Tag: Minced beef

Stuffed Peppers

  • This dish is best with large fresh red peppers.
  • When I was served this in Poland, the peppers were really big and smelt wonderful.
  • You can vary the stuffing to suit but I will write up the dish I was served.
  • Cooked buckwheat or rice is used.

INGREDIENTS

  • 4 to 6 large red peppers
  • 100g cooked buckwheat or rice
  • 1 large onion – chopped and lightly fried
  • 2 cloves of garlic – chopped.
  • 200g – 250g minced beef 
  • *
  • Salt & pepper to taste.
  • Dried marjoram or mixed herbs
  • *
  • Vegetable stock – can be from powder or a cube
  • 2 tablespoons of tomato purée or tomato ketchup
  • 1 teaspoon of ground paprika
  • 2-3 tablespoons of soured cream

METHOD

  • Pre- heat the oven to GM3 – 150°C.
  • Cut the tops of the peppers and keep to one side.
  • Scoop out the seeds from the peppers.
  • Put the peppers into a roasting tray.
  • Add some of the vegetable stock to the base.
  • Cook for around 10 minutes to soften the peppers.
  • Leave to cool slightly.
  • Turn up the oven to GM4 – 180°C
  • Mix together the cooked buckwheat(or rice) with the minced meat, onion, garlic, marjoram or herbs.
  • Season to taste.
  • Fill each pepper with the filling and put on the tops.
  •  
  • *
  • Add the rest of the vegetable stock and add the paprika and tomato purée or ketchup and stir.
  • Put the peppers to stand in the stock mixture.
  • Put back into the oven and cook for around 1 hour.
  • You might need longer so the peppers are softish.
  • *
  • Add the soured cream to the stock mixture to make a sauce.

If you think you will have any left – before adding the soured cream put them into an ovenproof pyrex dish with a lid with some tomato stock liquid – you can reheat them the next day in a microwave and them add some soured cream.

These were so delicious and I am planning to try out some different fillings soon.

Lazy Goląbki – 2

  • I love goląbki – but must admit they are time consuming to make.
  • I came across this idea of using all the ingredients and making them into large kotlety( meatballs) cooking them in stock and then adding a tomato sauce.
  • They are called goląbki leniwe – lazy goląbki.
  • I made them with steamed cabbage as in  lazy goląbki – 1. 
  • Now I have  made kotlety with shredded fresh cabbage .
  • Here cooked rice is used as well.
  • No bread is added but semolina is used to help bind the ingredients.
  •  
  • This time I made them with fresh cabbage.

Ingredients

  • 500g minced beef
  • 100 – 150g boiled rice
  • ½  head of a small cabbage or a whole sweetheart cabbage
  • 2 egg – beaten
  • 1 teaspoons of salt
  • Ground black pepper
  • *
  • Semolina
  • Sunflower oil for lightly frying.
  • *
  • 750 ml vegetable stock
  • Several tablespoons of tomato purée 
  • *
  • Soured cream – optional

Method

  • Shred the cabbage and then chop into small pieces..
  • Pre-heat the oven to GM3 – 160°C
  • Mix the cabbage, meat and rice together until well mixed.
  • Add the beaten eggs.
  • Add the salt and pepper.
  • Mix everything together.
  • Add a little semolina if needed.
  • Using your hands make large oval shaped balls.
  • Roll then gently in the semolina.
  • *
  • Fry lightly on both sides.
  • Place tightly packed in a large roasting tin.
  • *
  • Mix the vegetable stock and tomato purée and pour over the goląbki.
  • Cover the dish with a sheet of baking foil.
  • Cook for around 2 hours.
  • *
  • Stir some soured cream into the sauce and serve.
  • *
  • TIP
  • I think it is best to make this the day before and then make up more vegetable stock and and tomato purée.
  • Pour this over the goląbki and heat again for at least an hour.
  • Add soured cream to the sauce and serve.

  • Option – not tested.

  • Add some grated cabbage to the mixture.

VERDICT

  • All my testers like the fresh cabbage version best.
  • These are meant to be lazy but they still required a lot of work.
  • Mixing the ingredients together took time.
  • I would find it easier to make my kotlety with cabbage  or even with sauerkraut and make them in tomato sauce and serve them with boiled rice.

