Ingredients

Check off ingredients as you go

For 20 large khinkalis

For the dumpling dough

• 500g sifted flour (4 cups)
• 2 eggs (optional)
• one glass of warm water (150g / ⅔ cup)
• 1 tsp salt

For the filling

• 350g ground beef (12 oz, or half beef half lamb)
• 2 onions, chopped
• a handful of fresh cilantro, chopped
• a handful of parsley, chopped
• Salt, pepper
• 1 level tsp paprika
• 1 tsp ground cumin or coriander (optional)
• 1 tsp chili pepper (optional)
• 1 small glass of water

If you change the number of serving, consider adjusting cooking times!

A little trip to Georgia today with Khinkali (in Georgian: ხინკალი). These are dumplings with a juicy meat filling that are eaten with your hands.

Preparing the dough

1. In a large bowl or in the bowl of a stand mixer, put the flour, eggs, and salt, then gradually add the water while kneading until you get a relatively thick but smooth dough that pulls away from the sides. Form a ball, cover and let rest for about thirty minutes.

Preparing the filling

2. In a bowl, mix the meat, chopped onions (I like to do this in a mini chopper with the herbs), chopped cilantro and parsley, paprika, ground coriander, salt, and pepper. Add the water. The consistency should be soft.

Shaping the Khinkali dumplings

3. Lightly flour your work surface and roll out the dough very thinly with a pasta roller or rolling pin, then cut out circles about 10cm (4 inches) in diameter (as a guide, each piece should weigh about 60g). You can use a glass to make circles then roll them out again with the rolling pin.

Place 1 tablespoon of filling in the center of each circle, fold upward forming a pouch while pleating and sealing well so they don’t open during cooking. This is the trickiest part.

Cooking the Khinkali dumplings

In a large pot of boiling water, carefully place the dumplings so they don’t stick together. Try to keep the side with the tip well immersed in the water so it cooks properly. Stir gently with a wooden spoon if needed. They’re cooked after about 7 minutes. Remove carefully with a slotted spoon to avoid tearing them.

Place on a serving platter and pepper them. They’re eaten hot, traditionally with your hands, holding them by the tip. If your khinkalis are well made, meat juice will escape when you open them. Some people don’t eat the tip because it’s thicker.

Tips and variations

• The dough can be made a few hours ahead and kept in the refrigerator. Just take it out a little before using and knead it briefly.

• The dumpling dough can be made without eggs.

• When rolling out the dough, you can form circles using a glass then roll them out lightly again, leaving the center slightly thicker than the edges.

• For a vegetarian version, replace the ground meat with mushrooms that have been sautéed in a pan.

• You can freeze them before cooking. Just cook them in boiling water straight from the freezer.

• If you have leftover filling, form meatballs and cook them in a pan with a little neutral oil.