Kharcho-Georgian Lamb/Beef/Walnut Soup

This recipe is for one of my favorite Georgian soups. While I haven't been to Georgia, I eat this soup whenever I'm in Ukraine. They have some great Georgian restaurants. (It helps that I have a great Georgian friend in Kiev who knows all the best Georgian establishments.)



Anyway, this soup is a great meal in the winter. Warm and filling. Try it. Enjoy it. Let me know what you think.

Kharcho

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• 1½ pounds of boneless, lean beef or lamb
• 8 cups beef stock
• 3 Tablespoons butter
• 2 onions, finely chopped
• 1 Tablespoon flour
• 3 Tablespoons tomato paste
• 1 16-ounce can tomatoes, seeded and chopped
• 1/4 cup rice
• 1/2 teaspoon dried tarragon
• 1/4 teaspoon dried mint
• 1½ teaspoons sweet Hungarian paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon hot pepper flakes
• 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1/4 teaspoon ground fenugreek (in a pinch, use curry powder)
• 2 teaspoons tamarind paste, diluted in hot stock (can substitute 4 Tablespoons of lemon juice)
• 3 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
• 1/4 cup walnut pieces, crushed
• salt
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh herbs (any mixture of tarragon, cilantro, basil, parsley, mint, or dill)

Garnish: 3/4 cup chopped fresh herbs (any mixture of tarragon, cilantro, basil, parsley, mint, or dill)

Cube meat and brown. Boil meat in stock. Skim off the foam as necessary. Reduce heat and simmer, partly covered, for about 1 hour. Remove and reserve the meat.

When the meat has been cooking for an hour or so, melt the butter in a soup pot over medium heat, and stir in the onions. Fry for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onions are soft and colored. Stir in the flour and cook, stirring, for about a minute. Add 1/2 cup stock and stir until smooth. Stir in the tomato paste and the tomatoes. Whisk in the rest of the stock, add the rice, and simmer, covered, for about 10 minutes.

Add all the rest of the ingredients, except for the fresh herbs, and simmer them until the rice is tender--another 10 to 15 minutes.

When ready to serve, remove the soup from the heat, stir in the meat pieces and the 1/4 cup of fresh chopped herbs, cover, and let sit for 10 minutes. Stir in the remaining herbs and ladle into bowls. Serve with hearty bread and butter.

***Fenugreek is available in Mediterranean/Middle Eastern food stores.

***We often use the lemon juice as a replacement for the tamarind paste, but you can get in the same place you find the fenugreek...usually.

This recipe is based on one I found on:

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http://www.soupsong.com/rkharcho.html