Romanian Mititei (Mici)

Lately I've been on an Anthony Bourdain No Reservations kick.  I've been DVRing every episode that comes on and watching them in spare time.  Recently I watched him travel to Romania.  It didn't go exactly as planned...they couldn't film at a Dracula site and Tony clearly wasn't loving the Dracula Halloween party he attended.  He did love the mititei (mici) though.  If you're having trouble with the pronunciation, it's like "meet-e-tay" or "meach."

No Reservations: Romania

What's mititei?  It's Romanian sausage, sans casing.  Evidently it's street food--best with mustard, pickles, and beer.  Snacks for everyone by day.  Meatballs for drunk Romanians by night.  A mix of meats and spices.  Everyone does it a little differently--some use more traditional seasonings like garlic and thyme, others get more adventurous with caraway and anise.  I'm not a big fan of anise, so we'll keep it simple.

I decided to make my own mititei.  I made mine a bit bigger than the traditional Romanian ones, but with the same flavors.  They turned out deliciously fatty and flavorful.

Ready to try some Romanian food?  While not the perfectly authentic ingredients, these are things you can find readily available and will evoke everything you need to hit that Eastern European note.  The hardest thing to find will be the ground lamb.  I called ahead to the Marsh closest to my house on Mass Ave. in Indy and they didn't have any.  I also tried the downtown Marsh, who said they have it from time to time, but not that day.  Claus' German Sausage and Meat Market in Indy also didn't have any--you have to call one to two days in advance because they thaw a piece of lamb shoulder for you and grind it to order.  But, Goose the Market to the rescue on Delaware Street!  I was able to pick up half a pound within thirty minutes of calling.

You'll need:
1 lb. ground beef (I used 80% chuck)
1 lb. ground pork Italian sausage (I use Bob Evans brand--has fennel seed in it)
1/2 lb. ground lamb
1 packet of beefy onion soup mix
1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 tablespoon paprika
1 tablespoon fresh thyme
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/4 c. club soda
skewers

Ingredients assembled.

Mix everything but the baking soda and the club soda in a large bowl, cover, and refrigerate for a few hours or overnight.  Don't press too hard or compress the mixed ingredients--just loosely form a ball.  While refrigerating, soak wooden skewers so they don't burn.  No need to soak if you're using metal skewers.

Mixed and ready to be covered and refrigerated.

When you're ready to cook them, preheat your oven to broil or heat your grill.  Add the baking soda and club soda.  Separate the meat into balls for however many skewers you're preparing (no fewer than six--six will make entree size mititei).  About twelve will make more expected snack sized size mititei.  Don't pack the meat down into the balls hard or you'll get what evidently they call "pucks" on the street.  The balls are just so the skewers are uniform size.

Take each of the balls and smooth the meat over the skewer into more of an oval or traditional sausage shape and size.  Again, don't push the meat down too hard or it will be too dense--a puck.

After the skewers are prepared, place them across a foil lined pan (not in the pan where they will sit in the fat that renders) or directly on the grill.  Don't move them until you have a nice char on the side.  Then rotate.

Once all sides have a nice char, remove and serve with homemade chips, mustard, pickles, and if you're included, a beer or three.

The final product--when six skewers are made--an entree-sized mititei (mici) skewer.

Poftă bună!

Easy Bacon Shortcut

I'm all for making my life more simple.  Last weekend, I had a lot to do and no time to stand over a skillet of bacon.  Actually two skillets.  My skillet doesn't fit all the bacon I usually want to cook, so I end up making two batches.  Sometimes that works in my favor since my fiance prefers his really crispy.  I like mine more chewy.  Nevertheless, I made bacon the easy way.  Here's an easy bacon shortcut for the days you don't have time to stand in front of the stove, or you don't want to clean up the grease that inevitably splatters all over your stove and neighboring counter.

Begin with thick cut bacon.  In the midst of all the wintery weather, I didn't have thick cut bacon from the butcher.  I made due with some thick cut grocery store bacon.  It isn't as good, but bacon is never bad!  Looking for great butcher bacon in Indianapolis?  Stop in to Goose the Market.  They have all kinds of bacon, even non-pork bacon, and a "bacon of the month" club you can join.  You can also stop into Fresh Market.  They usually have four to six bacon varieties.

Lightly coat an old baking sheet with non-stick spray.  Use an old baking sheet so that if a thin part of the bacon burns and leaves dark marks on the baking sheet, you aren't sad.  Then arrange the bacon on the baking sheet. 

Bacon ready to bake in the oven.  This time-saving shortcut allows you to cook something else, get ready in the morning, or cut down on grease splatter clean up.

Insider tip: scrunch the bacon a little bit so that it looks like it was pan-fried.  If you lay it perfectly flat, it won't bubble up as much and will look different than pan-fried bacon.

Bake at 375 for 25 minutes for extra crispy bacon.  For a chewy bacon, bake at 350 and check at 20 minutes, monitor the bacon closely every two to three minutes thereafter until desired doneness is achieved. 

Twenty-five minutes later: crispy bacon from the oven.  The pan will be greasy--this is why you may want to have an old pan dedicated to messy cooking.

Remove the bacon from the baking sheet to drain immediately or it will continue to cook.  Drain, pat with paper towels, and serve immediately.  If you aren't serving it immediately, you can warm it back up by wrapping the bacon in a paper towel and microwaving briefly.

Just remember to cook some extra since you'll probably eat a few slices before you serve the rest of the bacon!