pork

Classic Pork Roast / Klasična pečena svinjetina

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I remember clearly those Sundays while I was just a little girl, when I’d step into the hallway of our apartment building, and the smell of roasting meat would just swarm me from all around. The times were definitely different back then and big chunks of roasted meat were a luxury people would only serve on big Sunday meals or on holidays.

Nowadays, though, meat is pretty affordable. Roasting a big hunk of meat is easy and leaves you with plenty of leftovers to incorporate in your meals during the week. I love adding thinly sliced cold roast into my salads or sandwiches, just as much I love a fresh roast.

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For a delicious roast, the only two things you need to do is to pick out a fresh and good quality chunk of meat and generously season it with salt and pepper the night before. That’s it. I prefer going for such neutral seasoning, so I can later play with add-ons while eating leftovers.

A lot of people prefer searing the meat in the pan before roasting, so the outer pores can seal and the meat is more juicy and tender. Honestly, I never bother with this. Mainly because I am too lazy to justify getting another dish dirty, but also because I prefer meat really well done. I’ve never had a piece of meat that was too dry for my unsophisticated palate.

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INGREDIENTS:

(4.86 EUR)

1 kg pork loin (4.00 EUR)

1 tsp salt, divided (0.01 EUR)

1 tsp freshly ground black pepper, divided (0.01 EUR)

3 tbsp oil, divided (0.04 EUR)

4-5 large potatoes, scrubbed and cut into chunks (0.80 EUR)

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METHOD:

Pat dry pork loin from any liquids, rub well with about ½ tsp of salt and ½ tsp of pepper and refrigerate overnight in an open container. When ready to roast, preheat oven to 200°C. Lightly brush the meat and roasting pan with a bit of oil. Sprinkle a bit more salt and pepper on top of the pork loin. Scatter potatoes around the meat and toss with remaining oil, salt and pepper.

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Roast all for 1 to 1 ½ hours, depending on how well done you prefer your meat, while stirring the potatoes once or twice during baking. Once done, allow the roast to rest for about 15 minutes before cutting into it and serving. This way the meat will relax after roasting and all the juices will redistribute evenly.

This amount of potatoes should be enough for 3-4 servings and you’ll have enough leftover meat to use up in later meals. Of course, feel free to add in more potatoes to your pan. As they bake, they’ll soak up all the delicious juices from the meat and taste heavenly.

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Dobro se sjećam tih nedjelja dok sam još bila mala, kada bi izašla na hodnik naše zgrade, a sa svih strana bi me oplahnuo miris pečenog mesa. Onda su vremena bila drugačija, a veliki komadi pečenog mesa bili su luksuz koji bi si ljudi priuštili za velike nedjeljne objede i za blagdane.

U današnje je doba meso poprilično jeftino. Ispeći veliki komad mesa je jednostavno, a kasnije vam ostane dovoljno ostataka da ih kombinirate sa obrocima kroz tjedan. Volim ubaciti tanko narezanu hladnu pečenku u salate i sendviče jednako koliko volim i svježe pečeno meso.

Za ukusnu pečenku trebate samo dvije stvari, a to su izabrati dobar i svjež komad mesa i večer prije ga pošteno začiniti sa solju i paprom. I to je to. Meni je draže koristiti takve neutralne začine, jer onda se kasnije kada jedem ostatke mogu poigrati sa raznim dodacima.

Dosta ljudi prije pečenja meso kratko poprži na tavi da se vanjske pore zatvore, pa unutrašnjost onda bude mekša i sočnija. Iskreno, meni se to nikada ne da. Uglavnom iz razloga što sam prelijena da opravdam prljanje još jedne posude, ali također i zato što volim kada je meso jako dobro pečeno. Još mi se nikada nije desilo da pojedem komad mesa koji je presuh za moje nesofisticirano nepce.

SASTOJCI:

(36,41 kn)

1 kg svinjskog buta (30,00 kn)

1 žličica soli, podijeljena (0,01 kn)

1 žličica svježe mljevenog crnog papra, podijeljena (0,10 kn)

3 žlice ulja, podijeljene (0,30 kn)

4-5 velikih krumpira, oribanih i narezanih na kocke (6,00 kn)

PRIPREMA:

Kuhinjskim ručnikom dobro posušite but od bilo koje tekućine, utrljajte u meso oko ½ žličice soli i ½ žličice papra i ostavite preko noći u hladnjaku u otvorenoj posudi. Kada ste spremni za pečenje, zagrijte pećnicu na 200°C. Lagano premažite meso i protvan sa malo ulja. Posipajte još mrvicu soli i papra po butu. Krumpire raštrkajte oko mesa i pomiješajte sa preostalim uljem, soli i paprom.

