We expected that most of the food would be of the Russian-Latvian-Poland variety, since Latvia only became independent in 1991, but we found a range of fresh and ethnic cuisines that were impressive. And the quality of the food we ate was simply wonderful.
DAY 1 -NOT RIGA MORTIS
When we arrived in Riga, we were staying in an apartment managed by a Russian, so we asked him to recommend a restaurant. He recommended Uncle Vanya, in Old Town, and we had lunch there. Delicious borscht, solyanka (rich meat soup) and dumplings. In addition, the server brought us all horseradish-infused vodka. Katie was very happy!
For dinner, we walked down our little street (where there were several options) and ended in a restaurant that was part of the Dome Hotel. The menu looked adventurous, but the experience was even better.
Hillary had the venison and I had the smoked sturgeon. The sturgeon was brought to the table in the smoker, and it was still translucent and fresh, not hot-smoked to dryness. It was served in a green horseradish sauce, and was exquisite.
So, our first day in Riga was a culinary success. But the second day would turn out to be even better!!
DAY 2 - UZBEKY-BEKY-BEKISTAN
We visited the Riga Food Market, which is housed in several former Zeppelin hangers. Rows and rows of smoked fish, eel, caviar and more! What a wonderful smell in that market.
The Market was also filled with pickled vegetables. Rows of assorted sauerkrauts, pickled cabbages and carrots, and amazing pickles. We sampled, and bought several pickles for Hillary. Days later, we could still smell the half-sours in the refrigerator!
We then took a walk through Riga, along the canal and seeing the sights. But wWhen we decided to stop for lunch, we found an Uzbek restaurant. Uzbekistan is on the eastern side of Afghanistan, on the Silk Road from China. So it has a mix of cultures and food histories. The lunch was delicious, but most special were the Lagman noodles and Plov. Lagman is a hand-pulled noodle, served either in broth or stir-fried. Hillary had the soup version; Sherry had the noodle dish.
(Recipe follows)
I had Plov. Plov is a rice pilaf, cooked to order. With nice large garlic cloves on top. These dishes will definitely be on our list of foods to try at home.
DAY 3 - GEORGIA ON OUR MIND
We found a Georgian restaurant that Katie suggested. Katie has been to Georgia a couple of times (it borders Turkey and Armenia), so we went to explore the different kinds of food and wine
We had Khinkali, a soup dumpling filled with meat. You do not eat the knot on top, but leave it on your plate. That way, you know how many you've eaten (and the totals will add up!) They were delicious!
(Recipe follows)
We also had Khachapuri, a bread boat with an egg in the middle. This is apparently an ancient Jewish traditional bread from that region, which can be served with a variety of fillings, or with a egg in the middle. We had the egg version.
We also tried Lobio, a kidney bean casserole, which was delightfully spicy, all washed down with Georgian wine.
(Lobio Recipe follows)
All in all, for a short trip, the culinary experience was a real and unexpected treat. Latvia's main fish export is smoked sprats (like Brisling sardines), but we did not have any on our trip. We did bring some home, though.
I'd recommend a trip to Riga for the adventurous. Latvia is part of the EU, uses the Euro as currency, but is very reasonably priced for a visit. We rented a large two bedroom apartment in the Old Town for less than $100 USD and it was a great location for exploring the city.
SELECTED RECIPES
LAGMAN STIR FRIED NOODLES
Sauce
2 heaped tablespoons tomato paste
2 tablespoons soy sauce
½ teaspoon dried chili flakes
½ teaspoon sugar
½ cup beef stock or water
1 star anise, broken up
Meat
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
12 ounces (375 grams) thinly sliced lamb
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
1 tablespoon chopped ginger
1 cup sliced onion
½ red pepper, sliced
1 mild green banana pepper, sliced
1 cup thinly sliced carrot
2 cups diced tomato
3 cups sliced Napa cabbage
12 ounces (375 grams) udon or Shanghai
noodles
¼ cup coriander sprigs
Directions
Combine all sauce ingredients in a bowl.
Heat a wok over high heat until very hot.
Add oil and gently swirl to coat.
Season lamb with salt and pepper and add to pan along with garlic and ginger
and stir fry for 1 minute or until beginning to brown.
Add onion, red pepper,
banana pepper and carrots and stir fry until vegetables soften (about 2
minutes). Add tomato and cabbage and stir fry for 2 minutes or until cabbage
has wilted. Stir in sauce, bring to boil and boil for about 2 minutes or until
vegetables are crisp tender.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil
over high heat. Add noodles and cook for 1 minute or until heated through.
Drain and add to wok, stirring to combine with vegetables and sauce. Sprinkle
with coriander sprigs.
KHINKALI
Ingredients
4 cups flour
1 1⁄4 tsp.
kosher salt, plus more to taste
8 oz. ground beef
8 oz. ground pork
2 tbsp. finely chopped cilantro
1 tsp. dried fenugreek leaves
(available at Indian markets)
1⁄2 tsp. crushed red chile flakes
3 small yellow onions, minced
Freshly ground black pepper, to
taste
Instructions
Stir together flour, salt, and 1 1⁄4
cups warm water in a bowl until dough forms; transfer to a work surface and
knead until smooth, about 6 minutes. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate dough
for 40 minutes.
Meanwhile, combine beef pork,
cilantro, fenugreek, chile flakes, and onions in a bowl until evenly mixed;
season generously with salt and pepper, and set filling aside.
Divide dough into 25 equal pieces,
and shape each piece into a ball. Using a rolling pin, roll a ball into a 6″
round. Place about 2 tbsp. filling in center of round, and fold edges of dough
over filling, creating pleats in dough as you go, until filling is covered.
Holding dumpling in the palm of one
hand, grasp top of dumpling where pleats meet and twist to seal pleats and form
a knot at top of dumpling. Repeat with remaining dough rounds and filling.
Bring a large pot of salted water to
a boil. Working in batches, boil dumplings until they float and dough is
tender, about 8 minutes. Drain and serve hot.
Season with black pepper.
Lobio
Nigozit (მჟავე ლობიო)
Prep Time: 15 mins
Cook Time: 1 hr 30 mins
Lobio is Georgia's national dish. Lobio
nigvzit, its most common version, is a thick soup with red beans, onions,
walnuts and fenugreek.
Ingredients
- 1 lb dried red kidney beans
- 2 onions
- ½ bunch cilantro , finely chopped
- 4 cloves garlic
- 1 tablespoon ground blue fenugreek or fenugreek leaves
- 3 bay leaves
- 1 cup walnut halves , finely ground
- 1 tablespoon pomegranate molasses
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- Salt
Garnish (optional)
- A few cilantro leaves
- A few pomegranate seeds
Instructions
- Pour the red kidney beans in a large pot filled with a 6 cups of water.
- Add the bay leaves and salt.
- Cook over medium heat until the beans are tender, at least 1 hour.
- Grind cilantro, blue fenugreek, garlic, black pepper and a pinch of salt in a mortar.
- Chop the onions.
- Fry the onions in a pan with hot oil until translucent.
- Drain the cooked beans into a large bowl. Keep 1 cup of the cooking liquid for later use.
- With the back of a wooden spoon (or blender), mash the beans on the side of the bowl.
- Add the ingredients which were crushed in the mortar, the ground walnuts, pomegranate molasses, fried onions and cooking oil to the beans.
- Mash all the ingredients until everything is completely incorporated.
- Add the cup of cooking liquid to the beans.
- Transfer the ingredients to the pot and cook over medium heat for 4 to 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Serve in clay pots with hot mchadi bread.
- Garnish with fresh cilantro leaves and pomegranate seeds.
