Mititei (Mici)
User Reviews
4.9
-
Prep Time
30 mins
-
Cook Time
25 mins
-
Additional Time
8 hrs
-
Total Time
8 hrs 55 mins
-
Servings
20 pieces
-
Course
Main Course
-
Cuisine
Romanian
Mititei (Mici)
Description
Mititei or Mici consist of a seasoned and finely minced meat blend combining beef with either mutton or pork to achieve a rich and juicy texture. The meat is ground through a fine plate and combined with an aromatic mix of crushed garlic, thyme, juniper berries, coriander seeds, cumin, paprika, and baking soda. This combination adds depth and subtle spice to the meat.
The key to Mititei's texture is the thorough kneading process. Using a food processor with a dough hook or manual kneading, cold bone broth or water is gradually incorporated into the meat-spice mixture until it becomes soft, fluffy, and elastic. This paste-like mixture allows it to hold together well when grilled.
Traditionally, the formed rolls are grilled over direct heat until evenly cooked and slightly charred at the edges, making them ideal for outdoor cooking. This recipe targets making a flavorful sausage-like grilled treat often served with mustard or bread, commonly enjoyed as street food or barbecue fare in Romania.
Ingredients
- 700 g beef
- 300 g mutton or pork (fatter- breast,neck)
- 250-350 ml bone soup or very cold water
- 22 g salt
- ½ tsp black pepper fresh ground
- 1 tbsp thyme grated, dried
- 5-6 juniper berries
- ½ tsp coriander beans (about 30 small beans)
- 1 tsp cumin seeds grated
- 2 tsp paprika
- 5-6 cloves garlic large
- 1 tsp baking soda
Instructions
How to Make Mititei:
- Cut the beef and pork meat into cubes.
- Put in the finest cutting plate (with smaller holes) in the meat grinder and put all the meat through it, including the garlic cloves. You could also skip these steps by buying minced meat from your butcher shop.
- Crush all the spices in a pestle and mortar, making a floury and flavorful powder.
- Put the minced meat into a food processor (equipped with the dough kneading hook).
- The mixture needs to be kneaded hard for a few minutes. Some people also do it manually, but it's pretty hard work.
- Put the ground spices and baking soda over the meat and start the food processor.
- At first, the meat paste is very thick and hard to knead. Gradually add cold bone soup (or cold water) and knead everything for about 7-8 minutes until the mixture becomes fluffy and soft.
- Do not put in all the liquid if you feel that 250 or 300 ml (1 to 1 ¼ cups) is enough.
- Put the mixture into a clean bowl, cover it with plastic or aluminum foil and put it in the fridge overnight.
How to form beautiful and equal cylindrical mici?
- Take the mici mixture out of the fridge and leave it on the side for 30 minutes to warm up a bit. Then kneaded the meat for 2-3 minutes by hands to aerate it.
- Take a confectionery bag and cut its corner to 4 cm (1.6 inch). Fill it with the meat paste, then draw long lines with it on an oiled plastic cutting board. Very easy and fast work! Don’t make them too thin because they dry up when fried!
- Then cut the mici to 10 cm (3.9 inch). Brush them all over with vegetable oil (you can also use a spray).
- Grease a baking tray with oil and place on the mici, smoothing the tops a little so they look beautiful.
- Place foil over them and put them back in the fridge. The mici should be put on the grill when they are still cold. This does not apply to slices or large pieces of meat that need to sit before being fried.
User Reviews
Overall Rating
4.9
You'll Also Love