Pecite sve 1 do 1 ½ sat, ovisno o tome koliko dobro pečeno volite meso, s time da jednom ili dva puta promiješate krumpire tijekom pečenja. Kada je sve gotovo, pustite da pečenka odmara oko 15 minuta prije nego što ju krenete rezati i posluživati. Na taj način će se meso opustiti i svi će se sokovi u njemu jednako preraspodijeliti.

Ova bi vam količina krumpira trebala biti dovoljna za 3-4 porcije te će vam još ostati i nešto mesa, da ga iskoristite u kasnijim obrocima. Naravno, slobodno dodajte još krumpira. Kako se peku, oni će upiti sve ukusne sokove iz pečenke i biti prefini.

Classic Pork Roast / Klasična pečena svinjetina

Mustard and Paprika Marinated Pork Chops with Potatoes and Mixed Salad / Svinjski krmenadli marinirani u senfu i paprici sa krumpirima i miješanom salatom

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I’m really proud of whipping up such a well-rounded meal on top of juggling a couple of other things on a busy afternoon. Not that I’m such a fantastic multitasker, noup. This is simply one of those recipes where you’re utilizing your oven to do most of your work for you. That way you can do your nails or catch up on your favorite TV show.

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INGREDIENTS:

(Yields 3 servings / 1.90 EUR per serving / 5.70 EUR for all)

For the pork chops:

½ tsp salt (0.01 EUR)

½ tsp freshly ground black pepper (0.01 EUR)

1 tsp sweet Hungarian paprika (0.03 EUR)

2 tsp mustard (0.07 EUR)

2 tbsp olive oil (0.09 EUR)

6 boneless pork chops (2.67 EUR)

For potatoes:

1 kilo baby potatoes (1.33 EUR)

½ tsp salt (0.01 EUR)

½ tsp freshly ground black pepper (0.01 EUR)

2 tbsp olive oil (0.09 EUR)

For mixed salad:

1 head of iceberg lettuce (0.67 EUR)

½ small head of kohlrabi (0.13 EUR)

6 radishes (0.27 EUR)

Pinch of salt (0.01 EUR)

Pinch of freshly ground black pepper (0.01 EUR)

Juice of 1 lemon (0.20 EUR)

2 tbsp olive oil (0.09 EUR)

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METHOD:

To make marinade for the pork chops, in a small bowl, whisk together salt, black pepper, paprika, mustard and olive oil until creamy and uniform. Rub marinade into each pork chop and let them rest for at least half an hour, but best overnight.

When ready to bake, preheat oven to 200°C. Give potatoes a good scrub, quarter with skins intact and toss together with salt, pepper and olive oil. Bake for 20 minutes, then carefully arrange pork chops on top of potatoes and bake for additional 20-30 minutes, depending on how well done you prefer your meat and how thick are the slices. I generally prefer mine crisped down to shoe leather, but I understand that most people do not share these sentiments.

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Meanwhile, prepare salad by giving the vegetables a good wash. Cut lettuce into strips. Peel and cut kohlrabi into thin slices. Trim and discard radish ends and then cut into thin coins or half-moons. Toss all the salad vegetables with salt, pepper, lemon juice and olive oil.

Serve with hot meat and potatoes.

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Stvarno sam ponosna na samu sebe što sam sklepala ovako fino zaokružen objed dok sam usput žonglirala sa par drugih stvari jedno zagužvano popodne. Nije da sam takav fantastični multitasker, a-a. Ovo je jednostavno jedan od onih recepata gdje vaša pečnica za vas odrađuje sav težak posao. Tako da vi možete lakirati nokte, ili pogledati vašu najdražu seriju.

SASTOJCI:

(Za 3 porcije / 14,17 kn po porciji / 42,51 kn za sve)

Za svinjske krmenadle:

½ žličice soli (0,01 kn)

½ žličice svježe mljevenog crnog papra (0,10 kn)

1 žličica slatke crvene paprike (0,25 kn)

2 žličice senfa (0,50 kn)

2 žlice maslinovog ulja (0,66 kn)

6 svinjskih krmenadli bez kostiju (20,00 kn)

Za krumpire:

1 kg mladih krumpira (10,00 kn)

½ žličice soli (0,01 kn)

½ žličice svježe mljevenog crnog papra (0,10 kn)

2 žlice maslinovog ulja (0,66 kn)

