Europe on a plate - Romania

Traditional Romanian food brings together a mix of local ingredients and is heavily influenced by Balkan, Turkish, Serbian, German and Hungarian cuisines. Today's recipe is for Romanian Mici (garlicky meat sausages).

Ingredients:

  • 500 gr ground beef
  • 500 gr lean pork mince
  • 180 ml beef stock
  • 50 ml beer
  • 1 tsp bicarbonate soda
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 203 garlic cloves grated into a paste
  • 1 tsp thyme dry or fresh
  • 1 pinch nutmeg
  • ½ tsp ground coriander
  • ¼ tsp ground cumin
  • ¼ tsp black pepper
  • ½ tsp cayenne pepper or chili flakes (optional)

Instructions

  1. Place the meat into a bowl.
  2. In a larger jug, mix the beef stock with a beer and add the bicarbonate, spices, salt and pepper and give it a good stir until the salt has dissolved entirely.
  3. Add this liquid mixture to the meat and mix really well until the mixture becomes almost a paste.
  4. Rub your hands with either a dash of oil or water and then form the sausages into their shapes. The oil prevents your hands from sticking. Place all on a plate or a little tray, something that can easily be placed in the fridge.
  5. Transfer the open sausages to the fridge to rest for 2 to 4 hours but you can leave them overnight too.
  6. Place them onto a hot, hot grill or in a hot pan and cook them on each side (x 2) for no longer than 4 min.
  7. Mici is well served with mustard and a super cold glass of beer.

Enjoy!