A simple corn cake, which is widespread in Georgia, is called mchadi or in another way - chadi. From time immemorial these flatbreads have been used as bread. Each region had its own composition and shape, but the outlines were always round (oval or round).
The cooking principle itself was similar. Mchadi was prepared from unleavened dough. Its consistency was dense, and the flatbread itself breaks easily. Corn in Georgia has several varieties; preference for baking mchadi is given to white corn flour. It is considered higher quality than yellow.
The flatbread was baked in a ketsi frying pan. This is a traditional national frying pan, which was made of red clay or carved from black stone. Nothing sticks to it, so you can cook in such a frying pan even without oil or with a minimum amount of it.
But ketsi quickly absorbs all odors, so the bread had its own frying pan. Nowadays mchadi is baked not only in classic ketsi, but also in ordinary cast iron or aluminum frying pans or molds. There are several varieties of mchadi that are prepared in different areas. Some are fried in a frying pan, others are baked in the oven or oven.
How to cook mchadi - Georgian flatbreads
Ingredients (for 6 servings)
- 400 g finely ground white corn flour,
- 1/4 teaspoon salt,
- 1 cup cold water (you may need a little more, depending on the flour).
Preparation
Place corn flour in a bowl and add water. Mix thoroughly and use your hands to form cakes similar to cutlets.
Fry corn tortillas or mchadi in a frying pan, preheated, with the addition of vegetable oil. Having laid out the mchadi, smooth the surface of each flatbread with a wet spoon.
Fry over medium heat for 5 minutes, first with the lid on, then turn the tortillas over and fry without the lid (5-6 minutes).
The mchadi should turn out golden in color, as in the photo below.
Serve hot. Serve with cheese (Imereti, suluguni, mozzarella, feta cheese, etc.). Bon appetit!
If you are tired of regular bread, try replacing it with mchadi. Making these flatbreads is simple and quick.
How to cook?
How to prepare delicious mchadi, observing Georgian traditions? Below are two simple recipes.
Recipe No. 1
These are simple mchadi made from corn flour. To prepare you need:
- three glasses of corn flour;
- about one and a half or two glasses of water (as the dough will take);
- salt to taste (the optimal amount is a teaspoon);
- vegetable oil.
Preparation:
- Pour the flour into any wide and deep enough container, immediately add salt.
- Heat the water well or bring it to a boil, gradually add it to the flour, while stirring the mass.
- When the water has cooled a little due to the flour, start kneading the dough with your hands. It should be quite dense, but remain elastic. It may also stick to your hands; this is normal and almost inevitable.
- Heat the oil in a frying pan. Wet your hands in cool water to prevent the dough from sticking and begin to separate it, forming small cakes. Fry them on both sides until golden, covering the container with a lid so that the dough is well baked and soft.
- Crispy mchadi are ready!
Recipe No. 2
You can make even more delicious mchadi with cheese. For this you will need:
- a full glass of cornmeal;
- half a teaspoon of salt;
- half a teaspoon of granulated sugar, optional;
- three tbsp. l. butter;
- half a glass of milk;
- chicken egg yolk;
- 400 g suluguni cheese;
- vegetable oil.
Instructions:
- Sift the flour, pour it into a mound and form a well in the center.
- Soften the butter, heat the milk. Place these ingredients in the middle of the mound along with sugar, yolk and salt.
- Knead a stiff dough and form it into a ball. Next, roll out the sausage, divide it into eight or ten equal pieces, and form each into a flat cake.
- Cut the cheese into pieces approximately the size of flatbreads.
- Take a portion of cheese, place it in the center of the flatbread and seal it on all sides so that the melting cheese does not leak out during cooking.
- Make the rest of the mchadi with suluguni in the same way.
- Pour oil into the frying pan and heat it well. Fry the flatbreads until golden on both sides over low heat, about five minutes.
- Ready!
Tip: If the dough sticks to your palms, wet them with cold water.
Corn tortillas can be served instead of bread, or you can add vegetables, meat, sauce to them - you will get a tasty and satisfying lunch. Cheese, herbs, and jam will give the dish a special taste and aroma.
Mexican tortillas are thinly rolled tortillas made from corn flour. You can put filling in them or eat them just like that. To make them more convenient to prepare, we’ll use both corn and wheat flour: the base will become more viscous and easier to roll out.
Ingredients:
- half a glass of corn flour;
- half a glass of wheat flour;
- a glass of hot water or boiling water;
- salt to taste;
- refined oil for frying.
Cooking method:
- Sift both types of flour and combine in a small saucepan, add salt.
- Carefully pour hot water into the flour mixture and stir.
- Knead the dough. If it turns out too hard or sticky, add a little water or flour accordingly.
- Let the dough rest for 30 minutes, covered with film or a towel.
- Cut the dough into small pieces and roll out. The thinner the cakes are, the better.
- Heat the frying pan over medium heat. You can fry with or without oil.
- Fry the tortillas on each side for half a minute. It is important not to dry out the tortillas.