Za miješanu salatu:

1 glavica salate kristalke (5,00 kn)

½ male glavice korabice (1,00 kn)

6 rotkvica (2,00 kn)

Prstohvat soli (0,01 kn)

Prstohvat svježe mljevenog crnog papra(0,05 kn)

Sok od 1 limuna (1,50 kn)

2 žlice maslinovog ulja (0,66 kn)

PRIPREMA:

Da napravite marinatu za kotlete, u maloj zdjelici istucite sol, papar, papriku, senf i maslinovo ulje dok ne dobijete kremastu i jednoličnu smjesu. Utrljajte marinadu u krmenadle i ostavite ih da odleže barem pola sata, a najbolje preko noći.

Kada ste spremni za pečenje, zagrijte pećnicu na 200°C. Dobro operite i istrljajte krumpire, ostavite kožu na njima i prerežite na četvrtine pa pomiješajte sa soli, paprom i maslinovim uljem. Pecite ih 20 minuta, a onda pažljivo po krumpirima poslažite krmenadle i pecite dodatnih 20-30 minuta, ovisno o tome koliko pečeno volite meso i koliko su vam debeli krmenadli. Ja općenito preferiram meso zapečeno do konzistencije kože za cipele, ali jasno mi je da većina ljudi ne dijeli moje osjećaje.

U međuvremenu, pripremite salatu tako da dobro operete svo povrće. Narežite kristalku na trakice. Ogulite i narežite korabicu na ploškice. Rotkvicama odrežite i bacite krajeve, pa ih narežite na tanke novčiće ili polumjesece. Pomiješajte salatu sa soli, paprom, sokom od limuna i maslinovim ulje.

Poslužite sa vrućim mesom i krumpirima.

Mustard and Paprika Marinated Pork Chops with Potatoes and Mixed Salad / Svinjski krmenadli marinirani u senfu i paprici sa krumpirima i miješanom salatom

Burrito Bowls / Burito zdjelice

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These were initially planned to be made as burrito wraps. However, my tortilla making game definitely needs a lot more practice. My tortillas came out too tiny and too thick. Maybe I could’ve wrapped a carrot stick in them. But definitely not all the sauce, cheese and veggies I’d wanted to. Hence I’ve decided to take the bowl route. And what a great journey that has been, ha!

INGREDIENTS:

(Yields at least 8 generous servings / 1,75 EUR per serving / 14.03 EUR for all)

For the meaty sauce:

1 tbsp sunflower seed oil (0.01 EUR)

1 large onion, diced (0.10 EUR)

1 kilo of mixed ground beef and pork – 50:50 (6.67 EUR)

4 garlic cloves, minced (0.13 EUR)

3 large carrots, diced (0.10 EUR)

3 bell peppers, diced (1.33 EUR)

1 can beans (0.67 EUR)

1 can diced tomatoes (0.53 EUR)

1 tsp salt (0.01 EUR)

1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes (0.13 EUR)

1 tbsp sweet Hungarian paprika (0.07 EUR)

1 can corn (0.80 EUR)

Handful fresh parsley, roughly chopped (0.27 EUR)

To assemble the bowls:

1 cup grated cheese (0.67 EUR)

2 cups tortilla chips or 4 tortillas, cut into triangles and lightly toasted (1.33 EUR)

1 cup lettuce, roughly chopped (0.27 EUR)

2 tomatoes, diced (0.67 EUR)

½ cup sour cream (0.27 EUR)

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METHOD:

In a large pot, sauté onion on a medium heat with a tablespoon of oil until softened and slightly translucent. Add in minced meat and break it off with your spatula into small chunks. Cook the meat through for about 5-10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add in minced garlic, diced carrots and peppers and stir everything thoroughly. Cook for additional 5 minutes before adding drained beans, can of tomatoes, salt, red pepper and paprika. If needed, you can add a splash of water to the pot as well. Just a small heads up, for milder bowls reduce the amount of hot pepper flakes. You can easily add more later on if needed.

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Gently simmer the sauce for about half an hour, so all the tastes can develop, stirring occasionally. Lastly, when the sauce is done stir in drained corn and roughly chopped parsley. Remove pot from heat, taste and adjust seasoning.

To assemble bowls, ladle finished sauce into small bowls. Top sauce with grated cheese, and divide tortilla chips or triangles, lettuce, tomatoes and sour cream between the bowls. A scoop of guacamole would also be awesome.

