Market Stall · Hand-Pleated Dumpling

Khinkali

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There's an unspoken rule for eating them: never touch one with a fork, and never eat the twisted knot on top.

Khinkali are twisted, pleated dumplings filled with spiced meat and its own savory juices, boiled and ordered by the count rather than the plate. Street stalls and food trucks in Tbilisi sell them in paper trays, always eaten by hand, holding the thick dough knot on top.

Why it's made this way: The dumpling likely developed as portable food for shepherds and fighters in Georgia's mountain regions, where a sealed dough pocket could carry meat and broth together without spilling on a long walk.