Name: Kobuleti-Style Chirbuli — Georgian Eggs in Tomato and Walnut Sauce
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 40 min
Total time: 1 h
Cuisine: Georgian
Ingredients: 15 ml olive oil; 120 g yellow onion, peeled and finely diced; 3 g fine salt, divided; 8 g garlic (about 2 cloves), peeled and finely minced; 3 g ground coriander (about 1 teaspoon); 1 g ground blue fenugreek (about ½ teaspoon); 0.5–1 g mild crushed red pepper, to taste; 500 g ripe red tomatoes, cored and diced; 120 ml water, plus up to 30 ml held in reserve if needed; 70 g unsalted English walnuts, pulsed to a coarse meal; 4 large refrigerated eggs, about 200 g without shells; crack each into its own cup; 10 g fresh cilantro leaves, finely chopped; 10 g fresh parsley, finely chopped; 5 g fresh basil leaves, torn or finely sliced; 200 g Georgian bread, sliced, optional for serving; check its label for allergens

A wide view of Kobuleti-style chirbuli in its skillet, with set eggs in tomato and walnut sauce topped with herbs.

Yield4 portions, one egg per person

Serving basisOne egg with one quarter of the tomato-walnut sauce; optional bread excluded

Dish typeKobuleti-style Adjarian egg dish

AllergensContains egg and walnuts; check the optional bread label

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The dish

About Kobuleti-Style Chirbuli — Georgian Eggs in Tomato and Walnut Sauce

A sunny Adjarian skillet of gently set eggs, ripe tomatoes, ground walnuts and fresh herbs.

Chirbuli is an Adjarian egg dish, and the Kobuleti style is associated with a sauce of tomatoes and walnuts. This version keeps the eggs whole, letting each one set in a shallow well so every serving gets a yolk, a little sauce and the same balance of herbs and nuts.

The walnuts are pulsed to a coarse meal and simmered into the tomato base. They thicken the sauce and lend it a mellow, rounded flavour without turning it into a paste. Onion softens first, then garlic, coriander and blue fenugreek bloom briefly in the pan before the tomatoes go in.

Make the sauce just loose enough to bubble around the eggs. Cover the pan and cook until both whites and yolks are firm; check the egg mixture with a thermometer as well. The skillet is best brought straight to the table with Georgian bread for scooping. The bread is optional and is not included in the nutrition estimate.

Cook the dish

Ingredients

Kobuleti-Style Chirbuli — Georgian Eggs in Tomato and Walnut Sauce

Tomato-walnut sauce

15 mlolive oil
120 gyellow onion, peeled and finely diced
3 gfine salt, divided
8 ggarlic (about 2 cloves), peeled and finely minced
3 gground coriander (about 1 teaspoon)
1 gground blue fenugreek (about ½ teaspoon)
0.5–1 gmild crushed red pepper, to taste
500 gripe red tomatoes, cored and diced
120 mlwater, plus up to 30 ml held in reserve if needed
70 gunsalted English walnuts, pulsed to a coarse meal

Eggs and finish

4large refrigerated eggs, about 200 g without shells; crack each into its own cup
10 gfresh cilantro leaves, finely chopped
10 gfresh parsley, finely chopped
5 gfresh basil leaves, torn or finely sliced
200 gGeorgian bread, sliced, optional for serving; check its label for allergens

