Khabidzgina is a closed, round khachapuri-style pie filled with mashed boiled potato and cheese, found in the Georgian regions bordering South Ossetia, including Imereti and Racha. It originates in the Ossetian tradition (where it is called kartofdzhyn), adopted into the western and central Georgian kitchen. The two-cheese version (Imeruli plus a second local cheese) is the richer Imeretian-Racha take. It is a hearty highland pie, baked golden and eaten warm.
A golden, slightly crisp closed crust enclosing a soft, warmly cheesy mashed-potato filling that pulls when broken. The potato stretches the cheese, the cheese seasons the potato, and the whole is rib-sticking and mild.
Potatoes are boiled and mashed dry, then mixed with grated cheese (often two kinds) so the filling is cohesive but fluffy. The yeasted dough is rolled into a round, the filling mounded in the centre, the dough gathered and sealed over the top, then rolled flat again. Baking sets the crust while the cheese melts into the potato. The double-roll (gather, then flatten) is what gives the pie its even filling-to-crust ratio.
Variations
A Racha version adds cubed pork. Some cooks mix in a little caramelised onion.
On the Palate
Where Khabidzgina sits in the Georgian flavor cloud
Ingredients
Serves 8How it's made
6 steps · 50 min
- 115 min
Make a dough of 500g flour, 200ml warm milk, 1 egg, 30g butter, 1 tsp yeast, 1 tsp salt; rise 1 hour.
- 210 min
Boil 600g potatoes until tender; drain, mash dry, and cool slightly.
Watch outMash the boiled potatoes dry — a wet, wnullatery mash makes a soggy filling that leaks and won't hold when you roll and seal the dough.
- 38 min
Mix the potato with 250g grated Imeruli cheese, 100g grated second cheese, 1 chopped sautéed onion, salt and pepper.
- 48 min
Divide the dough in two; roll one piece into a round, mound the filling in the centre, gather the dough up over it, and seal.
- 512 min
Flatten the sealed parcel gently into a round, transfer to a tray, and bake at 220C for 20-25 minutes until golden.
Watch outBake at high heat until the crust is golden and the cheese has melted into the potato — pull it pale and the filling stays stodgy and the crust raw.
- 65 min
Brush with butter, rest 10 minutes, and serve warm in wedges.
Archive tool suggestions — not reviewed
These legacy suggestions have not been evidence-reviewed and are not presented as required tools.
