Khash (translated this word means "cook") is a very thick, rich and aromatic soup. This traditional Armenian dish is credited with many healing qualities, but it is popularly known as the first remedy for a severe hangover.
A little about khash
Khash (translated literally means "cook") is one of the oldest Armenian dishes. However, to one degree or another, its presence can be found in any cuisine of the Caucasus, as well as beyond.
For a long time, this thick and rich soup had ritual significance due to the time at which it was served. It is believed that it is best to consume it in the early morning (at 9-10 am or even a couple of hours earlier) and always in the cold season. Currently, many housewives (by the way, most often it is prepared by the owner of the house himself) cook this soup at the request of their guests or family members.
A special dish
Khash is the most unusual dish in Armenian cuisine. They are treated to guests during long wedding festivities (as a rule, on the third day of the holiday), "curing" the body intoxicated by long alcoholic libations. This is due to the huge amount of saturated fat contained in the soup due to the presence of beef legs and tripe in it. However, in other cultures, lamb or pork is put in it (depending on religious beliefs), but the recipe itself remains unchanged.
Ingredients for classic khash:
- 2 front beef legs weighing up to 1.5-2 kg;
- 0.5 kg of rumen;
- 3-4 heads of garlic;
- 1 radish;
- fresh herbs (cilantro, parsley, basil);
- salt, cloves (optionally added to the finished dish);
- a pod of red hot pepper (you can also black - in the form of a pea).
The peculiarity of this soup is the long-term preparation method. Real khash is cooked for a huge amount of time (from 5 to 10 hours) so that the meat used is cleansed of unnecessary natural impurities and a specific smell and boiled to a state of incredible softness, when the meat itself is able to separate from the bone. After the meat is cooked, it is divided into small pieces and served with broth on the table.
What is characteristic, the soup itself is cooked only from meat, and the first, and sometimes even the second, broth is drained, and the components themselves are washed several times under water. The above ingredients, such as herbs and peppers, are added to the finished dish.
But the garlic and radish are crushed and served separately: the first is seasoned with broth, and the grated root vegetable is seasoned with vegetable or olive oil. Lavash is also served with khash, and some even recommend eating soup, directly scooping it up with a piece of this fragrant and thin bread.