Mtsvadi is Georgian barbecue on skewers, and it's simpler to make than many people expect. Often the meat isn't marinated at all, or just gets salt and onion: the flavor comes from the embers, and the rest from the sauces on the table. So for good mtsvadi, the recipe matters less than what you grill on and how.
Below is a picnic checklist you can put together in advance, so you don't have to stop at five shops on the way.
Where to grill
Let's start with the most important thing, so your picnic doesn't end with a fine. Near Tbilisi, you can legally make a fire at the designated fire pits in Tbilisi National Park, which need to be booked in advance. At Lisi Lake and in the forests near Kojori and Udzo, campfires and grills are banned.
For details on the rules and where to go, see the campfire section of our guide to hiking around Tbilisi. The other option is your own yard, a country house or a guesthouse where the hosts allow grills.
The grill
- “Sunny” portable charcoal grill — compact, fits in the trunk with the rest of your picnic gear.
- ECE EPK-633 charcoal grill — another option for a charcoal picnic.
Set the grill on level ground, away from dry grass and overhanging branches.
What to burn: charcoal or vine cuttings
- Wood charcoal, 3 kg — predictable heat, which makes things easier if you're grilling for the first time.
- Dried vine cuttings — tsalami. In Kakheti, mtsvadi over vine cuttings is a classic: they burn down fast and give strong, even heat and a light aroma. Many people add vine cuttings to charcoal just for the smell.
- Dry kindling twigs, 2.5 kg and Marao fire starter — so you don't have to fiddle with newspaper or wait for the charcoal to catch.
Start grilling once the flames have died down and the coals are covered in gray ash. Over open flames, the meat will char on the outside and stay raw inside.
Skewers
- Metal skewers — the classic.
- Skewer with a wooden handle — the metal gets very hot by the grill, but the wooden handle stays just warm, so you don't need a pot holder.
Cut the meat into big chunks, 4–5 cm each: small pieces dry out all the way through, while big ones stay juicy in the middle.
Somewhere to sit
An hour squatting by the grill isn't much of a break.
- Camping chair — for yourself.
- Folding chair with a backrest — for those who came to relax, not to grill.
- Small folding chair — takes up hardly any space in the trunk.
For tea after the meat, there's the 1 l thermo jug: an insulated jug that makes it easy to pour for the whole group.
What to put on the table
- Tkemali — a sour plum sauce and the classic partner for mtsvadi.
- Megrelian adjika — a hot red pepper paste. Spread a thin layer on the hot meat.
- Svan salt — for seasoning the meat right on the skewer, plus tomatoes and potatoes baked in the embers.
- Dry red wine — if you're not driving.
Pick up bread on the way at a tone, a clay oven bakery: hot shoti straight from the tone beats any bread that's spent half a day in the car. Slice onions into rings ahead of time and pour pomegranate juice or wine vinegar over them.
For more ways to use these spices, see our article on Svan salt, adjika and tkemali.
Before you leave
Pour water on the embers and make sure they've cooled down: wind can fan them back to life even an hour later. Take your trash with you: not every park has bins, and a bag in the trunk weighs nothing.
In short
- Near Tbilisi, fires are legal at the designated fire pits in Tbilisi National Park (booking required), on your own property, or wherever the hosts allow a grill.
- Charcoal for predictable heat, vine cuttings for a taste of Kakheti.
- Grill over coals covered in gray ash, not over open flames.
- On the table: tkemali, adjika, Svan salt and fresh bread from a tone.
- You can order everything on the list in advance in the “Outdoor gear” section.