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Ovo sam jelo inicijalno planirala raditi kao burrito. Međutim, moja vještina pečenja tortilja baš i nije nešto. Tortilje su mi ispale sićušne i predebele. U najboljem sam slučaju u njih mogla zamotati komad mrkve. Nikako ne sav umak, sir i povrće koje sam planirala. Iz tog sam razloga odlučila krenuti u smjeru burito zdjelica. I kakvo je to samo čudesno putovanje na kraju ispalo!

SASTOJCI

(Za barem 8 izdašnih porcija / 13,14 kn po porciji / 105,11 za sve)

Za mesni umak:

1 žlica suncokretovog ulja (0,10 kn)

1 veliki luk, narezan na kockice (0,75 kn)

1 kg miješanog mljevenog mesa, svinjetina i junetina 50:50 (50,00 kn)

4 češnja češnjaka, sitno narezana (1,00 kn)

3 velike mrkve, narezane na kockice (0,75 kn)

3 šarene paprike, narezane na kockice (10,00 kn)

1 konzerva graha (5,00 kn)

1 konzerva sjeckane rajčice (4,00 kn)

1 žličica soli (0,01 kn)

1 žličica sušenog čilija u pahuljicama (1,00 kn)

1 žlica slatke crvene paprike (0,50 kn)

1 konzerva kukuruza (6,00 kn)

Pregršt svježeg peršina, grubo narezanog (2,00 kn)

Za složiti zdjelice:

1 šalice naribanog sira (5,00 kn)

2 šalice tortilja čipsa ili 4 tortilje, narezane na trokutiće i lagano tostirane (10,00 kn)

1 šalica zelene salate, grubo narezane (2,00 kn)

2 rajčice, narezane na kocke (5,00 kn)

½ šalice kiselog vrhnja (2,00 kn)

PRIPREMA:

U velikom loncu na srednjoj vatri izdinstajte luk na žlici ulja, da malo omekša i postane staklast. Dodajte mljeveno meso, pa ga sa špatulom izmrvite na sitne komadiće. Prokuhajte meso oko 5-10 minuta uz povremeno miješanje.

Ubacite nasjeckani češnjak, mrkvu i paprike i dobro promiješajte. Kuhajte 5 minuta prije nego što ćete dodati ocijeđeni grah, konzervu rajčice, sol, čili pahuljice i crvenu papriku. Ukoliko je potrebno, podlijte sve sa malo vode. Samo mala napomena, za blaži umak prepolovite količinu čilija. Kasnije po potrebi lako možete dodati još.

Pustite da se umak nježno krčka uz povremeno miješanje oko pola sada, kako bi se svi okusi proželi. Na kraju, kada je umak već gotov, umiješajte ocijeđeni kukuruz i nasjeckani peršin. Maknite lonac s vatre, kušajte i prilagodite začine.

Burrito Bowls / Burito zdjelice

Barley with Smoked Pork Bones / Ječam sa suhim svinjskim kostima

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I love cooking with smoked pork bones because they are incredibly cheap and give fantastic smoky flavor. My butcher also sells bones that have quite a bit of meat on them, so with a little hassle you get a really affordable, satisfying meal. I usually toss smoked bones into stews and similar soupy dishes, but this time decided to throw them in a pot with barley and vegetables, to make a thick, risotto-like one pot dish.

Also, I got really lucky and scored bones which were on sale, so it was double win for me.

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INGREDIENTS:

(Yields 8 servings / 0.43 EUR per serving / 3.40 EUR for all)

2 tbsp olive oil (0.09 EUR)

1 large onion (0.10 EUR)

4 large carrots (0.13 EUR)

2 parsley roots (0.27 EUR)

½ small celeriac root (0.27 EUR)

3 garlic cloves (0.09 EUR)

2 cups barley (0.67 EUR)

2 tbps tomato paste (0.13 EUR)

1 tsp sweet Hungarian paprika (0.03 EUR)

1 tsp freshly ground black pepper (0.03 EUR)

Bunch of fresh parsley leaves (0.13 EUR)

Bunch of fresh celeriac leaves (0.13 EUR)

1 kilo of smoked pork bones (1.33 EUR)

6-8 cups water (–)

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METHOD:

Finely dice all the vegetables. In a colander, wash barley under running water. Chop pork bones into 6-8 smaller chunks (you can also ask your butcher to do this for you).

In a deep pot, saute diced onion with olive oil on high heat for about 5 minutes, until translucent. Add in diced carrot, parsley root, celeriac root and garlic, giving everything a good stir. Cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add in barley, paprika, black pepper, chopped parsley and celeriac leaves, then stir to combine. Nest pork bones in with the barley. Pour water so everything is mostly submerged, bring to boil and cook on low with lid cracked open for 45 minutes. Occasionally check on the dish and gently scrape barley from the bottom of the pot and add more water if necessary.

