“I express emotion through color,” said chef Davit Narimanishvili as my fork hovered over a trio of perfectly spherical amber, green, and purple appetizers that were almost too exquisite to eat.
This is Georgian-born Narimanishvili’s revamped version of his native country’s popular vegetarian dish: pkhali (the “kh” is pronounced as a low, guttural “h”). Held together with a spiced walnut paste known as bazhe, the shaped balls are typically made with vegetables like eggplant and Swiss chard. But in the spirit of Georgian ingenuity, everything from unused celery leaves to wilted parsley finds its way into pkhali, making it the perfect leftover dish.
A culinary chameleon, pkhali can be spread on toast as a vegan pie, served as a flavorful mezze-style dip, or—along with other cold appetizers—scooped into a special sharing bowl known as a gobi. Most importantly, pkhali is a mainstay at Supra: a structured dinner party that celebrates Georgians’ boundless hospitality and melting pot cuisine. The South Caucasian nation has weathered its share of invasions, so it’s no surprise that Mongolian, Mediterranean and Persian flavors permeate its dishes.
“There is no Supra without Pkhali,” Narimanishvili told me from the kitchen of his chic riverside restaurant. Opened last August, Kevri (s8, Khashuri-Akhaltsikhe-Vale St) is a two-hour drive west of the capital, Tbilisi, in the village of Tashiskari, better known as the scene of a 24-hour skirmish between the Georgians and the Turks in 1609.
Narimanishvili revealed how he brings out the earthy flavors of pkhali by smoking pumpkin on an outdoor fire and baking beets in salt. Equal parts creamy, spicy and aromatic, the delicately textured balls are a taste explosion.
