“I express emotion through colour,” chef Davit Narimanishvili said, as my fork hovered over a trio of perfectly spherical amber, green and purple appetizers, almost too exquisite to eat.
This is Georgian-born Narimanishvili’s reworked version of his motherland’s beloved vegetarian dish: pkhali (the “kh” is pronounced as a deep, guttural “h”). Held together with a seasoned walnut paste known as bazhe, the molded balls are typically made with vegetables like aubergine and chard. But in the spirit of Georgians’ resourcefulness, everything from unused celery leaves to wilting parsley finds its way into pkhali, making it the perfect leftover dish.
A culinary chameleon, pkhali can be slathered on toast as a vegan pâté, served mezze-style as a flavorful dip, or spooned – along with other cold appetizers – into a special bowl made for sharing known as a gobi. Above all, pkhali is a mainstay of the supra: a structured dinner party that celebrates Georgians’ boundless hospitality and melting pot cuisine. The South Caucasian nation has endured its share of invasions, so it’s no surprise to find Mongol, Mediterranean and Persian flavors infusing its dishes.
“There’s no supra without pkhali,” Narimanishvili told me from the kitchen of his chic riverside restaurant. Opened last August, Kevri (s8, Khashuri-Akhaltsikhe-Vale St) is a two-hour drive west from capital city Tbilisi, in the village of Tashiskari, better known for being the site of a 24-hour skirmish between the Georgians and the Turks in 1609.
Narimanishvili revealed how he draws out pkhali’s earthy flavors by smoking pumpkin on an outdoor fire and baking beetroot in salt. Equal parts creamy, spicy and aromatic, the delicately textured balls are a taste explosion.
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