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After 45 minutes turn the heat off, remove bones and let them cool enough to handle. Pick the meat from the bones, return meat to barley pot and stir everything well, discarding the clean bones. Now taste the dish for seasoning and adjust as necessary. Mine didn’t need any salt at all, the bones were salty enough. You might also want to add a bit more water, if the dish appears too thick, as barley keeps absorbing water all the time.

Serve with a nice green salad and enjoy!

Volim kuhati sa suhim svinjskim kostima jer su jako jeftine a jelu daju fantastičnu aromu dima. Moj mesar prodaje kosti na kojima uvijek bude dosta mesa, tako da sa malo truda uvijek dobijem jeftino a ukusno jelo. Obično suhe kosti ubacim u variva i slična jušna jela, ali sam se ovoga puta odlučila dodati ih u lonac sa ječmom i povrćem, da dobijem gusto jelo slično rižotu, koje se kuha u jednom loncu.

Također, uspjela sam naletiti na suhe kosti na sniženju, pa je ovo za mene bila dvostruka pobjeda.

SASTOJCI:

(Za 8 porcija / 3,20 kn po porciji / 25,56 kn za sve)

2 žlice maslinovog ulja (0,66 kn)

1 veliki luk (0,75 kn)

4 velike mrkve (1,00 kn)

2 korjena peršina (2,00 kn)

½ male glavice celera (2,00 kn)

3 češnja češnjaka (0,70 kn)

2 šalice ječma (5,00 kn)

2 žlice pasirane rajčice (1,00 kn)

1 žličica slatke crvene paprike (0,25 kn)

1 žličica svježe mljevenog crnog papra (0,20 kn)

Pregršt svježeg lišća peršina (1,00 kn)

Pregršt svježeg lišća celera (1,00 kn)

1 kg suhih svinjskih kostiju (10,00 kn)

6-8 šalica vode (–)

PRIPREMA:

Sitno narežite svo povrće. U cjedilu pod tekućom vodom operite ječam. Nasijecite suhe kosti na 6-8 manjih komada (možete zamoliti i vašeg mesara da vam to napravi).

U dubokom loncu, na jakoj vatri, dinstajte luk na maslinovom ulju oko 5 minuta, dok ne postane staklast. Dodajte narezane mrkvu, korjen peršina, korjen celera i češnjak pa sve dobro promiješajte. Dinstajte oko 5 minuta, povremeno miješajući. Ubacite ječam, crvenu papriku, papar, nasjeckano lišće peršina i celera pa sve izmiješajte. Ugnijezdite unutra komade kostiju. Prelijte vodom, tako da sve uglavnom bude potopljeno, pričekajte da zakipi, pa onda smanjite vatru na nisko i kuhajte sa odškrinutim poklopcem 45 minuta. Povremeno provjerite jelo i nježno postružite ječam sa dna lonca, a po potrebi dodajte malo vode.

Nakon 45 minuta ugasite vatru, izvadite kosti i pustite da se malo ohlade. Skinite meso sa kostiju, pa meso umiješaje u lonac s ječmom, a kosti bacite. Sada probajte jelo i prilagodite začine. Ja nisam morala uopće soliti, jer su kosti bile već dovoljno slane. Možda ćete morati dodati i još malo vode ako vam se jelo čini pregustim, jer ječam upija puno tekućine.

Poslužite sa velikom zelenom salatom i uživajte!

Barley with Smoked Pork Bones / Ječam sa suhim svinjskim kostima

Sauerkraut Meat Wraps / Sarma

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This dish is, hands down, one of my favorite local specialties. It’s an old folk dish, hearty and filling. And it is said that it tastes the best on the seventh day, when you reheat it for the seventh time. So you simmer it in your largest pot, hoping that it will actually last for seven days. It never does, though. We always polish off whatever we have in a couple of days.

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Sarma is traditionally prepared for New Year’s Eve celebrations. It’s supposed to be eaten after midnight, when everyone already has a steady alcohol flow in their bloodstreams. It warms you up and puts you back on your feet, so you can go party some more. Isn’t that a perfect dish, the one that brings you back to life?

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Don’t get intimidated by what seems like a lengthy process. Making a batch of Sarma isn’t really such a big deal.And, once cooked, you’ll have lunch and dinner situations solved for many days to come. This dish also freezes really well.