Then we transfer the products from the frying pan to a dish and cover with film or cloth so that they do not dry out.
Preparation
Sift the corn flour into a deep bowl - it should be finely ground (the finer the better, and check the expiration dates, if they are expired, the flour may be bitter). Add a generous pinch of salt and refined vegetable oil to the sifted flour.
Gradually pour in sparkling mineral water at room temperature, stir with a spoon and then with your hands to feel the consistency of the dough. A different amount of water may be needed depending on the quality and moisture content of the flour.
As a result, the consistency should be such that it is easy to form cakes from the dough with your hands. If there is too little water, the dough will crack when modeling. Too much and the cakes will become mushy.
Form the mchadi with your hands dipped in water. The shape of the flatbreads can be any, but in the classic version, they are usually round, like flattened cutlets. The thickness should not be large, otherwise the mchadi will not bake well, optimally 1 cm.
Fry the mchadi on both sides in a cast iron frying pan in well-heated vegetable oil. The heat should be moderate so that the products not only acquire a golden brown crust, but also have time to properly bake over the entire area. You need to cook covered, about 5-7 minutes on each side.
When frying, the tortillas will become crispy and puffy - this is the effect of sparkling water, which loosens the dough.
Serve mchadi with slices of suluguni or Imeretian cheese, or you can add tkemali sauce.
Corn flour tortillas must be hot, so carefully calculate the number of servings you need so that the mchadi does not cool down. Bon appetit everyone!
Source
A simple recipe in a frying pan
Cooking flatbreads in a frying pan is the easiest way possible. It is very convenient because it requires a minimum of ingredients. For those who follow a healthy diet, this is a great option.
We will need:
- 1 cup corn flour;
- 0.5 l of hot water;
- salt to taste.
Preparation:
- Sift the flour through a sieve into a small container.
- Pour in hot water, stirring thoroughly, knead the dough well. It should be quite elastic, but not cool.
- Divide the dough into balls and roll out thin cakes with a rolling pin.
- Heat the frying pan over high heat, then reduce it.
After this, fry the tortillas without adding oil, for a few minutes on both sides.
Ingredients
- 3 cups cornmeal (not cornmeal).
- 1 cup wheat.
- 150 grams of homemade sour cream.
- 2 pieces of garlic.
- 100 grams of feta cheese or suluguni cheese.
- Salt and ground red pepper to taste.
- 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil.
- A little lard.
- A glass of hot and cold drinking water.
Cooking in the oven
An interesting way to prepare corn tortillas is to bake them in the oven. As a result, they acquire a special taste. In addition, this method requires very little time.
Required Products:
- 200 g corn flour;
- 200 ml kefir;
- 2 eggs;
- 2 tsp. baking powder;
- salt to taste;
- spices;
- olive oil.
Preparation:
- Sift the flour through a sieve.
- In a separate bowl, mix flour, baking powder, salt and spices. You can use seasonings such as suneli hops, basil, oregano or marjoram.
- Separately, beat the eggs with kefir.
- Combine dry ingredients with mixture. Mix thoroughly.
- Knead the soft dough, divide into balls, form small cakes.
- Preheat the oven to 180 degrees. Place baking paper on a baking sheet and place the pieces.
- Drizzle olive oil over the flatbreads in a thin stream. If you like a spicier taste, sprinkle some spices on top.
- Bake in the oven at 180 degrees for 10-15 minutes.
When the flatbreads are browned, you can take them out and serve.
Corn tortillas mchadi in Georgian style
Mchadi are aromatic Lenten flatbreads made from corn flour. They are great for breakfast or as an addition to main dishes. The classic recipe does not add salt, but if you want to add it, the mchadi will only become tastier.
Ingredients for three servings:
- 200 g corn flour;
- 100 ml cold water;
- salt as desired;
- 4 tbsp. l. vegetable oil.
Preparation:
- Sift the flour through a large sieve.
- If you use salt, dissolve it in water.
- Carefully and slowly add water to the flour, stirring continuously.
- Knead soft dough.
- Place the frying pan on the fire until it gets hot and add oil. Reduce the flame.
- We make small cakes and place them in a frying pan.
- Fry the flatbreads in hot oil for 3 minutes on each side until golden brown.
After cooking, it is better to blot the mchadi with a napkin to remove excess oil. Must be served hot.
Mchadi with matsoni
Matsoni is a Georgian fermented milk drink. It is consumed fresh, as well as in baked goods in order to give it fluffiness and airiness. When they want to improve the taste and consistency of mchadi, they are cooked with matsoni. If you cannot get such a product, you can replace it with kefir or low-fat sour cream.
- corn flour - 250 g;
- matsoni - 120 g;
- vegetable oil for frying.
Preparation
- Mix matsoni with corn flour. If the dough turns out liquid, add flour, if thick - add water.
- The dough is formed into oval cakes. Products made from corn flour may crack. To prevent this from happening, the mchadi are carefully squeezed from all sides.
- Mchadi is fried in a large amount of vegetable oil. Excess oil is removed with napkins.
- This type of mchadi is eaten with any first or second course. For example, with lobio or cheese.