Lazy Goląbki – 1

  • I love goląbki – but must admit they are time consuming to make.
  • I came across this idea of using all the ingredients and making them into large kotlety( meatballs) cooking them in stock and then adding a tomato sauce.
  • They are called goląbki leniwe – lazy goląbki.
  • Now I have  made kotlety with shredded fresh cabbage and with cooked cabbage before.
  • Here cooked rice is used as well.
  • No bread is added but semolina is used to help bind the ingredients.
  • I decided to make these with steamed cabbage,
  • I will try fresh cabbage next time.

Ingredients

  • 500g minced beef
  • 100 – 150g boiled rice
  • /½  head of a medium cabbage or a whole sweetheart cabbage
  • 1 egg – beaten
  • 1 teaspoons of salt
  • Ground black pepper
  • *
  • Semolina
  • Sunflower oil for lightly frying.
  • *
  • 750ml – 1 litre vegetable stock
  • Several tablespoons of tomato purée 
  • *
  • Soured cream – optional

Method

  • Shred the cabbage and then steam it.
  • Dry the cooked cabbage and chop into small pieces.
  • Pre-heat the oven to GM3 – 160°C
  • Mix the cabbage, meat and rice together until well mixed.
  • Add the beaten egg.
  • Add the salt and pepper.
  • Mix everything together.
  • Add a little semolina if needed.
  • Using your hands make large oval shaped balls.
  • Roll then gently in the semolina.
  • *
  • Fry lightly on both sides.
  • Place tightly packed in a large roasting tin.
  • *
  • Mix the vegetable stock and tomato purée and pour over the goląbki.
  • Cover the dish with a sheet of baking foil.
  • Cook for around 2 hours.
  • *
  • Either stir some soured cream into the sauce and serve
  • Or
  • Serve with a dollop of soured cream at the side.

Pulpety – Meat & Cheese

  • I came across this version of pulpety  (Polish meatballs) recently and thought I would give these a try as I always have lots of yoghurt cheese.
  • Both beef and pork are used in this recipe and I often do mix these two meat minces together.
  • Dried breadcrumbs are not used in this recipe.
  • The bread is not moistened with milk.
  • The following amounts made 30 pulpety.

Ingredients

  • 200g minced beef
  • 200g minced pork
  • 200g twaróg(curd cheese) or yoghurt cheese (well drained)
  • 2 small onions diced (I might wiz them up in a mini-chopper next time)
  • 2 teaspoons of Italian herbs
  • Fresh white breadcrumbs from a slice of white bread or a roll.
  • 1 egg
  • Salt & pepper
  • *
  • 500ml of chicken stock – can be from a cube or concentrate
  • *
  • 500ml of a sauce of your choice – I used a simple tomato sauce

Method

  • Mix all the ingredients together to a uniform mixture.
  • Hands are best at the end – the mixture is quite sticky.
  • Pinch off small bits of the meat mixture and roll the piece between your hands to make small round balls and place these onto a floured board or tray whilst you make them all.
  • Leave these to chill in a cool place or in the fridge for an hour or so.
  • Pre-heat the oven to GM4-180°C.
  • Heat the chicken stock in a deep wide frying pan.
  • Add some of the pulpety and simmer with a lid for around 5 minutes.
  • Have a large ovenproof dish ready with your sauce.
  • Remove the pulpety with a slotted spoon and add to the sauce.
  • Repeat with the rest of the pulpety.
  • Put a lid on the dish.
  • Cook in the oven for at least 1 hour.
  • You can lower the heat and cook for longer.

Sauces

The varieties here are endless – make one of your favourite sauces for example mushroom or tomato.

You can then serve them with potatoes, pasta, rice or to be very Polish – buckwheat or pearl barley.

 

Served in Royal Doulton – Burgundy – 1959-1981

 

 

Podkarpackie Hreczanyki

I saw a picture on an Instagram site of  Podkarpackie hreczanyki – I had not heard of them before so did some research and decided to make them.

They are buckwheat and minced meat kotlety (burgers or meatball).

