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Kharcho with nuts and prunes

Kharcho with Walnuts and Prunes

An original recipe for a delicious kharcho soup!

Nat Ka

Recipe author

Composition / ingredients

Servings:

Lamb

800

Rice

100

Onion

Tomatoes

Walnuts

150

Prunes

150

Bell pepper

Garlic

Dry spices

Khmeli-suneli

Chili pepper

0.5

Translation table of volumetric measures

Nutrients and energy value of the composition of the recipe

By weight of the composition:

Proteins 31 % 9 g

Fats 31 % 9 g

Carbohydrates 38 % 11 g

163 kcal

GI: 64 / 36 / 0

Cooking method

Step 1:

This recipe is a winner for lamb lovers — it comes out so tasty! I found it online ages ago and have made it this way ever since. If you don't care for lamb, use beef; I've done it both ways, but lamb turns out tastier and more fragrant. Well, for me anyway.
Step 2:

Rinse the meat. Don't bother trimming the membranes, but you can cut off some of the fat. Sear the pieces in a hot, dry skillet — no oil! If your pan tends to stick, render the trimmed fat in it first, then add the meat. If you don't have that either, add just a tiny drop of oil.
Step 3:

Once the meat is fragrant, take it out of the skillet and put it in a soup pot. Don't wash the skillet — we'll need it again. Cover the meat with boiling water and set it over the lowest heat. Skim off the foam as it appears, add a couple of bay leaves and 20–30 peppercorns, and simmer for 2–3 hours. Cook until the meat is completely tender and nearly falling apart!
Step 4:

Chop the tomatoes, onion, bell pepper, chili, and prunes. Grind the nuts in a blender. Try to use walnuts specifically — I once used almonds, and it was tasty too, but it lacked that distinctive walnut aroma.
Step 5:

In the skillet where the meat was seared, sauté the onion. Add the bell and chili peppers, then the tomatoes. Once everything has stewed down, blend it into a smooth mixture. Meanwhile, cook the rice in a separate pot until done. If you like it thicker, use 150 g of rice — I make mine thicker, since my husband likes it that way. Drain in a colander and rinse with cold water.
Step 6:

When the meat is done, add the chopped prunes. You can use tkemali (sour plum sauce) instead of prunes, but preferably homemade rather than store-bought. Don't add prunes and tkemali together — it'll turn out too sour. Simmer for 10–15 minutes. Add the blended vegetable mixture, the cooked rice, the nuts, and 1 tbsp of khmeli-suneli. Turn the heat up and let it boil for 3–5 minutes.
Step 7:

Once the soup has boiled, turn off the heat (if you have an electric stove, move the pot off the burner). After about 20 minutes, grate the garlic on a fine grater and stir it into the pot. Don't add garlic to boiling soup — you'll lose the aroma!
Step 8:

Let the soup rest for an hour. Don't dig in right away, if you can hold out! Be sure to sprinkle it with fresh herbs — cilantro is ideal. Enjoy! P.S. The bowl in the photo is my husband's, and he doesn't eat cilantro and seasons every soup with sour cream…

When I was young I worked in a restaurant, and our cooks always grated the garlic and never used a garlic press. They said the press "kills" all the aroma. I'm not sure how true that is, but I do the same.