Method

Set up safely. Keep the eggs refrigerated until you are ready to cook. Crack each egg into a separate small cup so you can add it cleanly and keep the yolk intact. Wash your hands and the cups after contact with raw egg; keep them away from ready-to-eat foods.
Soften the onion. Pulse the walnuts in a small food processor to a coarse meal, stopping before they become a paste. Warm the olive oil in a heavy 26–28 cm skillet over medium-low heat. Add the diced onion and 1 g of the salt. Cook for 7–9 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onion is soft and translucent but not browned.
Bloom the aromatics. Add the garlic, ground coriander, blue fenugreek and crushed red pepper. Stir for about 30 seconds, just until fragrant.
Reduce the tomatoes. Add the diced tomatoes, 120 ml water and the remaining 2 g salt. Bring to a gentle simmer over medium heat, then cook uncovered for 10–12 minutes, stirring now and then, until the tomatoes soften and the sauce begins to thicken.
Thicken with walnuts. Stir in the coarse walnut meal and simmer gently for 3–4 minutes. The sauce should coat a spoon but remain loose enough to bubble around the eggs. If it becomes too thick, add up to 30 ml of the reserved water a little at a time.
Set the eggs. Use the back of a spoon to make four shallow wells. Slide one egg into each well, keeping the yolks intact. Cover the skillet and cook gently until the whites and yolks are fully set. Check the egg mixture in several places with a food thermometer; the centre must reach 71 °C. Continue covered in short intervals and recheck if needed.
Garnish and serve. Remove the skillet from the heat. Scatter the cilantro, parsley and basil over the sauce. Serve immediately, with the sliced Georgian bread alongside if desired.

Practical guidance

Success points

Pulse the walnuts to a coarse meal, not a paste; this gives the sauce body while keeping it spoonable.
Let the tomatoes reduce before adding the eggs. A watery sauce can spread the whites and makes it harder to judge when the eggs are set.
Cook until the whites and yolks are firm, and confirm the egg mixture reaches 71 °C in several places with a food thermometer.

Practical guidance

Serving. Bring the skillet to the table while the sauce is still gently bubbling. Spoon an egg and plenty of tomato-walnut sauce into each bowl. The optional bread is useful for the thick sauce, but the dish is complete without it.

Make-ahead. The tomato-walnut sauce can be cooked through step 5 up to one day ahead. Cool it promptly in a shallow container, refrigerate at or below 4 °C, and use within 3–4 days. Reheat the sauce until steaming, add a small splash of water if it has tightened, then make the wells and cook the eggs fresh. Do not add raw eggs to sauce that will be chilled for later.

Storage and reheating. Refrigerate cooked leftovers within 2 hours at or below 4 °C and use within 3–4 days. Reheat egg dishes thoroughly to 74 °C.

Tomatoes. Use no-salt-added canned tomatoes by weight if ripe fresh tomatoes are unavailable.

Nutrition per serving

Estimated nutrition per serving

Serving size: One egg with one quarter of the sauce; optional bread excluded
Calories: About 255 kcal
Carbohydrate: About 11 g
Protein: About 10 g
Fat: About 20 g
Fibre: About 3 g
Sodium: About 380 mg

Approximate values are calculated for the full four-serving recipe using standard food-composition data for eggs, tomatoes, yellow onion, walnuts and garlic, plus an estimate for olive oil. The batch is about 1,020 kcal, 42 g protein, 44 g carbohydrate, 80 g fat, 13 g fibre and 1,520 mg sodium; each total is divided by four and rounded. All 3 g of added salt is counted as retained. Optional bread is excluded. Fresh herbs, egg size and tomato yield cause small variations.

Allergens and food safety

Contains eggs and walnuts (tree nuts). Check the optional Georgian bread label for additional allergens. Keep shell eggs refrigerated, use clean uncracked eggs, and wash hands, utensils and work surfaces after contact with raw egg. Cook until both whites and yolks are fully set, and check the egg mixture in several places with a food thermometer to confirm 71 °C at the centre. Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours at or below 4 °C, use within 3–4 days and reheat to 74 °C.

Closing notes

The finished chirbuli has fully set eggs in a thick tomato-walnut sauce, brightened with fresh herbs.
The sauce should coat a spoon but remain loose enough to bubble gently around the eggs.

About Kobuleti-Style Chirbuli — Georgian Eggs in Tomato and Walnut Sauce

Ingredients

Tomato-walnut sauce

Eggs and finish

Method

Success points

Practical guidance

Estimated nutrition per serving

Allergens and food safety

Closing notes

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