Chakapuli

Georgia's green stew of spring: lamb or veal simmered with dry white wine, sour green plums, spring onions, and great handfuls of fresh tarragon and other herbs until the whole pot turns green and intensely fragrant, the dish of Easter and the new season

Origin: Georgia (Caucasus)

From the journey of Tarragon.

Chakapuli is the great green stew of the Georgian spring, and one of the dishes that best captures the Caucasian genius for cooking with fresh herbs by the armful rather than the pinch. It is made when the new season arrives and two of its ingredients appear together: the first young tarragon and the first sour green plums, the unripe tkemali plums whose sharp acidity is the soul of so much Georgian cooking. Into a pot go lamb or veal, a great quantity of sliced spring onions, dry white wine, the whole green plums, and then herbs in astonishing volume, above all fresh tarragon, with coriander, parsley, and dill, so much that the meat is almost buried beneath them. As it simmers, the herbs collapse and the wine and plums reduce, and the whole dish turns a deep, vivid green and grows intensely, headily fragrant, the tarragon and the sour plum playing against the richness of the meat. Chakapuli is the centrepiece of the Georgian Easter table and a dish of the spring supra, the feast, eaten with plenty of bread to soak up the green, winey, herbal juices. It is tarragon used as the Georgians use it, not as a delicate accent but as a defining, abundant flavour.

Ingredients

The Stew

  • 1 kg lamb or veal shoulder, cut into 4cm pieces
  • 8 spring onions, sliced (white and green)
  • 250 ml dry white wine
  • 300 g sour green (unripe) plums, or green tkemali plums
  • 4 cloves garlic, sliced
  • 1 green chilli, sliced (optional)
  • salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

The Herbs

  • 2 large bunches fresh tarragon, leaves and tender stems chopped
  • 1 large bunch fresh coriander, chopped
  • 1 small bunch fresh parsley, chopped
  • 1 small bunch fresh dill, chopped (optional)

Method

  1. Put the meat and the sliced spring onions in a heavy pot. Season with salt and pepper, pour in the wine, cover, and bring to a gentle simmer. Cook for about 40 minutes, until the meat is beginning to turn tender.
  2. Add the whole green plums, the garlic, and the chilli, if using. Continue to simmer, covered, for another 20 minutes, until the plums have softened and begun to collapse and the meat is tender.
  3. Stir in the enormous quantity of chopped fresh herbs, the tarragon above all, with the coriander, parsley, and dill. The pot should look overwhelmed with green.
  4. Cover and simmer for a further 10 to 15 minutes, until the herbs have wilted into the sauce and the whole dish is fragrant and green. Taste and adjust the salt.
  5. Serve hot in bowls, with plenty of crusty bread to soak up the green, winey, herbal juices.

Notes

Lamb is the most traditional meat, though veal is common and excellent. The sour green plums (tkemali) are central; unripe greengages, very tart plums, or a few spoonfuls of green tkemali sauce all stand in. Use French tarragon and a great deal of it, with the other herbs in support. Some cooks add a little fresh tarragon right at the end, off the heat, for an extra lift of fragrance. Serve with Georgian bread and, of course, more tarragon.

The Gastrographer

The Gastrographer

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