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INGREDIENTS:

(Yields 20 wraps / 0.96 EUR per wrap / 19.30 EUR for all)

1 medium sized whole sauerkraut head, about 2.5 kilos (5.00 EUR)

0.2 kilos of smoked bacon (1.47 EUR)

1 large onion (0.10 EUR)

1 chili pepper (0.07 EUR)

4 garlic cloves (0.09 EUR)

Handful of fresh parsley (0.13 EUR)

1.5 kilos of 50:50 mixed minced beef and pork meat (11.00 EUR)

1 large egg (0.20 EUR)

1 cup rice (0.13 EUR)

Crack of fresh black pepper (0.01 EUR)

3 tbsp sweet Hungarian paprika, divided (0.20 EUR)

2 bay leaves (0.03 EUR)

1 tbsp tomato concentrate (0.07 EUR)

0.5 kilo cured smoked pork ribs, broken into smaller chunks(0.80 EUR)

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METHOD:

First taste your sauerkraut. If you think it’s too salty or sour, give it a quick rinse from excess brine. Using a small paring knife, gently separate 20 whole leaves from the head, cutting out and discarding the tough middle vein, and set aside. You’ll use these to make wraps. Thinly slice the remaining cabbage, discarding the tough middle stem. Place about 1/3 of shredded cabbage on the bottom of a large pot. This will ensure that wraps don’t stick to the pot and burn while cooking.

Finely chop bacon, onion, garlic, chili pepper and parsley. Add all to a large bowl and mix with your hands with minced meat, egg, rice, black pepper and 1 tbsp of paprika until thoroughly combined. I intentionally avoid adding any salt to the mixture, as cured meats and sauerkraut are already salty enough on its own.

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Squeeze a handful of meat mixture in a ball and wrap into sauerkraut leaf you prepared earlier. Neatly arrange wraps on the cabbage bed on your pot bottom, squeezing chunks of pork ribs in between and filling any gaps with shredded sauerkraut. When you finish the first row, add a row of shredded sauerkraut, sprinkle with 1 tbsp of paprika, add a bay leaf and repeat once more with another row of wraps. Once everything is used up, sprinkle with remaining tbsp of paprika, add bay leaf,tbsp of tomato concentrate and enough water to the pot that everything is submerged.

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Place pot on high heat until it starts boiling. Then reduce heat to medium and cook with lid cracked open for 1.5 hours. Don’t even attempt to stir during cooking as the wraps will fall apart.

Once cooked, serve on its own or with some mashed potatoes.

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 Ovo je jelo, bez imalo dvojbe, meni najdraži lokalni specijalitet. To je staro narodno jelo, zasitno i punog okusa. Kažu da je sarma najbolja sedmi dan, kada ju sedmi puta podgrijete. Pa ju uvijek kuham u najvećem loncu, u nadi da će nam možda i trajati sedam dana. To se još nije desilo. Uvijek smažemo sve što imamo u samo par dana.

Sarma se tradicionalno jede na dočeku Nove Godine, iza ponoći, kada su svi već dobro potkresani i imaju dovoljno alkohola u krvotoku. Ali sarma je tu da vas ugrije i digne natrag na noge, da možete dalje tulumariti. Zar jelo koje vas vraća natrag u život ne zvuči savršeno?

Nemojte se bojati pripreme sarme koja se možda čini dugačkom i kompliciranom. Sve je to zapravo jako jednostavno, a kada se sve skuha, imati ćete ručak i večeru riješene za sljedećih nekoliko dana. Također, sarma se i super smrzava.

SASTOJCI:

(Za 20 sarmi / 7,23 kn po sarmi / 144,70 kn za sve)

1 srednje velika cijela glavica kiselog kupusa, oko 2,5 kg (37,50 kn)

0,20 kn dimljenog špeka (11,00 kn)

1 veliki luk (0,75 kn)

1 čili papričica (0,50 kn)

4 češnja češnjaka (0,70 kn)

Pregršt svježeg peršina (1,00 kn)

1,5 kg 50:50 mješavine mljevenog goveđeg i svinjskog mesa (82,50 kn)

1 jaje (1,50 kn)

1 šalica riže (1,00 kn)

Prstohvat svježe mljevenog crnog papra (0,05 kn)

3 žlice slatke crvene paprike, podijeljene (1,50 kn)

2 lovorova lista (0,20 kn)

1 žlica koncentrata rajčice (0,50 kn)

0,5 kg dimljenih suhih svinjskih rebrica, nasiječenih na manje komade (6,00 kn)

PRIPREMA:

Prvo probajte kiselo zelje. Ako je prekiselo i preslano, isperite ga pod tekućom vodom. Nožićem nježno skinite 20 cijelih listova i odstranite im i bacite tvrdu glavnu žilu. Stavite na stranu. U te ćete listove kasnije umatati sarme. Tanko narežite ostatak zelja, a debelju stabljiku bacite. Oko 1/3 narezanog zelja rasporedite po dnu lonca, jer ćete tako osigurati da se sarme ne prime za dno i ne zagore dok se kuhaju.

