Musaca de Cartofi

"Potato moussaka"

Moussaka is a fairly common dish over the Balkans with many different variations and using a variety of 'on-hand' ingredients. The dish is thought to have originated in the Middle East and spread throughout the region during the period of Ottoman rule. It's name suggests a dish that was continuously 'fed liquid' to keep it moist as it baked, although most common versions are more solid. Many Balkan versions spurn the eggplants so popularised by the well-known Greek version, and quite commonly have a top layer of cream solidified with egg. This version mixes the cream with the middle meat layer but its slow cooking results in a tasty and perhaps lighter-feelings dish with less stodge.

Time: 2 hours
Servings: 4 big slices or maybe 6 smaller ones.
Ingredients:

750g of potatoes, peeled and sliced
500g of minced meat (could be lamb, beef or pork or a mixture)
1 carrot, peeled and grated
2 onions, finely chopped
An egg
1/2 cup of 'smantana de gatit' (unsweetened cooking cream)
1/2 cup of white wine
1 cup of tomato bullion
1 level tablespoon of caster sugar
2 juicy ripe tomatoes
Salt, pepper and thyme
1/2 cup of soup stock (or half a beef stock cube dissolved in 1/2 cup of boiling water)
Oil for frying, butter for greasing dish, and some breadcrumbs or flour for dusting.

Method:

1. Pour a few millimetres of olive oil (traditionally you can use 'untura' (pig lard)) into a frying pan and brown off the potato rounds in batches on each side, removing them to a plate as the turn colour.
2. Gently fry the onion for a few minutes in the remaining oil and, once it has turned translucent and taken on a little colour, add the minced meat and the grated carrot and cook on a low-ish heat until the meat has changed colour.
3. Add the bullion, watered down a little if it seems too thick, and simmer the meat gently for about half an hour, being careful not to let it burn or stick (add a splash of water if and when needed), until a rich meat sauce, not too runny, remains. Allow to cool when done.
4. Meanwhile, grease a tray with butter or lard and sprinkle the sides and bottom with breadcrumbs ('pesmet') or flour.
5. Into the cooled meat sauce, mix in the egg and the cream and add salt, pepper and thyme to taste.
6. Place a layer of the potato slices in the bottom of the tray, then spread the meat sauce of top, followed by another layer of the remaining potato slices on top of the meat.
7. Thinly slice the ripe tomatoes and place them in a layer on top of the potatoes.
8. Pour the wine and stock over the top.
9. Put it in the oven on the relatively low heat and allow to cook for about an hour or until it starts browning off on top and most of the liquid has disappeared.

Sarmale in foi de varza

"Meat-stuffed cabbage rolls"

Although I haven’t posted many recipes recently, partly because most of the ones I know or like I’ve already posted, but also due to a lack of time and other project, I’ve always felt this blog is incomplete with having at least one recipe for sarmale (and perhaps another for cozonac). So, with Christmas coming up I figured it was time to have a go at them. Why not give them a try and make that Romanian in your life extremely happy!

Sarmale form a staple part of Romanian festive cuisine. These meat-stuffed cabbage rolls will almost certainly grace any seasonal feast, be it Christmas or Easter or even other celebrations, such as weddings, baptisms or birthdays. Their origin is most likely Turkish, ‘sarmak’ is the Turkish verb for ‘roll up’ after all, but over time they’ve been adapted to Romanian tastes with the addition of pork. They are relatively easy to make, although cooking takes some time (2-3 hours), but they can be made in advance, reheated (apparently making them taste better) or even frozen (so I’m told).

Time: 30 minutes for prep, then 2-3 in the oven with occasional checking
Servings: Makes about 20-25 sarmale (depending how big or small you make them), enough for 4-5 hungry Romanians.

