Georgian Lobiani Bean-Stuffed Flatbread

About This Recipe

Lobiani is the bean-filled cousin of Georgia's famous cheese-stuffed khachapuri, using the same soft, enriched dough but filling it with a thick, well-spiced mash of red kidney beans instead of cheese. It's especially associated with fasting periods in the Georgian Orthodox calendar, when dairy and meat are avoided, making lobiani a naturally vegan main course that never feels like a compromise. The beans are cooked until fully soft, then mashed with plenty of sautéed onion, and often a blend of Georgian spices like blue fenugreek (utskho suneli), coriander and dried marigold that give the filling a distinctly savory, slightly floral depth rather than tasting like plain refried beans. Getting the filling dry enough matters just as much as the flavor, since a wet filling will make the dough soggy or burst during baking. The dough is rolled out, filled generously, and folded closed before being flattened again into a round loaf and baked or pan-fried until deeply golden. A properly made lobiani should have a satisfying textural contrast between the soft, faintly sweet bread and the dense, savory bean filling packed all the way to the edges.

Ingredients

Serves 6

• 3.5 cupsall-purpose flour
• 2.25 tspinstant yeast
• 1 tspsugar
• 1 tspfine sea salt
• 1.25 cupswarm water
• 3 tbspvegetable oil
• 2 cupsdried red kidney beans(soaked overnight, or 4 cans drained)
• 2onions(finely chopped)
• 3 tbspvegetable oil(for the filling)
• 1 tspblue fenugreek (utskho suneli)(or ground fenugreek)
• 1 tspcoriander seeds(ground)
• 0.5 tspdried marigold petals(optional)
• 1 tspfine sea salt(for the filling)

Instructions

1. 1

   Make the dough

   Mix flour, yeast, sugar and salt. Add warm water and oil, mixing to a soft dough. Knead 8 minutes until smooth. Cover and let rise 1 hour until doubled.

2. 2

   Cook the beans

   Simmer soaked beans in fresh water until fully tender, about 1 hour, then drain, reserving a little cooking liquid.

3. 3

   Mash the filling

   Cook onions in oil until deep golden. Mash the cooked beans with the onions, spices and salt, adding a splash of reserved bean liquid if needed for a thick, spreadable but not wet paste.

   The filling should hold its shape on a spoon — if it's too loose, cook it a few more minutes over low heat to dry it out.

4. 4

   Fill the dough

   Divide dough into 6 pieces. Roll each into a disc, place a generous mound of bean filling in the center, gather the edges up and pinch closed.

5. 5

   Flatten and bake

   Gently flatten each filled ball into a round about 1.5cm thick. Bake at 220°C (425°F) for 20 to 25 minutes until deep golden.

6. 6

   Serve warm

   Brush with a little melted butter if desired and serve warm, cut into wedges.

Variations

• •

  Use pinto or black beans if kidney beans aren't available, adjusting seasoning to taste.

• •

  Pan-fry the flattened lobiani in a dry skillet instead of baking, flipping once, for a stovetop version closer to some home methods.

• •

  Add a small pat of butter to the center of the filling before sealing for extra richness.

Storage

Refrigerate baked lobiani up to 3 days, wrapped; reheat in a dry skillet or oven to re-crisp the crust rather than microwaving, which softens it.

Frequently Asked Questions