walnuts is a gem of Georgian cuisine that immerses you in the atmosphere of Caucasian hospitality. The dish features a rich nutty flavor with a slight tang from wine vinegar, seasoned with aromatic spices and fresh herbs. Originally made with chicken, the turkey version makes it even juicier and richer. The walnut sauce infused with the aromas of cilantro, garlic, and khmeli-suneli perfectly soaks into the turkey pieces, creating a unique taste. This dish is traditionally served cold, allowing all ingredients to unfold and unite into a single gastronomic pleasure. Satsivi is perfect for festive gatherings where it consistently becomes a favorite among guests. Enjoy the taste of Georgia in every bite!
1
We take a large bird, preferably a fatty turkey, lovingly fed with corn. We place it in boiling water and cook until half-done for about twenty minutes, periodically skimming off the foam.
- Turkey: 1 piece
2
We take the turkey, rub it with salt and pepper, place it on a baking tray, and put it in the oven to brown on medium heat. To keep the bird juicy, we periodically baste it with the juices that come out or with cooked broth.
- Turkey: 1 piece
- Sea salt: to taste
- Ground black pepper: to taste
- Vegetable oil: to taste
3
Take the cooked turkey out of the oven after 30-40 minutes. You can check readiness by piercing it with a skewer or knife: if the juice is clear, it's ready.
- Turkey: 1 piece
4
While the turkey is roasting, we prepare the sauce. We finely crush the nuts in a mortar, or pass them through a meat grinder. Separately, we crush cilantro and garlic with salt in the mortar.
- Walnuts: 500 g
- Coriander: 1 bunch
- Garlic: 4 cloves
5
Grate the onion and fry it in vegetable oil until it becomes transparent. Mix the onion with crushed greens, nuts, khmeli-suneli, saffron, wine vinegar, and red pepper. Add salt and pepper.
- Onion: 3 heads
- Vegetable oil: to taste
- Coriander: 1 bunch
- Walnuts: 500 g
- Khmeli-suneli: 2 teaspoons
- Imeretian saffron: 1 teaspoon
- Wine vinegar: 1 teaspoon
- Chili pepper: 1 piece
- Sea salt: to taste
- Ground black pepper: to taste
6
Strain the broth in which the bird was cooked through cheesecloth. Pour the broth over the sauce ingredients, bring to a boil, and cook for five minutes.
- Turkey: 1 piece
7
We cut the roasted bird into pieces and place it in the sauce. There is a small secret: when we take the bird out of the oven, we don't pour out the juice that has come out, but also add it to the sauce. We cook for another 10-15 minutes on low heat. If there is time, we let the satsivi rest in a cool place for 1-2 hours, or better yet, overnight, so the bird absorbs the sauce. We serve the satsivi cold and are very happy that we had the patience to prepare it.
- Turkey: 1 piece
- Vegetable oil: to taste