Mititei

Mititei on the grill

Mititei (IPA: [mi.ti.'tej]) or mici (IPA: [mitʃʲ]) (Romanian for little, small or very little, very small - plural) is a traditional Romanian dish, grilled minced-meat rolls made from beef (usually mixed with mutton and pork), which contain garlic, black pepper, thyme, coriander, anise, savory and sometimes a touch of paprika. Sodium bicarbonate is also added. The good Mititei are juicy inside, and this is obtained adding some water or bones soup to the meat mix, before grilling it.

It is best served accompanied by mustard and beer. Ideally the mustard should not contain too much vinegar, because the sour taste does not fit with the Mititei. The mititei are very popular in Romania, together with the Shkembe chorba - a cow or pork stomach soup.

History

Legend has it that mititei were invented one evening at an inn called La Iordachi (At Iordachi) in Bucharest, well-known for its sausages, when the kitchen ran out of casings. Today, in Romania, almost every restaurant, especially those placed close to the traffic, offers this item. There are, however, some little variations in the recipe.

External links

• Template:Ro icon Wikibooks Cookbook - 1920 recipe for mititei
• Template:En icon Mici recipe