Ingredients:

About 600g of meat (pork, or a mixture of pork and beef, according to your preference)
Some smoked meat, such as ‘slanina afumata’ (smoked pork fat) or smoky bacon will do
About a cup of rice (any type really, I actually used pilaf as it’s what I had in the cupboard, but the short-grain stuff is more usual I believe)
2 large onions, finely chopped
Thyme, a couple of sprigs is good between the layers of sarmale, but you can use dried thyme out of season
Paprika, if you so desire. Most recipes don’t seem to use it, but I like this addition
2-3 bay leaves
A jug of tomato bullion, or a mixture of warm water and good tomato concentrate
Salt and pepper to taste

Method:

1. Finely chop the two onions and sauté gently in a large pan with a splash of oil (of whatever type) until softened. Don’t fry them or they’ll turn bitter.
2. Add some finely chopped smoked meat to the onions at this stage too (if you like, not every recipe includes it) and continue cooking for a couple of minutes.
3. Turn the heat off, allow to cool a bit, and add the minced meat, rice and some of the spices and mix it all together well. Add a little seasoning.
4. Take the pickled cabbage leaves, cut out any hard parts of the stalk that’d make them difficult to roll, and cut (if they’re large leaves) in two.
5. Once you’ve sorted out the leaves which are good for rolling, finely chop the discarded parts and put a layer of these chopped pieces into the cooking vessel to form a barrier between the bottom of the pot and the first row of sarmale – this’ll help prevent burning.
6. Take a walnut-sized piece of the meat mixture, form it into a sausage shape, place it on the cabbage leaf, start to roll it up. About one half-rotation in, fold the sides of the leaf over and continue rolling to get a reasonably tight package. Place this in the pot on top of the chopped cabbage.
7. Continue this process until you have a complete layer, onto which you can place some more of the smoked meat, some sprigs of thyme, other spices (like the bay or paprika, if you so wish), and maybe more of the chopped cabbage to fill any large gaps.
8. Continue making layers in this way until you’re almost at the top of the pot, or you run out of ingredients, whichever comes first. Allow a little space at the top for expansion (you’ve added rice, remember, so they’ll puff up a bit).
9. Pour on the seasons tomato bullion so it soaks in between the tightly-packed sarmale and reaches the level of the top layer. You shouldn’t need too much if they’re well packed in the vessel. Finish it all off with a layer of whole cabbage leaves on top, just two of three to cap it off.
10. Put on the lid and either put it in the oven on a low heat for 3 hours or until cooked (after a couple of hours you can pull one out to test it) or cook it gently on the stove, being careful to check the bottom isn’t burning (hence the layer of chopped cabbage). If it looks like the sauce is running out, add a little more bullion or water to keep the sarmale moist.
11. Once you feel the meat and rice is well cooked, take them out and serve with mamaliga (polenta) and smantana (sour cream).

Pofta mare!

Mici sau mititei

“Skinless sausages for the barbeque”

I’ve covered everything I know about mici, or mititei as they are sometimes called, in a separate article that you can read here so I’ll skip straight to the part where I tell you how I made them at home.

This was my first ever attempt at mici, or mititei, and I took the recipe from Pastorel Teodoreanu’s book on food, called ‘De Re Culinaria’. Teodoreanu’s article dates back to the 1960s and therefore the recipe probably varies from other more modern recipes in that it contains only beef. Also, as I don’t have a garden, I had to cook them under the grill. Mici, when properly cooked, take on a slightly rippled look from the barbeque, and of course, the dark lines that all genuinely barbequed meats acquire. However, I think these turned out well for a first attempt. As they started to cook, the house was filled with a smell that truly reminded me of a summer’s day barbeque, and the mici tasted quite authentic. One of the nice things about their being pure beef was that I didn’t have to cook them through. One thing I dislike about mici is that when they are made of pork you have to be more thorough in their cooking and so many time I’ve been to barbeques and been served mici which were charcoal on the outside, and dried and cardboard-y in the middle. These, although maybe a little less familiar in texture, were a little crispy on the outside, but with a nice meaty interior, with just a hint of pinkness to it.

