Fried eggplant strips with walnut paste are a favorite appetizer in Georgia. In their restaurant Schwiliko, Rusudan Gorgiladze and her daughter Inga explain the subtleties of Georgian cuisine.
Image: Lena Ganssmann
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Video: Cooking step-by-step, Badrijani, Georgia
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Mother, daughter, and son-in-law - a winning combination? In this case, yes!
Rusudan Gorgiladze, Inga Akhvlediani, and Tosh Dirschka are the three minds behind Schwiliko restaurant, which that opened in 2015. The friendly and inviting demeanors of Rusudan Gorgiladze and her daughter Inga make them excellent hosts. The restaurant's vibe and ambience and the food all speak for themselves. Rusudan Gorgiladze and her husband, a German studies specialist, moved from Georgia to Berlin in 2004. That was following Georgia's "Rose Revolution." But she was lonely here, so she asked her daughter Inga, who was living in Istanbul at the time, to join her. Inga came - and she promptly decided to stay.
Rusudan Gorgiladze and Inga Akhvlediani Image: Lena Ganssmann
Schwiliko in Berlin-Kreuzberg
In 2008, Inga Akhvlediani and her husband Tosh opened the Homes Bar in Kreuzberg, where they also offered an array of Georgian snack foods. These were so popular that the idea of opening a restaurant was hatched. In 2015, the time was right. Since then mother, daughter and son-in-law run Schwiliko.
50 Kitchens, One City: Georgia
04:58
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Badrijani (Eggplant with walnuts)
Serves 4
Ingredients:
500 g eggplants
100 g ground walnuts
1 small white onion
2 small garlic cloves
Handful coriander and parsley leaves
1/2 t ground coriander seed
1/2 t ground fenugreek seed
1/2 t ground marigold (tagetes)
1 pinch of cinnamon
Salt and chili
Sunflower seed oil
Pomegranate seeds as garnish
Preparation:
Cut eggplants in slices 4-5 cm in length and 0.5 cm thick. Salt eggplant slices and allow to sit for two to three hours. Squeeze to remove water and fry both sides in sunflower seed oil. Place fried eggplant slices on a piece of paper towel.
Finely chop onions and sauté in oil, then place in a bowl together with all spices, pressed garlic cloves, ground walnut, salt, and chili. Pour in half a glass of water and use a hand mixer to process ingredients into a smooth paste.
Spread spice paste onto both sides of the strips of eggplant and roll strips into small individual rolls. Garnish with pomegranate seeds.
Schwiliko prepares Badrijani
Fried eggplant strips with walnut paste are a favorite appetizer in Georgia. In their restaurant Schwiliko, Rusudan Gorgiladze and her daughter Inga explain the subtleties of Georgian cuisine.
Image: Lena Ganssmann
Two women, a life full of movement
Back in Georgia, Rusudan Gorgiladze, a professional psychologist, was Chief Advisor to President Eduard Shevardnadze and Deputy Minister of Education. After the Rose Revolution, she moved to Berlin in 2004 with her husband, a student of German culture. Her daughter, Inga Akhvlediani, who had been born in Tibilisi, but studied in the USA and in Istanbul, followed her parents to Berlin.
Image: Lena Ganssmann
Authentic ambiance
In 2015, Rusudan Gorgiladze and her daughter, Inga Akhvlediani, opened Schwiliko. It is one of three Georgian restaurants in Berlin, but the only in the Kreuzberg district. And the only one with original décor from a 19th-century Georgian living room. Even the table cloths are sewn out of Georgian table cloths by Inga Akhvlediani herself.
Image: Lena Ganssmann
A cultural identity through meals
"What we're doing right now is very important. People in Germany do not know Georgia. And the food, the national cuisine, is one of the best ways to express a cultural identity." - Rusudan Gorgiladze "The eating ceremony is very special in Georgia.... We make a real feast and sit at the table for three, four hours and drink, make toasts, eat,... it is not just about eating.” - Inga Akhvlediani
Image: Lena Ganssmann
Specialty: made by hand
At first, the meals at Schwiliko were cooked by Georgian cooks. But they didn't do so to the liking of the mother-and-daughter team. So they got behind the stove themselves. A bit later, they took on new chefs and showed them how old family recipes were prepared. At home in Georgia, Rusudan Gorgiladze never cooked her own meals. Yet in Berlin, she's even written a book about Georgian cuisine.
Image: Lena Ganssmann
Elaborate and full of flavor
Georgian cuisine is very diverse. That's got a bit to do with the country's mild climate, which allows for the cultivation of a variety of vegetables and herbs. Herbs, by the way, are honored as a food on their own in Georgian cooking. But the queen of the cuisine has to be walnuts. For Badrijani, walnuts are ground to a paste to accompany fried eggplant strips.
Image: Lena Ganssmann
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Restaurant Schwiliko
Schlesische Str. 29
10997 Berlin
