Chakapuli Lobios — Georgian Green Herb and White Bean Stew

Georgian Xerophagy Published June 13, 2026

Chakapuli is the great spring stew of Georgia — a riot of tarragon, fresh herbs, green onions, and the sharp sourness of unripe plums (tkemali). Traditionally built on lamb, it translates to a fasting table with no apology at all when you anchor it in tender white beans: the beans soak up the green, herbaceous, mouth-puckeringly sour broth and turn it into a full and bracing meal. This is the taste of Georgian spring — grassy, tart, and alive — and it leaves you satisfied in a way no salad ever could.

This version is built for the strictest fasting days: no oil and barely any cooking beyond a gentle simmer, letting the raw herbs and sour plum do all the work. The beans are pre-cooked and simply warmed through with the herbs so almost nothing is "cooked" in the heavy sense — it sits comfortably as xerophagy. On oil days, start with a sweated onion in olive oil; on fish days, this is a stunning broth for poaching trout.

FASTING LEVEL: Xerophagy (adaptable for oil and fish days — see notes)
SERVINGS: 4
TIME: 25 minutes

INGREDIENTS

- 3 cups (500g) cooked white beans (cannellini or lima), warm, with 1 cup of their cooking liquid
- 6 green onions, sliced
- 1 large bunch fresh tarragon (about 1 cup leaves), chopped
- 1 cup chopped cilantro
- 1/2 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
- 1/3 cup chopped fresh dill
- 4 tkemali (sour plums) or 4 tablespoons tkemali sauce, or juice of 1 1/2 lemons plus 3 chopped unripe/tart green plums
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/2 fresh green chili, finely chopped (optional)
- 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
- Salt to taste

METHOD

1. Put the warm white beans and their cup of cooking liquid in a pot over the gentlest heat — you want them hot and the liquid loosened, not boiling hard.

2. Stir in the green onions, garlic, ground coriander, and chopped sour plums (or tkemali sauce). Warm through for 5 minutes so the plums release their sourness into the liquid.

3. Off the heat, fold in the tarragon, cilantro, parsley, and dill all at once. The residual warmth will wilt them just slightly while keeping them vivid and fresh.

4. Add the chopped green chili if using, then taste and adjust: more sour plum or lemon for tartness, salt to bring it together. The broth should be assertively sour and intensely green.

5. Cover and let stand 5 minutes for the flavors to meld. Serve warm, not hot, in shallow bowls with crusty bread to soak up the herb broth.

NOTES

- Tarragon is non-negotiable — it is the soul of chakapuli. If fresh is scarce, use as much as you can find and supplement with extra parsley and a pinch of dried tarragon.
- For oil days, sweat a sliced onion in 2 tablespoons olive oil before adding the beans, and finish with a drizzle.
- On fish days, poach trout or white fish fillets directly in the sour herb broth for 8 minutes — extraordinary.
- If you cannot find sour plums or tkemali, lemon juice plus a few tart green grapes or gooseberries gives the same bright acidity.