Beef Broth Soup – Georgian Kharcho

Broth

1. We wanted a rich, fragrant, tasty beef soup based on the Georgian kharcho recipe. The first idea, to cook the soup on a beef bone, did not appeal to us, so we settled on brisket – not too fatty and with cartilage, although ribs would work well too, and they give more body, as for rib soup. Shops sometimes sell nicely cut “sets” of beef brisket, and at any market, if you explain what you need, you will get the right cut.

   

   If you decide to cook the soup from a bone, it is still worth adding some meat to the broth, otherwise the soup will be too thin. Alternatively, you can make the soup thicker by adding more rice.

2. Bring the meat to a boil in the first water. If I have time, I usually put the meat in cold water, bring it to a boil over high heat, then drain the water and rinse the meat. I don’t know why, but if you simply boil the brisket in water, the broth turns cloudy, and it happens right after boiling starts. Rinsing improves the clarity of the broth.

3. Cook the broth. Cover the meat with a fresh portion of cold water – about 2 l – and cook at the lowest simmer, without letting it bubble, for 1.5-2 hours, until the meat is tender. A good, rich broth takes time, so don’t rush.

   

Soup with tkemali and rice

1. We wanted a tasty beef soup without using vegetables for the broth, limiting ourselves to meat, a spicy dressing and spices. To give the soup a slightly sour taste we use tkemali sauce, which we make every year – for Georgian kharcho, for marinating meat, and as a sauce for shashlik. Walnuts and garlic are the traditional combination of flavors for a spicy soup, and a hot red pepper pod adds a refined piquant taste. And one more thing: beef broth soup is especially good with plenty of fresh herbs.

   

2. Slice the meat and return it to the soup. When the broth is ready, take the pieces of meat out, cut them into large pieces and return the beef to the soup.

3. Add the rice, tkemali and tomato. Optionally – it is not required – you can add a little rice to the soup, literally 1-2 tbsp. It makes the soup a bit thicker. Rice in soup usually cooks in up to 20 mins, but there is little of it and it can easily overcook. Immediately add 1-2 tbsp of tkemali. If the sauce is not sour enough, add more – the broth should be noticeably sour. For “color”, add 1 tbsp of tomato paste (17 g) or 0.5 cup of tomato juice (100 ml).

4. Cook the soup for 10 mins over medium heat, stirring from time to time. Add finely chopped hot pepper – the amount to taste.

   

Walnut and garlic dressing

1. Grind the dressing. In a mortar or blender, grind 1-2 tbsp of walnut (8–15 g) kernels with peeled garlic cloves. The amount of garlic is to taste; I used a whole small head. The mixture should be “fine”, without large pieces. For more uniformity, you can add a little broth while grinding.

   

2. Pour the walnut and garlic dressing into the beef soup, bring it to a boil and add the spices. Traditionally in the Caucasus they use the khmeli suneli spice blend, as well as fenugreek. This is the best option, but if you don’t like Caucasian spices, you can use simpler ones – coriander, black pepper, fragrant herbs. By the way, you can leave the soup unsalted: tkemali sauce contains salt, and the aromatic additions mask the taste of salt in the dish. After adding the spices, cook the soup for 3-4 mins.

   

3. Take the soup off the heat and let it stand for 5-10 mins in a warm place.

Serving

1. Prepare the herbs. Pick the cilantro leaves from the sprigs and chop them roughly. It is better to serve the herbs separately with the beef soup rather than adding them to the bowl. With the herbs you can serve fresh bread or lavash, hot red pepper and garlic cloves.

2. Put pieces of brisket into bowls and ladle in the soup. Serve right away. The soup should be hot, but not scalding.