In the vocabulary of the Russian language there are many words that came from oriental languages. One of them is khanuma. What does this term mean? It is worth understanding the issue, especially since this word has not one, but two meanings.
Khanuma: what does the word mean?
In the middle of the XIX century. Humorous plays by the playwright Avksentiy Tsagareli were very popular in Georgia. The most famous among them is the vaudeville comedy about a resourceful matchmaker - “Khanuma”, first staged in 1882. Later, the play was translated into Armenian and Russian, and was also filmed more than once not only in Georgia, but also in the Russian Soviet Socialist Republic. Thanks to the popularity of vaudeville and the numerous films based on it, the name of the main character, Khanuma, has become synonymous with the word "matchmaker" for many.
The meaning of this word is another. Khanuma, or khanum, is a very tasty, nutritious and he althy dish of Uzbek cuisine.
A. Tsagareli's play "Khanuma": plot
Having de alt with the term “khanuma” (what it means), it is worth learning more about the play of the same name, and then about the dish.
In the center of the plot of Tsagareli's vaudeville is an attempt by an old Georgian prince who has squandered all his fortunePantiashvili save himself from ruin by marrying a girl with a rich dowry. To find a suitable candidate, the prince hires matchmaker Khanum. She proposes to Pantiashvili the old maid Guliko, who, despite her unattractive appearance and advanced age, has a good dowry.
However, the matchmaker Kabato interferes in the matter - she wants to marry the prince to the young and beautiful daughter of the merchant. After Pantiashvili prefers the bride, betrothed to Kabato, Khanum remains out of work. This means shame for her as a matchmaker.
But fate gives her a chance to do a good deed. It turns out that Pantiashvili's young and very worthy nephew, Kote, has long been in love with the merchant's beautiful daughter. The girl is also crazy about him. At the same time, neither the guy's lover nor her father know about his noble origin, believing that he is a simple teacher.
Having agreed with the servants, Khanuma, during the arrival of the prince, pretends to be the daughter of a merchant, behaves vulgarly and defiantly. Seeing the "bride", Pantiashvili refuses to marry. Later, thanks to the intrigues of the matchmaker, he sees the real daughter of the merchant, whom Khanuma passes off as Guliko. Having fallen in love with her, the prince dreams of marrying her and happily signs a marriage contract.
Knowing nothing about all this masquerade, the merchant, having learned that Pantiashvili had abandoned his daughter, collected all his bills and now wants to demand payment on them, thereby ruining the prince. Caught in a hopeless situation, the old man decides to commit suicide. However, Kote "sacrifices himself" and agrees instead of his uncle to marry the daughter of a merchant, because he is also a princelykind.
During the wedding, the truth is revealed, but the prince who escaped shame and ruin still has to marry 55-year-old Guliko.
Georgian adaptations
The extraordinary popularity of Tsagareli's vaudeville led to the fact that with the development of cinema in Georgia it was one of the first to be filmed - in 1924 (according to other sources in 1926). This 70-minute silent tape almost completely repeated the plot of the original work, with the only difference that instead of the characters, the Georgian announcer read the text.
A full black-and-white film based on the play "Khanuma" was filmed in Tbilisi in 1948
The picture was called "Keto and Kote" and was somewhat different from the original. In particular, the merchant's daughter's name was not Sona, but Keto. In addition, more songs and folk dances were added to the film adaptation, from which the picture only benefited. It is worth noting that the tape was filmed in two versions: in Georgian and in Russian.
Reworking of the play by Georgy Tovstonogov
The popularity of "Khanuma" and its two adaptations prompted the Soviet theater director Georgy Tostonogov to the idea of adapting this work for staging in the RUSSR. In collaboration with Boris Ratser and Vladimir Konstantinov, the vaudeville text itself was modernized and supplemented with magnificent verses by Grigory Orbeliani and music by Giya Kancheli.
In this form, "Khanuma" was staged at the Bolshoi Theater at the end of 1972. The stunning success of this performance contributed to the fact that after 6 years it was filmedits TV version featuring the same artists. This is how the two-episode comedy "Khanuma" appeared, which still enjoys audience love.
A dish of Uzbek cuisine khanum (khanuma)
This dish is very common not only in Uzbekistan, but also abroad, including in China.
They call him differently: khanum, khanum, khanon, hunon, khanim and hunan. In fact, the dish resembles manti in composition and method of preparation. Moreover, it is even prepared according to the same principle - for a couple. However, khanum differs from manti, as it is a steam roll made of unleavened dough with a variety of fillings. Sometimes this dish is quite deservedly called a lazy steamed manta, but still they continue to be singled out as a separate dish.
Each city has its own traditions of cooking this dish. So, traditionally, mutton, potatoes and spices are used as a filling for khanuma. However, in Tashkent, it is customary to add carrots to minced meat, in addition to all of the above, since it not only diversifies the taste, but also slightly colors the dough during cooking.
Recipe
Preparing this quite hearty, and most importantly, very he althy dish is very simple.
First of all, you need to knead the dough, like for dumplings or dumplings (boiled or filtered water, eggs, flour, s alt and spices). Do not forget that the mass needs to stand a little (from half an hour to an hour) wrapped in cling film or covered with a clean kitchen towel. After the expiration of this time, the dough must be kneaded andRoll out thinly on a floured board. As in the case of dumplings and dumplings, the principle works: the thinner the dough, the tastier the finished dish.
The choice of filling for khanum is a matter of culinary preferences, as well as the financial capabilities of a particular hostess. In addition to the traditional combination of meat with various vegetables, you can make a vegetarian filling or use the usual combination of stewed cabbage with onions and mushrooms. By the way, khanum can be cooked without a filling at all, in which case, before rolling the dough into a roll, you need to grease it inside with a thick layer of sour cream.
When the filling is selected and evenly spread over the rolled out layer of dough, it must be carefully rolled into a roll, from which to form a circle.
Khanum is always steamed, thanks to which a lot of useful substances and vitamins are preserved in it. Many housewives in the kitchen have a special device for cooking manti and khanum - this is a mantyshnitsa or a double boiler, in which the dish should be cooked for ¾ hours or an hour (depending on the filling). If there is no such unit on the farm, you can cook food in a colander by placing it in a saucepan, at the bottom of which water boils, forming steam. Be sure to cover it all with a lid on top.
Before cooking, the bottom of the mantyshnitsa, double boiler or colander must be greased with oil (so that the roll does not stick), and sprinkle water on top of the khanum.
Immediately before serving, the finished dish is cut into pieces andgracefully laid out on a plate in a semicircle, in the center of which is placed a bowl with sauce. By the way, khanum is traditionally served with sour cream sauce or homemade ketchup with garlic.
Despite its non-Russian origin, the word "khanuma" over the years has become familiar not only for Russians, but also for Ukrainians and Belarusians. Perhaps, in a few centuries, a dish with this name will become an integral part of Slavic cuisine, as happened with dumplings.
