The cuisine of the Caucasus refers to the cuisine of Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia and North Caucasus.
Traditional dishes
Plates
Some popular cheeses from the Caucasus include:
- Ashvlagwan (Ашвлагуан) — Abkhaz smoked cheese, similar to sulguni.
- Chechil (Չեչիլ) — String (often smoked) cheese, made in Armenia.[3]
- Chechili (ჩეჩილი) — Cheese in shape of ropes, made in south Georgia.
- Adyga kwae — (Адыгэ Къуае) - Mild cheese, made in Circassia.
- Chkinti' (ჭყინტი) - Salty and "juicy" cheese made originally in Imereti.
- Dambalkhacho (დამბალხაჭო) — "Rotten" cheese made in Pshavi and Mtiuleti.
- Guda (გუდა) — Cheese made from sheep milk in Tusheti. Its preparation takes 20 days.
Dough
- Achma (აჩმა / Ачма) — Fluffy pastry with cheese, traditionally made in Georgia,[4] especially in Abkhazia.
- Afar (Афарар) — Lezgian flatbread stuffed with various fillings, mostly meat or cottage cheese.
- Chepalgash (ЧIепалгаш) — Chechen and Ingush pie filled with cottage cheese and wild garlic.
- Chudu (Чуду) — Sort of pie, made in Dagestan with various fillings (meat, cheese, cottage cheese, herbs, etc).
- Dalnash (Далнаш) — Chechen and Ingush pie filled with lard and wild garlic.
- Haliva (Хьэлжъо) — Circassian triangular fried pie, often filled with Circassian cheese and potatoes.
- Hingalsh (Хингалш) — Chechen and Ingush pie with a half-round shape, filled with pumpkin.
- Kubdari (კუბდარი) — Svan pie filled with spicy meat.[5]
- Khachapuri (ხაჭაპური) — Georgian pie filled with cheese. This dish has a lot of regional variation, the most famous being Adjaruli Khachapuri, shaped in a form of a boat.
- Khichin (Хычин) — Balkar and Karachay pie filled with various stuffing.
- Ossetian Pies — Davondzhin (filled with a mixture of Ossetian cheese and wild garlic leaves / Kabuskadzhin (filled with cabbage and cheese) / Kartofdzhin (filled with potato and cheese) / Nasdzhin (filled with mashed pumpkin) / Khabizdzhin (filled with cheese and potato) / Artadzhikhon (filled with cheese) / Fidzhin (filled with minced meat) / Kh'adurdzhin (filled with kidney beans) / Tsakharadzhin (filled with beetroot and cheese).
- Qutab — Azerbaijani cooked dough filled with meat or pumpkin.
- Zhingyalov hats (Ժենգյալով հաց) — Armenian flatbread stuffed with diced herbs and vegetables such as spinach.
Starters and snacks
Ajapsandali (Georgian version)
- Ajapsandali (აჯაფსანდალი / Աջափսանդալ / Əcəbsəndəl) — Cold starter containing aubergines, potatoes and spices. It is traditionally made in Georgia, Armenia and in Azerbaijan.
- Basturma (Բաստուրմա / Basdırma) — Seasoned and air-dried cured beef.
- Choban salad (Çoban) — Azerbaijani salad made from tomatoes and cucumbers.
- Dolma / Tolma (Dolma / Տոլմա / Tolma / Долма) — Vegetable (cabbage, zucchini, grape leaf, aubergine, pepper) stuffed with minced meat and rice, mostly made in Armenia and Azerbaijan.
- Kupati (კუპატი) Sausage made in Western Georgia.
- Lobio (ლობიო) — Cooked minced beans with addition of coriander, walnuts, garlic and onion.
- Nigvziani Badrijani (ნიგვზიანი ბადრიჯანი) — Fried aubergine with walnut sauce and pomegranate seeds.
- Pkhali (ფხალი) — Minced vegetables (cabbage, beet, aubergine) with pomegranate seeds.
- Sujuk (Սուջուխ / Sucuk) — Dry and spicy sausage, mostly made in Armenia and Azerbaijan.
Soups
Main courses
- Hinkal (Хинкал) - Dagestani boiled dough, eaten with lamb or beef.
- Khinkali (ხინკალი) - Georgian dumpling stuffed with meat, vegetables or cottage cheese.
- Khoyagusht (Хоягушт) - Meat pie from the cuisine of Mountain Jews, Made of eggs, turmeric, slow cooked meat (usually sheep or goat) and its broth.
- Kofta (Küftə / Քուֆթա / გუფთა) - Spiced meatballs, made in Transcaucasia.
- Kuchmachi (კუჭმაჭი) - Fried chicken livers with pomegranate seeds.
- Kurze (Курзе) - Long shaped dumplings stuffed with meat, popular among Dagestanis.
- Mataz (Мэтазэ) - Circassian dumplings stuffed with various fillings (meat, cottage cheese, potato).
- Lahmajun (Լահմաջու) - Flatbread topped with minced meat. Made in Armenia and Turkey.
- Lavangi (Ləvəngi) - Azerbaijani baked chicken or fish stuffed with walnuts and spices.
- Libzhe (Либжэ) - Circassian stew made of beef, similar to goulash.
- Lula kebab (Lülə Kabab) - Azerbaijani kebab made from minced meat (often enrolled in lavash).
- Manti ( մանթի / Манты / Мантиш) - Dumplings, brought by Turks which is commonly made in Southern Caucasus.
- Plov (Plov / Փլավ / ფლავი / Плов) - Rice dish, mostly cooked with meat and vegetables.
- Qovurma - Azerbaijani lamb stew.
- Satsivi (საცივი) - Georgian poultry meat (turkey or chicken based dish with walnuts.
- Shashlik / Mtsvadi / Khorovats - Cooked meat on fire, made in all Caucasus.
- Tjvjik (տժվժիկ) - Armenian fried offal dish.
- Yokh (Йоьхь) - Chechen and Ingush spicy sausage from mutton and flour.
Condiments and sauces
Breads
Desserts
Murabba (Mürəbbə / Մուրաբա / მურაბა) — Jam made traditionally in Transcaucasia with local fruits such as cherry, strawberry, raspberry, apricot, fig, watermelon, etc, but also from walnuts.
- Natyoukh (НатIюхI) — Lak candy made with a mixture of honey and sugar with apricot kernels and walnuts.
- Pakhlava (Paxlava / Փախլավա / ფახლავა) — Sweet pastry made with filo layers. It is made in the Transcaucasian countries.
- Pastegh (Պաստեղ) — Dried fruit.
- Pelamushi (ფელამუში) — Kakhetian traditional candy made from grape juice and flour.
- Shekerbura (Şəkərbura) — Azerbaijani sweet pastry filled with almonds, walnuts or hazelnuts. It is consumed during Nowruz, the Zoroastrian New Year.