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Imeruli khachapuri
Imeretian cheese bread: a round, pan-cooked yogurt dough sealed around cheese
In Imereti, the region around Kutaisi in western Georgia, this flat round cheese bread is everyday food, and it is the one most families make at home: a tender, quick dough leavened with matsoni (Georgian yogurt) and soda, wrapped around a cheese ball and cooked in a dry frying pan. It is cut into wedges like a pizza and set on the table for breakfast, for a feast, or packed for a long car journey. Georgian imeruli and sulguni cheeses are hard to find outside Georgia, so this uses mozzarella with feta for the salty tang. Choose cheeses labelled vegetarian (microbial rennet). Children love it plain, still warm. A common mistake is rolling it out with heavy pressure, which tears the thin dough so the cheese leaks and burns in the pan. Chef's tip: press it out gently with your fingertips from the centre outwards, and if a small hole appears, pinch a scrap of dough over it before it reaches the pan.
- Total time
- 75 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 6
Ingredients
For the dough
For the filling
To finish
Method
0/8 doneStep 1: Stir ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda into 9 oz plain whole yogurt or matsoni in a large bowl; it will froth slightly after a minute. Mix in 1 egg, ½ tsp salt and 1 tbsp sunflower oil.
Step 2: Add 14 oz plain flour a handful at a time and knead briefly into a soft dough that no longer sticks to your hands, adding 3 tbsp warm water only if it feels dry. Cover and rest for 20 minutes so it relaxes.
20 minStep 3: Mash 10 ½ oz low-moisture mozzarella and 7 oz feta together well and squeeze into two balls, each about the size of a large orange.
Step 4: Divide the dough in two. Flatten one piece into a 15 cm circle, set a cheese ball in the middle and gather the edges up over the top like a purse. Pinch to seal and twist off any extra dough.
Step 5: Turn it seam-side down on a floured surface and press it out gently with your fingertips into a round about 25 cm wide and 1 cm thick. Repeat with the second piece.
Step 6: Heat a dry, heavy frying pan over a medium-low heat. Lay in one bread, cover with a lid and cook for 6–7 minutes, until the underside has dark golden patches and the top has puffed slightly.
7 minStep 7: Flip it, cover again and cook for another 6 minutes, until the second side is spotted golden and the bread sounds hollow when tapped.
6 minStep 8: Slide onto a board, brush with ⅓ oz butter and keep warm while you cook the second bread the same way, then brush it with the remaining ⅓ oz butter. Cut into wedges and serve warm.
13 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 470 kcal
- Protein
- 21 g
- Carbs
- 52 g
- Fat
- 19 g
- Fibre
- 2 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does imeruli khachapuri take?
- About 75 minutes in total: 45 minutes to prepare and 30 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 6 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- What can I use instead of plain flour?
- Self-raising flour, same amount (then leave out the baking powder).
- What can I use instead of egg?
- 1 tbsp ground flaxseed + 3 tbsp water per egg, left for 5 minutes (baking only; vegan).
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