Customer Reviews

The Georgian Feast: The Vibrant Culture and Savory Food of the Republic of Georgia

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Thanks to some bright soul at UC Press, who probably had a Christmas list when the original went out of print, this best of all cookbooks for the area is again available. If you read through the reviews you'll see some confusion -- one reader wants mushroom Khimkali, another says she's wrong that there's no recipe-- Khimkali are dumplings and the recipe in the book is for (delicious!) meat, not mushroom, dumplings. It's also uncertain if Basturma, the marinated grilled meat recipes given, is the same as the un-marinated Mtsvadi two Georgian readers yearn for. If your mouth isn't watering yet, consider Fish with Pomegranate and Walnut sauce, succulent chicken sauteed in butter under a weight (one of the most useful techniques ever for game birds or less than tender backyard chickens), green beans cooked over a lamb stew and pureed into it (a pearl beyond price for the gardener confronted with tough beans or the cook who finds only tasteless frozen beans at hand), stellar sweets --easy and exotic with many featuring fruits, --I've found something delicious and something easy in every chapter. For real enthusiasts and the congenitally curious there's much material about the way of life then and now in Georgia. Some unusual herbs are described accurately enough so that you can research them; common herbs are used by cupfuls and handfuls as in --Ms. Goldstein says-- the true Georgian cuisine, and, also as she says, have a completely different effect --another inspiration for exploration among the many you'll find in this book.

This would make a great gift book, for those who already own it, or what the heck, get copies for yourself and your Christmas list!

This book is precious just by the fact that it exists! The recipes work amazingly well, directions are clear and easy. The sections on culture and customs are extremely helpful in understanding the roots and reasons behind the preparations and techniques. Highly recommended to anyone who knows and loves Georgian food or those trying to expand their culinary horizons.

Having tasted authentic Georgian food, I feel confident saying that the recipes in this book make excellent reproductions of the real thing! Goldstein also gives a fascinating insight into the peculiar love of food and wine by the Georgians. Love the book, love the recipes! If you want some rich food that is different, try this!

As someone who was born and grew up in Tbilisi, I was very happy to find this book -- it captures all of my favorite recipes, and when I prepare them according to this book, they taste just like my grandma's cooking.

More than just a recipe book, this is also an exploration into the rich history and culture of Georgia, and how the history shaped the cuisine. I suggest this book to everyone who would like to add some interesting preparations to their cooking. For vegetarians, Georgians have plenty of healthful and filling ways to prepare veggies and beans, and also some mouth watering sauces that will enliven any dish (veg or not).

I enjoy this book both as a cook book, and as a historical book!

This is a fascinating look at an unusual cuisine. The author is a good writer as well as a cook, and she relates her experiences in Georgia so well I could picture myself there. I re-read this one now and then because it is so fascinating.

I am living in Tbilisi, Georgia and have a part-time cook. I've sat in the kitchen as she prepares dishes for me and basically followed along in the Georgian Feast. With very few exceptions (mainly the spices and herbs we cannot get in the US) her unwritten recipes follow quite closely the ones in the cookbook. The flavors and look of the food I've prepared myself using this cookbook are accurate in comparison to the food I've gotten here! This is a wonderful addition to any international cookbook collection!

My Grandmother was Georgian. I remember many of the dishes that she used to make were great, spicy, and each with a fresh unique flavor. This book has enabled me to recreate some of these dishes.

The problem with reader reviews is that not all readers are reliable. Tatia Vashakidze, the self-described Georgian teenager studying in the U.S., gives this prize-winning book only three stars because she says it lacks her favorite recipes, all of which are in fact included: Khinkali on p. 144 and two recipes for grilled kebabs (identified by their alternate name of basturma instead of mtvadi or kababi) on pp. 84-85.

This is a marvelous, utterly authentic encyclopedia of Georgian cooking. I tried some of the recipes before leaving for Georgia in summer 2006, and they were great, and gave me a good idea of what to expect. Once in Georgia, the book was an invaluable reference that I constantly turned to whenever I tried something new. Just about *everything* I had is in here, along with many things I didn't get around to sampling.

This book also helped me learn the correct Georgian names for the dishes and many of the ingredients. A significant portion of the book is devoted to providing cultural background on Georgia and Georgian food, such the elaborate rules for a _tamada_, or Georgian toastmaster. With its charming photos of representative paintings scattered generously throughout its pages, it also made me a Pirosmani fan, and better able to appreciate the originals when I saw them for myself.

Most importantly, as the other reviewers say, the recipes *work*. We just made the potato salad with walnut paste (p. 172), and it was delectable. Other dishes we have tried and like include tomato soup with walnuts and vermicelli (p. 73) and green beans with egg (p. 130). Pkhali was one of my favorite dishes in Georgia, and I'm glad to have the recipe for when I get around to making it myself. There is a recipe for beets with cherry sauce, a dish a travel companion had tried but that even some of our Georgian hosts weren't familiar with. For the few recipes that seem to be missing from this book, like eggplant with walnut paste, try Please to the Table: The Russian Cookbook, another excellent collection of delicious recipes from all the former Soviet republics.

_The Georgian Feast_ is well worth having even if you don't eat meat - many of the recipes are completely vegetarian. This book is a real treasure.

I've already written a review of this great book. I have only one suggestion: the basic khmeli suneli recipe can be augmented further to reach the authentic smell and taste. The wikipedia article on khmeli suneli has additional ingredients that can be added to the recipe. I tried that, about 2 teaspoons of each ingredient that's not already in Darra's recipe (less for black and chili pepper), and it came closer to the authentic smell and taste. I think the author of the wikipedia article might have meant safflower (marigold) instead of saffron though, so I didn't add that.