Radio România Internațional

Tag: garlic

Nettle-based dishes

Nettles are among the plants heralding
the advent of spring. They grow naturally,
nearby waters or on the outskirts of forests. Eating nettles is a well-known
procedure for the detoxification of our body. The young nettle leaves are
usually plucked in March and early April. They are plucked manually by tearing
the stalks. When we do that, it is recommended that we wear gloves since
nettles are extremely stingy. We recall the nettles’ irritating hairs grow long
before the nettles become mature. The nettles must be plucked in unpolluted
areas, which means that, for instance, we must avoid the nettles growing by the
side of the road, as they may have elements of exhaust gas. Having plucked the
nettles, you need to remove the leaves one by one and wash them thoroughly,
until no trace of dirt or sand can be detected. The nettle leaves must then be
put in a pot with boiling water. Bring the water to boiling point a couple of
times. Using a skimmer, take out the nettles and drain them. Traditionally, the
juice in which the nettles were boiled is a natural remedy. According to the
elders, the juice where the nettles were boiled can be drunk in the morning, on
an empty stomach, as a detoxification procedure.

Soup but also thick soup can be
prepared using the nettles. We need half a kilogram of nettles, two small
onions, a little bit of oil and a couple of garlic cloves. Wash the nettle
leaves several times, then put them to the boil together with the
finely-chopped onions. Drain the nettle leaves, then mash them, together with
the onion. Add the juice in which they boiled, obtaining a rather thick soup.
Add a little bit of crushed garlic and salt to the taste. Serve immediatley.

For the thick soup, we need half a
kilo of nettle, two carrots, one celeriac, a couple of fresh onion sprigs, a
cup of rice. Scald the nettles in boiling water, then finely-cut the carrots
and the celeriac. Put them to the boil with a little bit of salt. As soon as
the water has reached boiling point, add the rice, the nettles and the onion
sprigs, finely-chopped. Fifteen minutes before the end of the boiling cycle add
half a liter of fermented wheat bran brew, which was boiled separately.
Sprinkle minced lovage leaves on top of the thick soup. Serve immediately.

The nettle leaves can make the main
ingredient for fasting dishes. They also go with sour cream, butter or even
eggs. Boil the nettles with a little bit of salt, with a finely-chopped onion,
then mash them and mix them with a little bit of oil, sour cream, butter or
even garlic sauce. The nettle leaves cream best goes with poached eggs and
polenta as a main course. In combination with rice, we can obtain a pilaff,
also served as a main course. Enjoy!

22 March 2020
Nettle-based dishes

Nettles are among the plants heralding
the advent of spring. They grow naturally,
nearby waters or on the outskirts of forests. Eating nettles is a well-known
procedure for the detoxification of our body. The young nettle leaves are
usually plucked in March and early April. They are plucked manually by tearing
the stalks. When we do that, it is recommended that we wear gloves since
nettles are extremely stingy. We recall the nettles’ irritating hairs grow long
before the nettles become mature. The nettles must be plucked in unpolluted
areas, which means that, for instance, we must avoid the nettles growing by the
side of the road, as they may have elements of exhaust gas. Having plucked the
nettles, you need to remove the leaves one by one and wash them thoroughly,
until no trace of dirt or sand can be detected. The nettle leaves must then be
put in a pot with boiling water. Bring the water to boiling point a couple of
times. Using a skimmer, take out the nettles and drain them. Traditionally, the
juice in which the nettles were boiled is a natural remedy. According to the
elders, the juice where the nettles were boiled can be drunk in the morning, on
an empty stomach, as a detoxification procedure.

Soup but also thick soup can be
prepared using the nettles. We need half a kilogram of nettles, two small
onions, a little bit of oil and a couple of garlic cloves. Wash the nettle
leaves several times, then put them to the boil together with the
finely-chopped onions. Drain the nettle leaves, then mash them, together with
the onion. Add the juice in which they boiled, obtaining a rather thick soup.
Add a little bit of crushed garlic and salt to the taste. Serve immediatley.

For the thick soup, we need half a
kilo of nettle, two carrots, one celeriac, a couple of fresh onion sprigs, a
cup of rice. Scald the nettles in boiling water, then finely-cut the carrots
and the celeriac. Put them to the boil with a little bit of salt. As soon as
the water has reached boiling point, add the rice, the nettles and the onion
sprigs, finely-chopped. Fifteen minutes before the end of the boiling cycle add
half a liter of fermented wheat bran brew, which was boiled separately.
Sprinkle minced lovage leaves on top of the thick soup. Serve immediately.