How to cook with cheese
Corn tortillas with added cheese are a great alternative to the classic recipe. Ideally served hot.
Ingredients:
- 200 g corn flour;
- 150 ml of clean water;
- 1 egg;
- 200 g hard cheese;
- 2 cloves of garlic;
- 1 tsp. baking powder
- salt if necessary;
- 50 g butter.
Preparation:
- Prepare the ingredients: grate the cheese using a fine grater with small mesh, melt the butter, sift the flour, chop the garlic.
- Beat the egg and mix with water.
- Add the egg mixture to the refined flour, add cheese, butter, garlic, and baking powder.
- Mix the dough. It should turn out very soft.
- We make small cakes from the dough by rolling them out with a rolling pin.
- Heat the frying pan and grease it with oil if necessary.
Bake the cakes over medium heat for 3 minutes on each side.
Kefir cakes made from corn flour
Corn tortillas prepared with kefir acquire a very delicate, slightly sour taste and are very filling.
Compound:
- 300 g corn flour;
- 50 g semolina;
- 200 ml kefir;
- 100 ml water;
- salt to taste;
- 3 tbsp. l. vegetable oil.
Cooking:
- Sift flour and semolina.
- Add boiled or filtered water, salt, semolina, and corn flour to warm kefir. Mix well, avoiding the appearance of lumps. The dough should rest for 20 minutes for the semolina to swell.
- Heat the frying pan and add sunflower oil.
- Cut the dough into pieces and roll out. It is convenient to make small circles about 1.5 cm thick.
Then reduce the heat to medium and fry the dough on both sides for about 4 minutes.
- To bake flatbreads in a frying pan, use the finest flour.
- The dough will roll out better and be more viscous if you add wheat flour.
- To form cakes, it is convenient to use a press. At home, it can be replaced by a regular plate with a flat bottom.
- When preparing corn tortillas with cheese, you can use mineral water instead of regular water. This will make the baked goods soft and fluffy.
- For a richer taste, regular oil can be replaced with olive oil.
- When baking in the oven, use parchment paper.
- If you want soft cakes, add butter to the dough.
- To cook flatbreads faster, use a pancake pan.
- If the dough sticks to your palms when kneading, moisten them with cold water.
- For best results, use only sifted flour.
- It is better to store the finished dough in the freezer.
- To prevent the cakes from drying out during storage, cover them with cling film.
There are many recipes for making corn tortillas, and even a gourmet can choose the right one for himself. Experiment: add olive oil instead of sunflower oil, replace feta cheese with hard cheese, sesame seeds with spices. So you are sure to find the ideal option for yourself.
Mchadi made from corn flour is an unusual flatbread valued by Georgians. In addition, they are found in Mexico. They have many variations, but the dish from Georgia is quite common in our country. His recipe is simple, and the list of ingredients is accessible to everyone.
We present it to the table correctly
Now you know how you can simply and easily prepare delicious, aromatic and satisfying baked goods using corn flour, which is unusual for many. After all the described steps, the flatbreads with melted cheese should be served immediately to family members. Along with aromatic flatbreads, you can present any first or second course to the table, although some gourmets prefer to eat them only with sweet, freshly brewed black tea.
In many cuisines, as in Georgian, it is customary to bake flatbreads from corn flour and serve them at the table, complementing other dishes or just for a snack. The products, despite the simplicity of execution, turn out incredibly tasty and healthy. The key to success in making corn tortillas lies in the quality of the corn flour. It must certainly be finely ground, of the highest grade, and ideally made from white corn.
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Basic information
Most often used in Georgian cuisine. It has an analogue in Mexico - there these flatbreads are called tortillas. They are used not as an independent dish, but as an additive to other delicacies. Also, similar flatbreads are found in the cuisine of India, Dagestan and Bulgaria under their own names. Quite tender. Suitable for people with weak stomachs. You can eat during Lent. The recipe is simple and accessible; even a novice housewife can prepare them. It doesn’t take too much time - about half an hour.
The calorie content of the dish is average. Prepared in a frying pan or in the oven.
Useful tips
There is a dietary recipe for flatbreads made from flour and kefir with low calorie content. You can cook in the oven or slow cooker. To add an unusual taste, mchadi is cut while it is still hot and a small piece of suluguni is placed inside.
For cooking, it is better to use premium flour. Traditionally, in Georgia they take raw materials made in a water mill. Coarse grinding is strictly prohibited in this case. You can add sparkling water to the dough to make it soft and fluffy. For a crispy and tasty crust, add a spoonful of semolina.
An interesting option for flour tortillas is to make a large dish. One mchadi in this case will be equal to the size of the frying pan. Then it is used instead of bread or as a hearty snack.
Georgian corn flatbreads mchadi go well with spicy dishes like lobio or kharcho. They go well with barbecue. Better to eat hot. If necessary, reheat before use.
A good serving option is to dip it in an omelette and fry it in a frying pan in vegetable oil.
These flatbreads will please all family members, and they won’t take too much time to prepare.