I made a full kilogram of mici, which came to about 20 individual mici, so I was eating them for a couple of days. Many recipes suggest making them a day or two in advance and I must say that the ones I ate today (which had been in the fridge for two days) did seem to taste better than the ones I made right off the bat. It could just be that I was hungrier today, who knows?

Time: 1 hour (plus time for ‘maturing’)

Servings: 20 individual mici

Ingredients:

1 kilogram of chuck steak (ceafa de vita)

250g of beef suet (I couldn’t find this so I ended up using slanina – pork fat)*

½ teaspoon of ground cumin

½ teaspoon of ground allspice

Salt

Ground black pepper

A large chunk of bread

Some mujdei (crushed garlic, salt, and water)

½ teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda

Method:

1. Pass the beef through the mincer, then do the same with the suet. Mix them together well with your hands and then pass them through the mincer one more time.

2. Dip a lemon-sized chunk of bread (without crusts) into the mujdei and mix in with the meat.

3. Add all the other ingredients, with about a teaspoon of salt (more or less – Pastorel doesn’t give the exact quantity but I found a teaspoon was ok for my taste) and mix it thoroughly to obtain a paste.

4. Wet a wooden chopping board and your hands and roll out some of the meat paste into a smake of 3cm diameter. Cut 10-12cm lengths and place them on a moist plate. Repeat till all the meat paste is used up. Store them in the fridge for a couple of hours.

5. Cook them on a hot grill, or under a hot grill, or brush them with oil and roast them on a high temperature, or even fry them (although that tends to make them a bit too greasy).

6. Keep them warm in a cover bowl until they are all cooked and then serve with fried potatoes, fresh bread, mustard, and a salad.

*I’ve subsequently read elsewhere that the beef suet is the real ‘secret ingredient’ so I’ll have to make them again one day if I manage to find it. I wish I had been able to find the beef suet (seul de vita). Do any Romanian readers know where to get this in Bucharest?

Tocana cu rosii

“Meat stew with tomatoes”

One dish that you’ll almost certainly find a variation of on any Romanian restaurant’s menu is the tocana or tocanita. Essentially it is a stew made of meat and onions usually with other ingredients added to give it its particularity. A tocanita is simply the diminutive form of tocana. Radu Anton Roman described a tocana as a stew made from meat and/or vegetables with a lot of onions that you get in a restaurant. A tocanita, he says, is the same, but cooked by your mother.

This recipe is for a stew made with tomatoes. The key to a good tocana, I find, is slow cooking and good ingredients. Many stews in many cuisines around the world make use of lots of different stocks, spices, herbs, marinates, wines, and so on. The beauty of the Romanian tocana is its simplicity; making the most of a few choice ingredients cooked in a pot on a moderate heat with a little care over a long time. Cook it too quickly and it’s a stir fry.

Time: 60-80 minutes

Servings: 2

Ingredients:

500g of meat in large cubes (beef or pork are most commonly used – choose cuts that can stand stewing or braising like neck or belly of pork)

500g of juicy ripe tomatoes, skins removed and roughly chopped*

3-4 onions, roughly chopped

1 tablespoon of flour

Parsley or dill for garnish

Salt for seasoning

Oil or fat for cooking (any oil you like but pork dripping is traditional)

*you can use a tin of chopped tomatoes if you can find good in-season tomatoes in your local market. Out-of-season tomatoes tend to be flavourless and watery.

Method:

1. Heat a good tablespoon of the oil or fat in a deep pan and throw in the meat.

2. Add the roughly chopped onions and cook on a medium heat until the meat takes on a little colour and the onions start to soften and turn translucent. Don’t have the heat so high as to burn the onions.

3. Add a splash of water and continue to cook for about 30-40 minutes, adding water from time to time to stop it drying out and burning. Keep cooking until the onions have more or less ‘melted’ and the meat is tender and breaks apart under the pressure of the stirring spoon.

4. Add the chopped tomatoes and give it a good stir. Put a lid on it and allow to cook on a low heat for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally and checking that it’s not burning on the bottom.

