Kuchmachi (კუჭმაჭი)

Kuchmachi is a celebrated starter from the Kakhetian wine country of eastern Georgia, made from quickly sautéed chicken hearts, livers and gizzards finished with a generous hand of walnuts, pomegranate seeds and the earthy spice blend khmeli-suneli. It is a fixture of the supra feast table — piled high on a flat plate and eaten warm with fresh bread and a glass of amber wine.

Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 250g (9 oz) chicken hearts, halved and trimmed
• 250g (9 oz) chicken livers, lobes separated, bile ducts removed
• 200g (7 oz) chicken gizzards, cleaned and halved
• 3 tbsp (45ml) sunflower or walnut oil
• 1 large onion, finely diced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1½ tsp (4g) khmeli-suneli spice blend
• 1 tsp (3g) ground coriander
• ½ tsp (1.5g) hot red pepper flakes (or cayenne)
• 80g (3 oz / ¾ cup) walnut halves, lightly toasted and roughly crushed
• Seeds of ½ pomegranate (about 80g / 3 oz)
• Small handful flat-leaf parsley, chopped
• Small handful fresh coriander (cilantro), chopped
• Salt to taste

Instructions

1. Pat all the offal pieces dry. Season lightly with salt.
2. Heat the oil in a large heavy frying pan over high heat until shimmering. Add the gizzards and cook, stirring, for 6–7 minutes until they begin to colour and are almost cooked through.
3. Add the hearts and cook for a further 3 minutes. Push everything to the edge and add the livers to the centre. Cook the livers 2–3 minutes per side — they should remain slightly pink inside.
4. Reduce heat to medium. Add the onion and garlic, stir through the offal and cook for 3–4 minutes until the onion softens.
5. Add khmeli-suneli, ground coriander and pepper flakes. Toss to coat everything in the spices and cook 1 minute until fragrant.
6. Remove from heat. Fold in the crushed walnuts, half the pomegranate seeds, parsley and coriander.
7. Transfer to a serving plate, top with the remaining pomegranate seeds and serve immediately.

Cook's Notes: The key to kuchmachi is high heat and not overcrowding the pan — offal must sear, not steam. Khmeli-suneli is available at Eastern European grocery stores or can be mixed at home from fenugreek, coriander, marigold petals, dill, bay and black pepper.