So back to the trip report in Georgia.
One of my Secret Agents Eka and her charming friend cooked up a Georgian feast
called a Supra.
They served home made Georgian wine, Satsivi and a bunch of other totally
unpronounceable yet delicious delicacies.
One thing about a sufra. There must be bread, salt and wine on the table. In the
old days salt was much sought after and not as easy to come by, but those three
things must be on the table.
We would take turns toasting each other. For example during my toast to Eka I
would proclaim how she has a wonderful smile, etc, and how I appreciated her
inviting me into her home and introducing me to her friends, and then at the
end we said kxa#$%^nkto <<<<< (a Georgian word I forgot and we would
clink our glasses together take a drink and the toast would move on to the next
person. The toasts would make several rounds of the table.
There are even different kinds of toasts where instead of clinking the glasses
together mildly you would crash them together instead.
This supra was planned on short notice, and as a result Fatima apologized profusely
at the "sparse table that she put together" In my mind it was a feast, in hers it was
barely fit for a guest. I also had to ask her 20 times to relax, that it is a great feast
and that I wanted her to sit so I could enjoy her company.
From Wikipedia
A Supra (Georgian [supra]) is a traditional Georgian feast and an important part of
Georgian social culture. There are two types of supra: a festive supra lxɪnɪs sʊpra
called a keipi, and a sombre supra tflis sʊpra, called a kelekhi that is always held
after burials.
Here is the Supra that Fatima (Eka's friend) made entirely in my honor.
I put numbers on the individual items so that you can see what is what.
Item # 1 is called phelamushi or felamushi which is made from pure
grape juice and is boiled for a long time until it is reduced by half and
is very sweet. Add corn flour to the juice mixture and stir with a wooden
spoon. Eka's and her mother use half corn flour and half wheat flour where
Fatima uses only corn flour.
Depending on the type of grape and the felamushi recipe. For example red
grapes they usually use all wheat flour (white not whole grain)
The mixture is stirred often for about a half an hour. Add nuts (if desired)
pour into a pan and let cool.
Item # 2 Boiled Chicken, which is boiled with its fat.
The chicken is the base then you add your various delectable
sauces to it.
for example baja and tkemali sauces
Item # 3
Painted Eggs
Bills recipe............ cut up sticks called tsengo
throw sticks and eggs into a bowl and boil for 10 minutes and
then forget about them. The eggs are not consistently colored
Ekas recipe
Put tsengo in woter and boil for long time until the water becomes
dark redthen allow it to cool down add eggs and boil 20 min on low
fire move from heat and slowly add cool water.
Eka's eggs are better than Bills
# 4 Ghomi
It has like a porridge consistency and it is made with rice, millet
and corn flour Ghomi has a neutral taste and is intended to enhance the food added to it.
Ghomi is served hot and most often a flavorful Georgian cheese
like "imeruli or sulguni" is added to it. You can also add harder
cheeses as well
You put Ghomi on your plate and pour the various delectable sauces
on it.
#5 home made pickles
#6 salt (absolutely required by tradition for any supra)
#7 is Lavashi or Georgian flat bread.
#8 is khachapuri, which has a hundred variations. Usually
a cheese filled bread but really a hundred different kinds
which vary from family to family and region to region and
even different khachapuri for fasting*
*for fasting it can be filled with beans, potatoes, or yeast added
and allowed to rise with greens inside as well
#9 Greens
Radish, onions, tarragon (others can be added as well)
#10 Candies
#11 Home made wine Yes it's in a beer bottle but it is wine.
#18 Cake Bill went to a store to buy a cake, they only had two things that looked like cake. I bought this one (it was dry and sucked)
#12 Chicken Salad
#13 Fried Chicken
#14 Young Cheese called imeruli
#15 is potato salad, while not a Georgian National Dish it is
still very popular. Just like in the US everybody has their own
recipe. This salad had sweet corn and peas in it.
#16 is Ideali it is a soft cookie made with honey and nuts
and other mysterious ingredients.
#17 Satsivi !!!!!
It is a Georgian dish made with chicken or turkey and walnuts.
It has a different taste than I expected. It is served both hot and
cold. I did not expect the dish to be so flavorful.
18 Lame Cake that Bill brought (tasted like cardboard)