Georgian mother shares lobio bean soup recipe
This traditional Georgian bean soup develops a deep, aromatic taste through slow cooking.
To try Georgian dishes, you don«t need to go to a restaurant or even travel to Georgia — now you can simply prepare them at home. You only need a couple of ingredients. 59.RU continues to share interesting (and family) recipes, and this time we»ll tell you how to make lobio (boiled beans). The recipe was shared by a Georgian woman living in Perm, the mother of our journalist.
Lobio is one of the most famous dishes of Georgian cuisine. It«s boiled beans in their own juice, not quite a soup but not a side dish — a completely independent dish. There are many recipes for lobio, and it»s prepared differently in every region of Georgia. Moreover, recipes within regions can also vary, especially if they are family recipes. The roots of our family go back to the city of Kutaisi in Imereti, Georgia, and my mother received it from my grandmother.
Cooking lobio is very simple, but a bit time-consuming. The amount of ingredients in this recipe is set so that the dish is enough for four to six servings. We will need 600 grams of red dried beans, two medium-sized onions, two to three small cloves of garlic, cilantro, dill, parsley, celery, and red dried pepper, salt.
It«s worth noting that when the water with beans boils, it needs to be drained to remove substances that cause gas. Then, refill the beans with water and set on low heat. The beans cook for quite a long time, about three hours. During this time, the contents of the pot need to be checked periodically, stirring, and adding water — it must be boiled and hot.
Beans are simmered for hours on low heat, with periodic additions of hot, boiled water.
The beans should cook down and increase in size by two to three times. When they are cooked, they need to be slightly mashed with a masher so that the soup consistency becomes thicker, but without turning the dish into puree. Next, prepare the dressing for lobio. Peel the onions, chop them finely, and sauté in sunflower oil until golden brown. Don«t worry that the dish will become oily, because beans absorb oil well.
Also, to enhance the flavor of the dish, you can add a pinch of Svan salt (a Georgian spice blend), but it«s better not to overdo it, as it contains many spices that can overpower everything. And the dish will simply become too salty.
Sometimes, you can add a bit of acidity: a little vinegar or lemon. We added boiled tkemali (a Georgian sour plum sauce) — literally on the tip of a teaspoon.
Previously, we shared a recipe for carrot gingerbread from the German grandmother of our journalist.
