Etli Dovga

ETLI DOVGA – YOGURT AND HERB SUP WITH MEATBALLS AND CHICKPEAS

Dovga is a traditional Azerbaijani soup made of plain yogurt and herbs. Dovga without meat is considered as a classic dish, but Dovga with chickpeas and meat – is a favorite one.
To make this, not only tasty, but healthy dish you will need the following ingredients.

Ingredients:
1 liter yogurt
1 liter water
½ cup short grain rice
1 egg
1 bunch of cilantro
1 bunch of dill
1 bunch of parsley
½ bunch of mint.
½ kg (1 lb) ground (minced) beef or lamb
1 small onion
½ cup of chickpeas
Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation:
1. Wash and finely chop the herbs.

2. In the pot put washed rice, cover with 1 cup of hot water, mix, and simmer over low heat until the rice is cooked.

3. Let the rice to cool down, then add the egg and mix them well.

4. Place the yogurt into the pot.

5. Mix the yogurt well with the rice-egg mixture.

6. Gradually add the water and mix everything well.
Place the pot over a medium heat and bring to the boil, stirring all the time clockwise (non stop) with a wooden spoon. This process will take plenty of time (approximately 20 minutes), so you need to be patient and choose a longer spoon.
All these steps are very important for getting the smooth texture of Dovga.

7. When Dovga begins to boil, reduce the heat, and then put all chopped herbs, mix well, and cook for 10 more minutes, stirring frequently.

8. Turn off the heat and add salt to your taste. Don’t add salt until Dovga is cooked, otherwise it will curdle!

9. In a bowl, combine the grounded meat with finely chopped or grounded onion, season with salt and pepper, and mix well. Form small balls and cook them in the water or broth.

10. Soak the dried chickpeas overnight in cold water. Rinse and cook them in the water or broth.

11. Add the meatballs and chickpeas to Dovga at the end of the cooking process.
Serve hot or warm.

Bon Appétit! Enjoy!

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