Sitno nasjeckajte špek, luk, češnjak, čili i peršin pa ih u velikoj zdjeli rukama pomiješajte sa mljevenim mesom, jajem, rižom, paprom i 1 žlicom slatke paprike, dok ne dobijete jednoličnu smjesu. Ja namjerno ne solim meso iz razloga što su i kiselo zelje i suho meso dovoljno slani da začine svu sarmu.

Oblikujte loptice od mješavine mljevenog mesa i umatajte u ranije pripremljene listove zelja. Slažite sarme na posteljicu od narezanog zelja u loncu, a između njih rupe popunjavajte sa suhim rebricama i ostatkom narezanog zelja. Kada složite prvi red, pobacajte po vrhu još malo narezanog zelja, posipajte sa 1 žlicom paprike i stavite lovorov list, pa sve ponovite u drugom redu dok ne potrošite sve sastojke. Na kraju sve posipajte preostalom žlicom slatke paprike, dodajte list lovora, žlicu koncentrata rajčice i prelite vodom dok sarme ne budu potopljene.

Stavite lonac na jaku vatru dok ne zakipi, potom smanjite na srednje i kuhajte sa odškrinutim poklopcem 1,5 sat. Nemojte niti pokušavati miješati jer će vam se sarme raspasti.

Kada je sarma gotova, poslužite ju samu ili sa pire krumpirom.

Sauerkraut Meat Wraps / Sarma

Stuffed Peppers / Punjene paprike

Crunch Crunch Away, , , , , , , 1 Comment

You know it’s autumn in Zagreb when you’re walking down the street and whole neighborhoods smell of stuffed peppers simmering. It makes me want to just randomly invite myself to peoples’ apartments and sit down at their table. Feed me your peppers, yo! I am crazy about this dish. It’s perfect – warm, hearty, filling, tasty, simple. And, you can make a humongous batch and freeze for later, which I always do. More often than not, my ambitions exceed the capacities of my pots. There’s always something spilling and bubbling over, because I’ve filled the pot to the brim. What can I say, I have a problem.

The key to making fantastic stuffed peppers is in two things: picking out the right peppers and picking out the right meat. Pick out peppers that are big, meaty and with intense smell. They don’t need to look perfect. You’re not gonna force them into a beauty pageant. Mine were all spotty and overripe. Petals were dark brown with a bit of gunk here and there. In other words, they were just right.

When it comes to meat, try to avoid buying prepackaged ground meats. Ever. That’s just not the right way to do ground meat. Supermarket ground meat is filled with preservatives to extend its shelf life. No one knows how long it’s been minced and hanging around. I won’t even go into the abyss off imagining from how many animals and which body parts it came from. I really think that ground meat should be used up on the same day it was minced. So, if you can’t mince it yourself, ask your butcher to do it for you and use it up on the same day.

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Okay, now that we’ve got these important questions out of the way, let’s do some stuffed peppers!

INGRIDIENTS:

(Yields 14 stuffed peppers / 1.03 EUR per stuffed pepper / 14.55 EUR for the whole batch)

14 large bell peppers – around 2 kilos (2.13 EUR)

1.5 kilo of mixed ground beef and pork – 50:50 (10.66 EUR)

1 large egg (0.20 EUR)

1 large onion, finely diced (0.13 EUR)

4 garlic cloves, minced (0.13 EUR)

1 chili pepper, seeds discarded, then finely diced (0.07 EUR)

Handful of fresh parsley, finely chopped (0.13 EUR)

½ cup rice (0.07 EUR)

1 ½ tsp salt (0.01 EUR)

1 tbsp sweet Hungarian paprika (0.07 EUR)

¼ tsp cayenne pepper (0.01 EUR)

½ tsp freshly cracked black pepper (0.01 EUR)

1 kilo tomato puree – 2 boxes (0.93 EUR)

Warm water to submerge the peppers – around 1 liter (–)

METHOD:

Wash peppers and remove stem and seeds with a small paring knife. In a large bowl, using your hands, mix ground meat with egg, diced onion, minced garlic, diced chilly, chopped parsley, rice, salt, paprika, cayenne and black pepper until thoroughly combined. Stuff prepared peppers with the filling and neatly arrange in a deep pot. Once all the filling and peppers are used up, pour tomato puree over. As necessary, add warm water until most of the peppers are submerged. Don’t worry if they are peeking out here and there, as they will cook through from the steam within the pot.

