Kupaty - general principles and methods of preparation
Kupaty is minced meat with garlic and a lot of spices, seasoned in a shell from the intestines and formed in the form of sausages. They can be fried on the grill or pan, baked in a grill or oven, boiled in water or, cut into pieces, stew in sauce. This is a dish of Georgian cuisine, although other nationalities have similar sausages stuffed with meat or liver. Ready-made kupat can also be bought in the store, but there is nothing more tasty and high-quality than self-made. Tkemali sauce, ketchup, chopped onion rings, pickles, sprinkled with chopped herbs or pomegranate seeds are served to sausages.
Kupaty - product preparation
To make kupat at home, you need to chop the meat, mix it with onions, spices and stuff the shell. The degree of grinding depends on individual preferences - who loves minced meat of a uniform consistency, who in small pieces so that the meat on the teeth can be felt. Therefore, in the first case, the pulp is rotated in a meat grinder or chopped with a blender, in the second case it is cut with a knife.
The next step consists of preparing the shell. Usually it is pork or lamb intestines. If they are already processed, they will only have to be washed and filled with minced meat. If untreated, then the guts will need to be cleaned. For ease of processing, they should be divided into pieces about half a meter and turned out. This is convenient to do under the pressure of tap water. Put the washed guts on the plate, scrape with a knife, holding the edge. Just not sharp so as not to damage the shell. As a result, when an unnecessary layer is removed, a thin film will remain. Here it is stuffed. Do not fill the filling too tightly so that the sausages do not burst when frying. For the same purpose, ready-made raw kupat is dipped for 1-2 minutes in boiling water, blotted with a napkin, and then fried.
Kupaty - the best recipes
Recipe 1: Sweet Kupat
The recipe's special feature is the careful grinding of minced meat. Together with onions and garlic, you need to scroll it two times in a meat grinder, and it is best to grind it with a blender. The structure is homogeneous, when cooking or frying it becomes very tender and juicy. For a change, pomegranate or barberry grains can be mixed into several sausages. Try it, maybe you'll like it even more.
Ingredients: 1.5 kilograms of meat, 100-150g of fat (if the meat is completely lean), 5 cloves of garlic, 3-4 medium onions, pepper + salt, a handful of pomegranate or barberry grains, pork intestines.
Cooking method
Grind meat, onion, lard and garlic. Mix with pepper and salt. Add ½ or 2/3 cup of water for juiciness. Pour the seeds of pomegranate and mix gently so that the seeds are not damaged. Fill the intestines with minced meat, form sausages 15-25 cm. Tie on the sides and connect the two ends together, this form is usually sold in the store sausage rings. Lower for a moment in boiling water. You can immediately cook sausages or put them in the freezer for storage. As necessary, the kupata are thawed and cooked: 15 minutes are fried in a pan, baked in the oven for 30 minutes or boiled in water for 15-20 minutes (you can add parsley and peppers).
Recipe 2: Homemade Kupat
The hardest part of their preparation is to find the guts. But they, if desired, can be bought in the market, if you ask the sellers of meat. Or look for dry intestines or collagen substitutes in the store. Meat can be used absolutely any one type or assortment - lamb, poultry, pork, beef. It is better if it is with fat, it gives the finished sausages juiciness. Spices add to your taste, you can do only salt with pepper. The kupaty turns out so delicious, the main thing is to have time to pull your fingers out of your mouth so as not to bite. This is a garlic-free recipe. Those who can’t imagine a sausage without garlic, of course, can add it.
Ingredients: meat - 1 kg, 3 large onion heads, vinegar (9%) - 2 tablespoons, spices + salt and pepper, peeled small pig's intestines - 1.5-2.0 meters.
Cooking method
Grind the meat, but not in a meat grinder, but cut into cubes about 1 cm, mix with finely chopped onions. Salt, pour vinegar, add spices, knead and leave for a couple of hours to marinate the meat. Stuff the intestines with minced meat. Sausages can be made of any length, optimal for 15-20cm. The ends of kupat are tied up with a thread and tied together. Ready-made sausages in shape resemble an oval or horseshoe. Some kupat can be frozen for the future, and the other can be fried on both sides in a frying pan or in a preheated oven (180-200С) for about 40 minutes.
Recipe 3: Kupat in Tomato Sauce with Garlic
The fact that kupaty are delicious in themselves, no one argues. But, firstly, sometimes you want to diversify the taste, and secondly, kupat are slightly oily, so it will not be superfluous to cook them with products that neutralize excess fats. For example, stew in spicy garlic-tomato sauce. Any garnish is suitable for this dish - rice, potatoes, pasta, buckwheat.
Ingredients: kupat - 0.4 kg, 2 onions, 3 tomatoes, herbs, 1 chili pepper (burning), a slice of ginger root - 5 cm, salt, 5 cloves of garlic, spices (Provence herbs).
Cooking method
4-5 pieces of kupat cut across into thick circles (1-1.5cm). Prepare vegetables: finely chop onion and garlic, grate ginger and tomatoes. Do not mix until everything is in separate heaps.
Fry the kupat with a little vegetable oil. It’s not worth pouring a lot, sausages are quite oily, so they will be well fried in their fat. Place the browned sausages on a plate temporarily. In the same oil, spasser the onion, pour in the tomato mass, give a little boil and add the garlic, ginger and hot pepper pod. If not, you can take ground chili pepper, about 1/4 tsp. Be sure to salt and sprinkle with spices, preferably Provencal herbs.
Now is the time to return the kupatas back, i.e. in a skillet and let it simmer-bubbly in fragrant tomato sauce for about ten minutes. Add finely chopped greens at the end. Everything. Eat and enjoy.
Kupaty - useful tips from experienced chefs
- If you want to make bathrobes at home, but there is no special nozzle to fill the intestines, you can build a homemade device. At a plastic bottle (0.5-1.0l) cut off the bottom and fill it with minced meat. Put the gut on the neck and squeeze the forcemeat with a bottle or other device of a smaller diameter.
- To make kupaty juicier, baking them in the oven, wrap each sausage in foil.
- To prevent the sausage casing from breaking during frying, it is necessary to pierce them from both ends with a toothpick so that steam escapes.
