Adjika Abkhazian

Such an appetizer, like adjika, is popular in many families, but it does not always mean the original Abkhazian appetizer by this name. Strictly speaking, adjika abkhazian is not even a snack, but a spicy seasoning created on the basis of chilli peppers, garlic, coriander and blue fenugreek (suneli). The classic Abkhaz recipe of adzhika does not imply the use of any other ingredients besides those listed above. The only thing that to increase the shelf life of the seasoning in it still add a fair amount of salt. However, hostesses in different regions of Abkhazia put in the adjika many other spicy herbs, most often cilantro, parsley and dill. Popular and recipes with the addition of walnuts. But in any case, the seasoning will be quite dense and oily, it does not contain tomatoes - one of the main ingredients of homemade adzhika, most often prepared in Russia.

Cooking Features

Gourmets, familiar with the taste and aroma of the original Abkhaz adjika, are convinced that this seasoning is significantly different from the spicy snack with tomatoes, which is prepared in Russia, and its organoleptic qualities are unique. For this reason, it is worth trying a little adzhika according to traditional Abkhaz recipes. Such seasoning will probably be used often, and dishes with it will cause an appetite. However, in order to prepare adjika identical to the original Abkhaz seasoning, you need to know a few rules:

One of the traditional ingredients of the Abkhaz adjika is blue fenugreek. If you could not get this spice, you can replace it with seasoning hops-suneli.
Purchase spicy herbs and spices for making adzhika only from those sellers you trust. Feel free to smell them to determine how fresh and bright the aroma they have.
Try to store seasonings in seeds, grinding them just before cooking adzhika. In this case, they will retain more flavor.
To remove excess moisture from the peppers, they need to be slightly dried. In Abkhazia, they use an oven for this, because of which pepper, and later adjika, acquire unique smoky notes. In modern conditions, it is better to dry pepper in the open air, protecting it from sunlight. In extreme cases, to speed up the cooking process, the peppers can be dried in the oven or lightly roasted in a dry skillet.
The hottest part of the pepper is seeds and partitions. The question of whether to remove them from the pepper is decided individually.
When processing pepper and garlic, hands must be protected with gloves to prevent burns.
Traditional technology involves rubbing the ingredients that make up adzhika with a stone. This process is laborious, but it allows you to get the most fragrant product. After all, when rubbing spices, essential oils stand out, giving adjika a special aroma. In modern conditions, many use for grinding ingredients blender or meat grinder. This option is acceptable, but as a result of this technology, adjika is less fragrant than traditional Abkhaz seasoning. For this reason, it is better to use a mortar and pestle. Moreover, adjika is not customary to do in large quantities.
The more salt you put in adjika, the better it will be stored. However, it is still undesirable to store seasoned with nuts for more than a month, as nuts spoil much faster than pepper or garlic.
To increase shelf life, adjika can be sterilized in cans, and sprinkled with vegetable oil on top, after which each jar should be sealed tightly.

Taking the classic recipe of the Abkhaz adjika as a basis, you can make the seasoning to your liking by adding or removing individual spices.

The classic recipe of the Abkhaz adjika

Composition:

hot peppers - 0, 5 kg;
garlic - 50 g;
coriander seeds - 15 g;
blue fenugreek - to taste;
coarse salt without iodine - 100 g.

Method of preparation:

Wash the peppers, dry them and place them on a baking tray at a short distance from each other. Cover with a cloth or paper (you can use a newspaper), put in a warm, but ventilated and protected from direct sunlight place. Let the peppers dry for three days. After that, wash them again and dry them well.
Peel the garlic cloves. Each clove cut into several pieces.
Cut the peppers along; if desired, remove the seeds from them. Cut into pieces.
Mix all ingredients and rub in small parts in a mortar.
Connect all the parts together.
Sterilize the jars and lay them out ready seasoning.

If you do not plan to keep adjika for a long time and are ready to eat it within a week, the amount of salt can be significantly reduced. Keep in mind that the real Abkhaz adjika is very salty. This should be considered when using it as a seasoning for cooking other dishes.