Homemade Georgian-Style Khinkali
Very tasty and very juicy, made from simple ingredients - a great main course! Homemade Georgian-style khinkali turn out fragrant and nicely spiced, with plenty of meat and broth inside. They aren’t hard to make, and shaping the little “pouches” is fun and interesting!
Updated : 16 December, 2025
Easy
More than 1 hour.
Ingredients
Dough
500 grams
Wheat flour
250 milliliters
Water
1 teaspoon
Salt
Filling
500 grams
Beef
2
Onions
500 milliliters
Water
1
Cilantro
to taste
Parsley
to taste
Dry spices
to taste
Red pepper, ground
to taste
Ground black pepper
to taste
Salt
Table
Table of volume measurements:
- teaspoon - 5 ml
- dessert spoon - 10 ml
- tablespoon - 20 ml
- glass - 200 ml
Preparation
Step 1
How to make homemade Georgian-style khinkali? Prepare the ingredients. I used ready-made ground beef. I didn’t use parsley. Be sure to chill the water before you start cooking. The amount of flour may vary - judge by the dough.
Step 2
Sift the flour onto your work surface. This aerates it and makes the dough more tender. Make a crater-like well in the center and add the salt. Start pouring the water little by little into the center, pulling flour from the edges toward the middle.
Step 3
Work only with a fork: pour in some water, mix - repeat until all the water is used.
Step 4
All the flour should become moist and come together into a lump. I had to add a bit more water because the dough was still dry. Keep in mind you may need more or less flour than I did - go by the dough’s consistency.
Step 5
Then start kneading the dough by hand. From time to time, cut the dough in half and turn it inside out, because it’s wetter inside than outside. Add a little flour occasionally so it doesn’t stick.
Step 6
Knead the dough for a long time and thoroughly - it should become firm but still elastic.
Step 7
Wrap the finished dough in a bag and let it “rest” for 2 hours. During this time the gluten develops and the dough becomes very elastic.
Step 8
While the dough is resting, prepare the filling. If you have meat, grind it through a meat grinder together with the onion. Since I had ground meat, I simply grated the onion.
Step 9
Wash the herbs well and pat dry. Finely chop them.
Step 10
Add the onion, herbs, spices and salt to the ground meat. Mix well.
Step 11
Start adding water to the filling in portions, mixing well after each addition. The filling should become runny. I added less water - about 1 cup. You can check readiness like this: stick a spoon into the filling - it should start to tilt. Refrigerate the filling for 1 hour.
Step 12
Roll the rested dough into a log and cut it into equal pieces. Roll each piece into a circle about 2 mm thick and about the size of your palm. Make the edges thinner than the center.
Step 13
Roll out all the pieces this way. Stack them, dusting with flour between layers. I got 16 pieces, but you could make all 20, since my khinkali turned out large.
Step 14
Time to shape the khinkali. For convenience, take a small bowl. Drape one dough circle over it. Put 1 tablespoon of filling in the center. Gather the edges into pleats toward the center.
Step 15
Wrap the last pleat around the others, connecting it with the first pleat.
Step 16
Twist the “tail” slightly counterclockwise.
Step 17
Cut off the very top of the tail with a knife.
Step 18
Shape all the khinkali this way.
Step 19
To boil the khinkali, bring a pot of water to a boil and salt it. Drop the khinkali in. Don’t cook too many at once so they don’t stick together. Stir the pot from time to time so they don’t stick to the bottom. Boil for about 14 minutes, then remove with a slotted spoon onto a plate.
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