Chakapuli

Chakapuli - Georgian Lamb, Tarragon and Sour Plum Stew

A classic Georgian spring stew where lamb is gently simmered with a generous heap of fresh tarragon, onion, garlic and white wine, then sharpened with sour plums. Traditionally cooked in a ketsi (clay pot) over low heat until the meat is tender and the sauce is thin and vividly green.

Prep

25 min

Cook

150 min

Total

175 min

Serves

4

Difficulty

Medium

Recipe ingredients

• •1 kg (2¼ lb) lamb on the bone (shoulder or leg), cut into large chunks; bone adds body to the sauce
• •600 g (1⅓ lb) fresh tarragon, young tarragon preferred; washed and roughly chopped, stems included
• •150 g (5½ oz) fresh flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped
• •500 g (1 lb 2 oz) yellow onions, thinly sliced
• •8 cloves garlic, sliced
• •250 ml (1 cup + 2 tbsp) dry white wine, a Georgian rkatsiteli if available, otherwise any dry white
• •150 g (5½ oz) sour plums (tkemali), fresh green sour plums, pitted and halved; or 3–4 tbsp tkemali (sour plum sauce) stirred in at the end
• •60 ml (4 tbsp) water, plus more as needed
• •2 tsp coriander seed, lightly crushed in a mortar
• •2 tsp salt, or to taste
• •1 tsp black pepper, freshly ground
• •2 tbsp sunflower oil or clarified butter, for browning

Steps

1. 1 Pat the lamb chunks dry and season with salt, pepper and the crushed coriander seed.
2. 2 Heat the oil in a heavy pot or ketsi over medium-high heat. Brown the lamb in batches on all sides until well coloured, 8–10 minutes per batch. Do not crowd the pot. Transfer the browned meat to a plate.
3. 3 Lower the heat to medium. Add the sliced onions to the same pot and cook, stirring, until softened and translucent, about 8 minutes. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute more.
4. 4 Return the lamb (and any resting juices) to the pot. Pour in the white wine and scrape up any browned bits from the base. Let the wine bubble for 2 minutes.
5. 5 Add the halved sour plums, the water, and half of the tarragon and parsley. Stir gently. Bring to a bare simmer.
6. 6 Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer gently for 1½ hours, stirring occasionally, until the lamb is tender and beginning to fall from the bone. The meat should reach an internal temperature of at least 90°C / 195°F for fork-tender collagen breakdown. Add a splash of water if the pot looks dry.
7. 7 Stir in the remaining tarragon and parsley. Cover and continue cooking on low heat for a further 30–40 minutes, until the herbs have collapsed into a thin, deep-green sauce and the lamb is completely tender.
8. 8 Taste and adjust salt. If using tkemali sauce instead of fresh sour plums, stir 3–4 tbsp through now and simmer 5 minutes more.
9. 9 Rest, covered, off the heat for 10 minutes. Serve hot in shallow bowls with the thin green sauce ladled over, accompanied by mchadi (Georgian cornbread) or plain rice.