Today we travel to the little known country of Abkhazia. Abkhazia (ab·kei·zhee·uh) is a partially recognized state, most countries recognizing them as part of Georgia. Although most countries don’t see the mountainous Abkhazia as an independent country there is quite a bit to appreciate here.. one of the deepest caves in the world Krubera can be found at the border of Russia and Abkhazia at 7,208ft depth.
The cuisine here as you may have guessed is very similar to the surrounding countries- Georiga and Russia, however many citizens here are cattle and crop farmers their dishes often involve beef, dairy, and grains. Abista or cheese polenta is a staple here and will be one of the elements of this dish.
This recipe included a dark and rich berry sauce to top the pork loin. Spicy berry sauces like this one are classically found in Abkhazian cuisine. The spice for this sauce uses a cinnamon stick which gave off a wonderful aroma while it simmered. I did not have venison available (although I have had venison loins in the past -YUM) I substituted a pork loin. I thought of the lovely Julia Child as I patted dry my sectioned loin and fried them to golden brown perfection on each side.
While the loin and sauce was brewing I cracked down on the polenta which I have gotten more of a hang of with recent practice. I did not have the sulguni (Georgian mozzarella) in my local grocery store so I opted for the classic mozzarella instead. Once everything was finished I attempted to plate it together, but soon realized that berry goodness wanted to mingle with everything on the plate.. oops!
We thought the sauce was lovely and felt to really appreciate it we needed to let each piece of loin bathe in it as if it was a dipping sauce before indulging. The polenta was good and paired well with the mild cheese. I decided to jar up the remaining sauce and use it as a marinade in future cooking endeavors. We thought it was a nice meal to shake up the more recent dishes we have tried and rated it 7/10.