Spinach pkhali
4 servings
30 minutes
Spinach pkhali is a cold Georgian appetizer made of two parts: dressing and the main ingredient - spinach, or ispanahi. Everything is ground together to the consistency of a pate and, according to the classic recipe, mixed by hand. Walnuts for pkhali should be light, oily and not bitter. Georgian women traditionally grind them in a mortar, but in this recipe the ingredients are passed through a meat grinder - it is easier and the dish acquires a uniform consistency and delicate texture. The taste of walnuts goes well with pepper, cilantro and pungent garlic. The latter, by the way, according to the recipe is ground with a knife, without the help of a garlic press. In the homeland of this dish, the main ingredient is chosen depending on the time of year: in the spring, pkhali is prepared from nettles or spinach, and in the winter, more satisfying products are chosen: green beans, beets or mushrooms. From the resulting mixture, you can mold a thick pancake and make a pattern of notches on it or roll it into balls with a hollow inside - where, according to the recipe, pomegranate is poured.
1
Prepare the necessary ingredients.
2
Boil the spinach for a few minutes.
- Spinach: 500 g
3
Then drain in a colander, place on paper towels, and let cool.
4
Chop the garlic finely.
- Garlic: 2 cloves
5
Chop the onion finely.
- Onion: 200 g
6
Also chop the pepper, cilantro, and parsley.
- Green chili pepper: 1 piece
- Coriander: 12 sprigs
- Parsley: 3 sprigs
7
When the spinach cools down, pass it through a meat grinder with nuts.
- Spinach: 500 g
- Walnuts: 100 g
8
Mix everything to a homogeneous mass, adding wine vinegar and salt.
- Wine vinegar: 20 ml
- Salt: to taste
9
Give the mass a beautiful shape.
10
Serve on a plate, garnished with pomegranate seeds.
- Pomegranate seeds: to taste