Eastern European Street Food

Eastern European Street Food

Cevapcici (Balkan)

It has been said the casing-less sausages known as cevapcici found their way into Eastern Europe via the Ottoman Empire, which picked them up from Arabic cultures around Persia.

Today, there are different versions of cevapcici throughout Croatia, Serbia, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Macedonia. Some use pork and lamb, others use pork, lamb and beef, and yet others omit the pork entirely.

Originally, they were skewered and grilled over an open fire. Nowadays, most cooks grill, broil or pan fry them. They make great appetizers and sandwiches on lepinje bread!

Makes 6 servings of Cevapcici

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 pound ground beef chuck
• 1/2 pound ground pork
• 1/2 pound ground lamb
• 1 clove garlic, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup finely chopped onions
• 1 teaspoon salt
• Finely chopped onions, for garnish

Preparation:

1. Mix together beef, pork, lamb, garlic, 1/2 cup chopped onions and salt until thoroughly combined.
   
   
2. Roll meat mixture into a long, 3/4-inch cylinder. Cut links at 4-inch intervals. Or, you can use a sausage extruder. Place on plastic wrap-lined plate, cover with more plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour to firm. Note: Sausages can be frozen at this point. When ready to use, thaw or cook from the frozen state.
   
   
3. Broil "cevapcici" on a charcoal grill or a preheated oven broiler rack coated with cooking spray 4 to 6 inches from flame, 4 minutes per side or until no longer pink in the middle. Or they can be pan fried in a large skillet coated with cooking spray over high heat for a total of about 8 minutes, turning frequently to brown all sides.
   
   
4. Serve with chopped raw onion, Serbian potato salad and pogacha bread. Cevapcici make great appetizers!

Mititei (Romanian)

The story has it a popular mid-19th-century Romanian inn, famous for its sausages, was out of a customer favorite. To save time, the chef formed the unstuffed meat mixture into sausage-shaped cylinders and grilled them over charcoal. The customers delighted in "the wee ones without skin," and so these casingless sausages became known as Mititei or "the wee ones."

Mititei also can be made with lamb or pork or a combination, and formed into patties or meatballs and grilled, broiled, pan fried or baked in the oven. Indoor grills work great, too.

Makes 6 servings of Romanian Mititei Sausages

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds ground chuck
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons water
• 3 finely chopped garlic cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon hot red pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon hot Hungarian paprika
• 2 teaspoons caraway seeds
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Preparation:

1. Place all ingredients in a large bowl and mix thoroughly, wetting your hands frequently to keep the meat moist. Cover bowl and refrigerate at least 6 hours or overnight.
   
   
2. Using slightly dampened hands, divide mixture into 18 equal portions and form into oval sausages about 3 inches long and 1 1/2 inches thick.
   
   
3. Grill, broil or pan fry 7 minutes per side or bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.
   
   
4. Serve with tomato and green onion salad, sour cream sprinkled with paprika, baked potato or french fries, or rice.
   
   
5. "Mititei" make great appetizers and are wonderful cold the next day in a sandwich.