The nettle leaves can make the main
ingredient for fasting dishes. They also go with sour cream, butter or even
eggs. Boil the nettles with a little bit of salt, with a finely-chopped onion,
then mash them and mix them with a little bit of oil, sour cream, butter or
even garlic sauce. The nettle leaves cream best goes with poached eggs and
polenta as a main course. In combination with rice, we can obtain a pilaff,
also served as a main course. Enjoy!

16 March 2020
Crawfish in garlic sauce

It may come as a surprise that Romanians love crawfish. It is not exactly a wildly popular dish, but it is a delicacy prized by connoisseurs, especially people who dabble in fishing, professionally or otherwise. As such, lately in Romania some passionate souls have set up crawfish farms, making crawfish tails available even in supermarkets.

Crawfish is not a complicated dish to make, you simply boil them and then dip them in a simple garlic sauce. You should discard dead crawfish before cooking them. They also should be thoroughly washed of the mud they dwell in. Bring to a rolling boil a pot of fresh water to which you add a couple of tablespoons of salt. Boil the crawfish five to ten minutes, until they turn lobster red. Turn off the heat and let them cool in the water they boiled in. After shelling them, mash some garlic with salt into a paste, then add oil, as if making mayonnaise. You can also add some vinegar if you like it. The best part of the crawfish is the tail, and also the meat of the pinchers. Any kind of seafood sauce goes with it, obviously, making for a delicious meal rich in protein, with little fat to speak of.

A good indication of ways to prepare crawfish are recipes for cooking shrimp. One variation is stuffed crawfish. Set aside a few shells, then proceed to mince finely the meat, mixing with rice, finely chopped onion and finely chopped fresh parsley. Add salt and pepper to taste, stuff the shells, then boil on medium heat, serving hot. Enjoy!

19 November 2017
Goulash Contest

At the end of last week, an open-air museum in Dumbrava Sibiului hosted a cooking contest. Five families took part in the contest in which they were supposed to cook the best goulash, which is a staple meal in Transylvania. The winners will take part in the world’s biggest goulash contest, to be hosted by neighboring Hungary.

Roughly 500 liters of goulash were cooked in Dumbrava Sibiului, with ingredients provided by a producer of organic food and some of the farmers in the area. The Sibiu contest is in line with a series of other cooking events aimed at promoting a holiday destination.

Goulash is a stew or soup of Hungarian origin, which can also be found in Transylvania, Slovakia, Serbia and Italy. The stew is usually made up of pork, beef, onion, carrots, bell peppers, parsley and seasoned with spices like pepper, paprika and caraway. If potatoes are added, goulash looks more like a stew and can be served as the main course.

In order to prepare goulash you need a kilo of finely chopped pork, which is browned in hot oil, or according to tradition, in lard. Take the meat out of the pan and in the same oil or lard sauté several finely chopped onions, two shredded carrots, a finely chopped bell pepper and a couple of garlic cloves. After having sautéed the vegetables put the meat back in the pan, pour a cup or two of water, cover and let it simmer for 45 minutes.

In order to get the specific reddish colour add paprika, tomato juice or paste, ground black pepper and if you want a hot goulash, add chili pepper. Salt the goulash to taste.

Now, if you want your goulash to be thicker, before adding the spices, you can throw in chopped potatoes or small flour dumplings, which should boil for about 20 minutes. Goulash can be served hot with a glass of red, semi-dry wine. Enjoy!

16 July 2017
Crawfish in Garlic Sauce

It may come as a surprise that Romanians love crawfish. It is not exactly a wildly popular dish, but it is a delicacy prized by connoisseurs, especially people who dabble in fishing, professionally or otherwise. As such, lately in Romania some passionate souls have set up crawfish farms, making crawfish tails available even in supermarkets.

Crawfish is not a complicated dish to make, you simply boil them and then dip them in a simple garlic sauce. You should discard dead crawfish before cooking them. They also should be thoroughly washed of the mud they dwell in. Bring to a rolling boil a pot of fresh water to which you add a couple of tablespoons of salt. Boil the crawfish five to ten minutes, until they turn lobster red. Turn off the heat and let them cool in the water they boiled in. After shelling them, mash some garlic with salt into a paste, then add oil, as if making mayonnaise. You can also add some vinegar if you like it. The best part of the crawfish is the tail, and also the meat of the pinchers. Any kind of seafood sauce goes with it, obviously, making for a delicious meal rich in protein, with little fat to speak of.

A good indication of ways to prepare crawfish are recipes for cooking shrimp. One variation is stuffed crawfish. Set aside a few shells, then proceed to mince finely the meat, mixing with rice, finely chopped onion and finely chopped fresh parsley. Add salt and pepper to taste, stuff the shells, then boil on medium heat, serving hot. Enjoy!

20 September 2015