Spicy Grilled Mititei Recipe

These garlicky little bites of ground meat are Romania’s answer to trendy street food. They are crowd-pleasers hot off the grill and served on long bamboo skewers with dipping sauce or simple grainy mustard. The texture of these little sausages can vary from dense and meatball-like to authentic and spongy when seltzer and baking soda are added.

Ingredients:
1 pound ground beef
4 to 5 garlic cloves
1 tspn kosher salt
1 tspn sweet or hot Hungarian paprika
1/2 tspn freshly ground black pepper
Generous splash of Worcestershire sauce
1 tbsp ketchup
1/4 cup finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
2 tbsp seltzer or club soda, optional
2 tspn baking soda, optional

For the dipping sauce
4 tbsp ketchup
2 tbsp Dijon mustard
1/4 tspn ground cumin
Splash of Worcestershire sauce

Preparation:

1. Put the ground beef in a medium bowl.
2. Grate the garlic using a Microplane over the meat so the garlic juice is included; you want about 2 tablespoons total.
3. Add the salt, paprika, pepper, Worcestershire sauce, ketchup, and parsley. For a more authentic spongy texture add the seltzer and baking soda. Use your hands to thoroughly blend the spices into the meat.
4. Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours or up to 1 day.
5. Combine the dipping sauce ingredients and refrigerate until ready to use.
6. When ready to cook, light the grill or preheat the broiler and take the meat out of the fridge.
7. Wet your hands and form the meat into rounds the size of a golf ball, then elongate them into 3-inch thumb-like shapes.
8. Grill or broil for 4 to 5 minutes, turn them over, and continue to cook for 3 to 4 minutes longer. Serve with the dipping sauce or mustard on the side.
   

Makes 12 pieces.

Start to Finish: 15 minutes to prepare the meat; at least 4 or up to 24 hours to rest in the fridge; under 15 minutes to grill.

Recipe courtesy of The Kosher Carnivore: The Ultimate Meat and Poultry Book by June Hersh

Romania [ print this recipe ]