What’s your personal inflation marker? For a lot of folks, it’s the price of gas or, these days, the soaring price of a dozen eggs. In the Republic of Georgia, I was amused to learn, it’s the cost of khachapuri, the gooey cheese bread that is a daily staple in this small nation. According to Atlas Obscura,  economists at Tbilisi State University have for years been tracking the cost of inputs for a single homemade khachapuri, from the flour, eggs and cheese to the energy. Like The Economist’s Big Mac index, it’s a metric that illuminates inflation’s toll on ordinary households. In February, the researchers reported that the year-over-year increase for khachapuri ingredients was 18.4 percent. Ouch.

It's not difficult to make respectable khachapuri. And although the ingredient prices have spiked in the U.S. as well, it’s still an affordable meal with a salad and fun to share. I got some technique tips from a small book on Georgia’s filled breads and from an excellent YouTube video.

Acccording to government data, the average price of a dozen eggs in the U.S. has risen from $1.93 (January 2022) to $4.82 (January 2023). That’s 150 percent. In the same period, the average price of flour jumped from 42 cents to 54 cents a pound. That’s almost 30 percent. I did not check commodity cheese prices because you’re going to use good cheese in your khachapuri. And we know those prices are up.

One note: The university’s khachapuri index is based on Imeretian khachapuri, the type made in Georgia’s Imereti region. It’s more challenging to make than the open-faced Adjara style pictured above but the ingredients are fundamentally the same.

The average monthly salary in Tbilisi is about $450. The cost of a single homemade khachapuri is currently about $2.25. So making one cheese bread every day would chew up about 15 percent of your income. By comparison, the median monthly salary in the U.S. is about $4,500 and a Big Mac costs about $4.65. Even eating one a day (bad idea) would consume only about 3 percent of your monthly pay. So if you’re tempted to complain about the rising cost of groceries, know that things could be worse.

Adjaruli Khachapuri

In Georgia, khachapuri is traditionally made with sulguni, a brined pasta filata-type cow’s milk cheese that some compare to mozzarella. It melts well and is often described as salty and tangy. I used a blend of cheeses: mozzarella for stretchy melt, Gruyère for flavor and melt, ricotta for creaminess and feta for briny tang. I’m happy with how the blend behaved but adapt as you like.

Dough:

• 200 grams (1-1/2 cups) bread flour, plus more for kneading

• 1/2 teaspoon instant dry yeast

• 1/2 teaspoon sugar

• 1/2 teaspoon kosher or sea salt

• 125 ml (1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon) warm water (105ºF to 110ºF)

• 1/2 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil

Filling:

• 75 grams (2.5 oz/1 cup) grated Gruyère

• 50 grams (2 oz/1/2 cup) low-moisture mozzarella

• 50 grams (2 oz/1/4 cup) whole-milk ricotta

• 50 grams (2 oz/1/3 cup crumbled) Greek or French feta

• 1 large egg, lightly beaten, plus 1 large egg

• 1 teaspoon unbleached all-purpose flour

• 1 tablespoon melted unsalted butter plus 1 tablespoon cold unsalted butter

• Dried mint, preferably Turkish mint

• Aleppo pepper or other medium-hot coarse red pepper

Make the dough:
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, yeast, sugar and salt. Add the water and stir until it forms a sticky dough. Turn it out onto a work surface and knead until the dough is smooth, about 3 minutes. You should not need additional flour but add a sprinkle if needed to prevent sticking. Shape the dough into a ball. Put the olive oil in a clean bowl, add the dough and turn to coat with oil. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 1-1/2 hours. Punch down and reshape into a ball. Cover again and let rise until doubled, about 1 hour.

Make the filling:
Put the four cheeses in a bowl and toss with a fork to blend. Add the beaten egg and flour and mix well. Crack the remaining egg into a bowl but leave it whole.

Put a baking stone on a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 450ºF at least 45 minutes before baking.

Stretch the dough on a lightly floured surface with your hands or a rolling pin into an oval about 14 inches long and 10 inches wide at the widest part. Beginning on one of the long sides, roll the edge of the dough toward the center to form a rope-like rim about ¾ inch wide. Repeat on the other long side. Twist the ends to seal them. Your “boat” of dough should be 13 to 14 inches long and 9 to 10 inches wide before filling, so stretch it with your hands as needed. Transfer the boat to a sheet of parchment, then slide the parchment onto a rimless baking sheet or pizza peel. Stretch the dough again if needed to preserve the shape.

Put the cheese filling in the center and spread it to an even thickness. Slide the boat (still on the parchment) onto the baking stone and bake 15 minutes. It should look slightly underdone but the filling should be bubbling and have some nice brown spots. Using the rimless baking sheet or peel, remove the khachapuri from the oven and, working quickly, use the rounded side of a spoon to make a well in the filling large enough for the egg yolk. Slide the egg into the indentation and return to the oven for about 3 minutes—just until the egg white is barely set. The yolk should still be runny.

Remove from the oven. Brush the rim with the melted butter and put the slice of butter on the filling next to the egg. Let the butter soften slightly, then stir the filling with a fork until it is creamy and the egg is cooked. Sprinkle with mint and chile and serve immediately.

Makes 1 khachapuri, to serve 2 to 3