How to cook chkmeruli in Georgian

What you need for chkmeruli

For the chicken:

1 chicken;
50 g butter.

For the sauce:

3 sprigs of cilantro;
5 cloves of garlic;
½ teaspoon salt;
1 teaspoon of hops-suneli;
a pinch of black pepper;
100 ml of cream with a fat content of 10%;
3 tablespoons of water.

What else can you add to the sauce

Instead of cream, sometimes they take fat milk, and cilantro is replaced with parsley. You can also grind a handful of walnuts into the dressing, add adjika to taste, a pinch of paprika or dried mint.

How to cook chkmeruli

The poultry is usually cooked in a special dish - a clay ketsi, but it is also possible in a cast-iron pan. You will also need cling film, a hammer, a mortar, and a frying press. The process will take about 1 hour.

How to cook chicken

Rinse the bird under cold water, remove the skin around the edges. Slice the chicken lengthwise to open up.

Turn the chicken over, cover with cling film or a plastic bag and beat with a hammer for 5 minutes.

Melt the butter in a cast iron skillet over medium heat. Arrange the chicken with the inside facing up and press down with a press. As a load, you can use a small pot of water or weights on a heat-resistant plate.

Roast the chicken for 15 minutes. Then turn over and leave under pressure for another 10 minutes. Pierce the meat: if pink juice comes out, fry for another 10 minutes on each side.

How to make the sauce

Wash and chop the cilantro into small pieces. Peel and chop the garlic. Combine the ingredients with salt, hops-suneli, black pepper and grind in a mortar. Add cold cream, water and stir.

Pour the sauce over the poultry, cover and simmer for 15 minutes. The press is no longer needed. Sometimes chkmeruli are sent to simmer in an oven preheated to 180 ° C for the same time.