Mtsvadi is Georgia's barbecue, and its rules are refreshingly short. The meat, most often pork shoulder with its fat left on, is cut into large chunks, layered with sliced onion, salt and pepper, and left to marinate. It is then threaded onto long flat skewers and grilled over hot coals, traditionally from grapevine cuttings, on a mangali, the simple metal trough every Georgian family seems to own. Many cooks hold that the marinade must not include vinegar or wine, and the meat is judged on its own merits.

It is cooked at picnics, at the end of the grape harvest, at roadside stalls and at every outdoor supra, and it comes to the table with raw onion rings, pomegranate seeds, fresh herbs and flatbread to pull the meat from the skewer. It is the perfect grill for a race afternoon: little to prepare and plenty to argue over.

The skewers

Ingredients

• 3 lb (1.4 kg) boneless pork shoulder
• 2 large yellow onions
• 1 tablespoon coarse salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

To serve

Ingredients

• 1 red onion
• 1 pomegranate
• 1 bunch mixed fresh herbs, such as cilantro, parsley, dill and basil
• 6 lavash or flatbreads
• 1 cup (240 ml) tkemali sauce

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