5. Sprinkle on a tablespoon of flour and mix in and leave for another 5 minutes until the sauce is rich and thick.

6. Serve with mamaliga (polenta) or your favourite type of potato (mash works well to mop up the sauces, but I was in the mood for chips). You can garnish it with any herb and add a spoonful of sour cream for extra richness if you wish.

Gulas cu galuste

"Goulash with dumplings"

Goulash is essentially a Hungarian dish which gained popularity in the Ardeal region of Romania, eventually spreading around the entire country. There are many different recipes for goulash and every cook and every region will have their own additions or tricks. The essential componants are the meat (usually beef, but often pork), the onions, and the paprika. I was lucky enough to have some Hungarian paprika with is burnt clay colour and rich intensity. To really do the dish justice, try not to use that opened refill box of paprika that's been hiding in the back of the spice cupboard for the last six years; go out and treat yourself to a new packet. If you're interested in Romanian or Eastern European cuisine, then you're going to need it!

Although this recipe is specifically for goulash with dumplings, it's quite common to use potatoes instead. If you prefer you could make it without either, and serve it on rice or even with pasta. Whatever you do with it, it's one of those dishes that sits in your stomach and warms you from within on a cold evening. I see most of the people who visit this blog are from Romania, so leave a comment and let everyone know how you make or eat your goulash.

Servings: 4

Time: 2 hours

Ingredients:

800g of meat (shoulder of pork or beef)

3 tablespoons of dripping or oil

4-6 cloves of garlic (according to taste)

2 medium onions

2 large red peppers

1 hot pepper (optional)

1 carrot

1 tin of chopped tomatoes (or 500g of peeled and chopped fresh tomatoes if you have access to good ones)

1 tablespoon of tomato puree

4 tablespoons of good Hungarian sweet paprika (do make sure it’s not the hot kind – a mistake could be fatal!)

1 teaspoon of freshly ground cumin

2 fresh (preferably) bay leaves, torn in half or in thirds

1 bunch of parsley, chopped for garnish

Salt and pepper to season

For the dumplings:

1 egg

1-2 tablespoons of water

4-5 tablespoons of flour

Method:

1. Cut the meat into cubes of about 1.5cm square.

2. Heat/melt the dripping or oil in thick-bottomed pan and start to brown off the cubes of meat.

3. While the meat is browning off, you can prepare the vegetables. Peel and finely chop or slice the garlic. Peel the onion and chop it finely. Peel the carrot and grate it coarsely. De-seed the pepper and cut it into large pieces (2cm square-ish). If you want some kick to your goulash, chop the hot pepper, removing the seeds if you want it a little less potent.

4. Once the meat has browned off and its juices have reduced, add the onion, garlic, carrot, and pepper and cook on a medium heat until the onion has turned translucent and the pepper has softened, about 5-6 minutes.

5. Add the sweet paprika and cumin, mix in well, add the tomato puree, mix again.

6. Add the chopped tomatoes and the bay leaves and stir well.

7. Pour in about a litre of beef stock, or water at a scrape.

8. Cover and leave on a low heat for about an hour. The goulash might appear slightly too watery at this point, but don’t worry, it’ll reduce slightly over the hour and the dumplings will also absorb some of the liquid.

9. While it’s simmering, you can prepare the dumpling mix. Beat the egg in a bowl with the water and then add the flour, one tablespoon at a time, until you get a consistency that just resembles a dough rather than a batter.

10. After the goulash has had an hour with the cover on, remove the cover and taking the dough in one hand, break of smallish chunks with the other hand and roll them between your fingers to get something like a flat rugby ball, about 1cm thick. Dampening your hands with water can help. Don’t worry if they come out a little irregularly shaped, this is pretty normal for this dish. Drop these into the goulash and leave, uncovered, on the lowest heat for about 15-20 minutes. If you think it has reduced too much, you can add a drop more water or stock.

11. Serve in bowls with a sprinkle of fresh parsley and season to taste.

Jó étvágyat!