Local Cuisine
NO hike is complete without sampling (more than) a few local delicacies
Food is an integral part of culture in the Caucasus, and trying regional specialties is one of the best ways to make connections with people and to learn about the culture and history of an area. We highly recommend indulging in the local dishes while you’re on or near the trail. You might even discover your new favorite hiking snacks!
ARMENIA
Trail Food
- haykakan nakhajash: classic Armenian breakfast: flatbread, butter, honey, jam, sour cream, and cottage cheese. Served at most guesthouses along the way, most of these items are easily packable so hikers can replicate it on their own.
- hats banir: classic Armenian lunch: bread and cheese, supplemented by tomatoes, mini cucumbers, sweet pepper, mixed herbs
- lavash: flatbread. The ultimate hiking bread, plate, utensil, napkin, umbrella, you name it.
- banir: salty, white cheese
- basturma: dried, cured, and salted meat
- gata: a sweet bread widely available in supermarkets and roadside stalls near popular tourist sites
- Ttoo lavash: a thin, chewy sheet of highly concentrated fructose and fiber. Natural, packable, and perfect for hikers. Plum is the most traditional flavor, but other flavors are available.
- sujukh (Armenian Snickers): whole shelled walnuts threaded onto string and dipped in grape molasses, which dries to form a thick coating. They keep very well, are packed with energy, and thus make for a natural and culturally unique trail snack.
- Armenian coffee: Brewed over a stove and often served with sugar, Armenian coffee is often offered to hikers and guests.
Gata at Haghartsin Monastery.
Fresh lavash.
Post-hike barbecue feast.
Off-Trail Food
- khorovats: Armenian barbecue, typically featuring large cuts of meat and served on festive occasions
- dolma: minced meat and onion wrapped in grape leaves or stuffed inside vegetables
- zhingyalov hats: flatbread filled with greens including spinach, coriander, parsley, basil, scallions, dill, and mint.
- brandy: Armenian brandy is renowned around the region.
Georgia
Trail Food
- khachapuri: Excellent hiker food, khachapuri is traditional cheese-filled bread. It comes in a variety of regional styles, but all are delicious.
- lobiani: bean-filled bread (not to be confused with lobio, a pot of beans).
- khabizgina: This dish resembles khachapuri, yet in addition to cheese, it also includes mashed potato.There are different kinds of khabizgina with various fillings, with herbs or cabbage.
- sulguni: mozzarella-like cheese. Fresh sulguni is soft and milky; grocery-store sulguni varies widely in taste, texture, and saltiness. A popular variant is smoked sulguni, which keeps particularly well.
- kubdari (national dish of the Svans): meat-filled bread; found in most places in Svaneti
- petvraali: Svan version of khachapuri, cheese mixed with traditional herbs
- tonis puri: local bread made in stone ovens
- tklapi: Dehydrated fruit jam, found in apple, kiwi, plum (can be sour), and other fruit varieties.
- churchkhela (Georgian Snickers): whole shelled walnuts or hazelnuts threaded onto string and dipped in grape molasses, which dries to form a thick coating
- Svan salt: local Svanetian salt with spices adds a lot of flavor to your meals.
- adjika: Megrelian spice blend with salt and a bit of heat—perfect to spice up your camp cooking.
Khachapuri makes an excellent trail snack.
Khinkali.
Guesthouse breakfast in Chuberi.
Off-Trail Food
- khinkali: traditional dumplings. Traditionally filled with meat, they also come in mushroom, cheese, and potato varieties.
- lobio: beans with herbs
- mtsvadi: Georgian barbecue
- wine: Georgians pride themselves on being one of the first wine civilizations, and most villagers make their own wine following the autumn grape harvest.
- satsivi: thick paste made from walnuts (Georgians love adding walnuts to anything) and served cold (‘tsivi’ means ‘cold’ in Georgian). It is used in a variety of meat, usually chicken and turkey, fish, and vegetable dishes. Traditionally, satsivi is made on Christmas and New Year.
- eggplant rolls with walnuts: another delicious dish with walnut, using two main ingredients, which are, unsurprisingly, eggplant and walnut. The secret, however, is in the tiny amounts of seasoning and pomegranate seeds, the methods that both housewives and professional chefs use.
- ajapsandali: Lighter and full of vegetables, ajapsandali is a stew of eggplant and other vegetables that is incredibly flavourful and healthy.
Azerbaijan
Trail Food
- gutab: greens, meat, cheese or pumpkin in a folded thin dough
- pakhlava: you can find variations of this super caloric nutty dessert in different regions
- shor gogal: a nice savory pastry, good for a breakfast on the road
- pirojki and blichiki: not originally Azerbaijani, but a staple lunch on the go
- cherez: nuts and dried fruits; found in any market
- Breads
- tendir chorek: tandoor oven bread
- feseli: region specific
- lavash: flatbread
- khengel: a local take on pasta
- lavangi: walnut/pomegranate molasses—stuffed rotisserie chicken
- kebab: choice of lamb, beef, chicken, veggies, or BBQ
- Desserts: shekerbura, mutaki, shirin gogal, kata
Tea in a shepherd’s tent.
Typical Azeri meal.
Piti, a Sheki specialty.
Off-Trail Food
- plov: traditional rice dish; different options may be available
- sadj ichi: chicken, lamb, vegetarian
- dovga soup: yogurt and special greens
- arishda soup: local noodles
- dushbara soup: mini meat-filled dumplings
- lentil soup: not 100% local, but it’s one of Azerbaijanis’ favorite soups
- Local Favorites along the TCT
- pity: A hearty, local Sheki dish of lamb, peas, lambs tail, and seasonings all cooked in a clay pot on a slow fire
- khangal (“Xəngəl”): small-cut dough layers topped with minced meat and onions. Served with a village-style plain yogurt, qatıq). Although this dish is popular across the country, the best place to try it is on the Sheki–Zagatala section of the TCT.
- tskan (chkan): oven-baked cake stuffed with meat and potatoes or special local greens and potatoes (vegan option). It is the national dish of the Lezgi people and can be found in most villages in the Gusar district.
- qakhach: sun-dried meat; mostly available at local houses in high-elevation villages. Each family’s recipe is different, so you won’t have the same experience twice.