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Simmer on medium heat for two hours, with lid cracked open, so extra steam can escape. There is no need to stir this dish at all, as peppers are lighter than liquid and will float above the pot bottom, hence escaping the peril of ending burned.

Once cooked, serve with mashed potatoes.

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This dish freezes and reheats tremendously and tastes even better on the second day.

Znate da je jesen u Zagrebu kada cijeli kvartovi mirišu po punjenim paprikama. Od toga mi dođe da banem ljudima doma i samo se sparkiram za njihov stol. Dajte mi vaše paprike! Luda sam za ovim jelom jer je savršeno – toplo, domaće, zasitno, fino i jednostavno. I možete napraviti gargantuansku porciju i onda smrznuti za crne dane, a što ja uvijek napravim. Često moje ambicije premašuju kapacitete mojih lonaca. Uvijek mi nešto iskipi jer natrpam previše paprika. Što reći, imam problem.

Dvije su stvari ključne kod toga da paprike ispadnu fantastične: prave paprike i pravo meso. Uzmite paprike koje su debele, mesnate i intenzivnog mirisa. Ne moraju izgledati savršeno jer ih nećete natjerati na izbor za miss. Moje su bile točkaste i prezrele. Peteljke su bile smeđe i povenute, sa mjestima koje je trebalo izrezati van. Drugim riječima, bile su savršene.

Kada je u pitanju meso, probajte izbjegavati pakirano faširano meso. Uvijek. Dućansko faširano meso puno je konzervansa da može dulje stajati na polici. Nitko nema pojma o tome kada je smljeveno. Neću ni ulaziti u priču od koliko je životinja napravljeno i kojih sve njihovih dijelova. Mislim da je najbolje faširano meso iskoristiti isti dan kada je smljeveno. Ako ne možete sami samljeti meso, zamolite mesara da vam to napravi od komada koje ste izabrali i iskoristite ga obavezno isti dan.

Okej, sada kada smo riješili ove bitne stavke, idemo puniti paprike!

SASTOJCI:

(Za 14 punjenih paprika / 7,80 kn po punjenoj paprici / 109,16 kn za sve)

14 velikih paprika babura – oko 2 kg (16,00 kn)

1,5 kg miješanog mljevenog junećeg i svinjskog mesa – 50:50 (80,00 kn)

1 jaje (1,50 kn)

1 veliki luk, sitno nasjeckan (1,00 kn)

4 češnja češnjaka, sitno nasjeckana (1,00 kn)

1 čili papričica, sjemenke bačene, pa sitno nasjeckana (0,50 kn)

1 svežanj peršina, sitno nasjeckan (1,00 kn)

½ šalice riže (0,50 kn)

1 ½ žličica soli (0,01 kn)

1 žlica slatke paprike (0,50 kn)

¼ žličice kajenskog papra (ili ljute paprike) (0,10 kn)

½ žličice svježe mljevenog crnog papra (0,05 kn)

1 kg pasirane rajčice – 2 tetrapaka (7,00 kn)

Tople vode da paprike budu potopljene – oko 1 litra (–)

PRIPREMA:

Operite paprike i nožićem im odstranite peteljke i koštice. U velikoj zdjeli rukama dobro izmješajte mljeveno meso, jaje, nasjeckane luk, češnjak, čili i peršin, rižu, sol, slatku papriku, kajenski papar i crni papar dok se svi sastojci ne prožmu. Punite paprike smjesom i uredno slažite u duboki lonac. Kada ste iskoristili svu smjesu i paprike, prelijte sve pasiranom rajčicom i dodajte vode dok paprike uglavnom nisu potopljene. Nema veze ako malo i strše van jer će se skuhati od pare u loncu.

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Krčkajte na srednje jakoj vatri dva sata, sa poklopcem mrvicu odškrinutim da višak pare može izaći van. Nema potrebe uopće miješati jer su paprike lakše od tekućine pa će se odignuti od dna lonca i neće zagoriti.

Kada su paprike kuhane, poslužite ih sa pire krumpirom.

Ovo se jelo super smrzava i podgrijava, a još je finije idući dan.

Stuffed Peppers / Punjene paprike