Podkarpackie is a mountainous province in the south-eastern corner of Poland.

Its name translates into  English as Subcarpathian – these are the the foot hills of the Carpathian Mountains.

The usual Polish word for buckwheat is  gryka  but here a regional word  hreczka is used.

Buckwheat (Fagopyrum tataricum) is used very much in Polish cookery and was eaten in Poland long before the introduction of the potato in the 18th century.

I have written already about the use of its flour to make bliny & pancakes.

The buckwheat has a strong, slightly perfumed taste and I think beef is a good meat to mix with it.

These are often serve with mushroom sauce. I heated some up in the sauce itself and I thought they were even better this way. They soak up the sauce and are delicious.

Ingredients

  • 100g buckwheat
  • 500g of minced beef
  • 1 onion
  • 4 cloves of garlic
  • 2 eggs
  • Salt & pepper
  • *
  • Dried breadcrumbs or flour to shape
  • Sunflower oil for frying
  • *
  • Mushroom sauce for serving

Method

  • Cook the buckwheat according to instructions.
  • I use the boil in the bag method with a 100g packet.
  • Drain and leave to go cold.

 

 

  • Chop the onion and garlic very fine or use a mini chopper.
  • Mix the beef and buckwheat together.
  • Add the onion and garlic and the 2 eggs.
  • Add some salt and pepper.
  • Mix the ingredients together with your hands.
  • Shape the mixture into large balls and coat them with dried bread crumbs or flour.
  • Fry them on both sides so they are cooked through.
  • Keep the cooked ones in a low oven whilst cooking the rest.
  • *
  • Serve with a strong mushroom sauce or
  • *
  • Put them into an oven proof dish and cover them with mushroom sauce.
  • Cook for at least an hour at GM4 – 180°C.

 

 

Royal Doulton – Tapestry – 1966-1988

Kotlety mielone – in Lager with Caraway

This is another variation on the theme of kotlety mielone –  Polish meatballs  or as they are called  in the USA –  meat patties and now in England as burgers.

I got this idea from my fellow blogger – Lithuanian in the USA.   In their recipe for Meatballs in barbecue sauce – instead of  bread soaked in milk – oats are soaked in milk.

This sauce is one I made years ago and have just come across it in my recipe notes & cuttings – it is super – how could I have forgotten it?

Ingredients – meatballs

  • 500g minced beef
  • 1 beaten egg
  • 50g rolled oats
  • 125ml milk
  • 1 onion
  • 1 tablespoon of caraway seeds
  • 1/4 teaspoon of ground allspice
  • Salt
  • Ground black pepper
  • Plain flour for dusting
  • Butter for frying the onions
  • Sunflower oil for frying

Method

  • In a small bowl soak the oats in the milk for around 15 minutes.
  • *
  • Chop the onion into small pieces and fry in some butter until golden.
  • Add the caraway seeds and ground allspice and mix well together.
  • Leave to cool completely.
  • *
  • In a large bowl mix all the ingredients together, it is best to do this using both hands, making sure that all the ingredients are thoroughly combined.
  • Pour some flour onto a large plate or board.
  • Take a handful of the mixture and press it between your hands to make a flattened circle, place this in the flour and turn it over to cover both sides and edges.
  • Once coated place them on a tray dusted with flour until you have used all the mixture up.
  • *
  • Preheat the oven to GM4  – 180°C
  • *
  • Shallow fry the kotlety in hot oil, depending on the frying pan size,  you can do  4 to 5 at a time, turning them over so that both sides are done.
  • Place them in a large oven proof dish, which has a lid.
  • *
  • Pour the sauce over them, add the lid and put the dish into the oven.
  • Cook for at 75 to 90 minutes.
  • *
  • Super served with creamy mashed potatoes, pasta or boiled rice – sprinkle chopped chives or flat-leaved parsley over them before serving.

Ingredients – sauce

  • 300ml – 500ml of lager
  • 300ml of vegetable or chicken stock (can be from a cube or powder)
  • 4 tablespoons of soft brown sugar
  • 2 tablespoons of red wine vinegar
  • 4 tablespoons of tomato purée
  • 3 bay leaves

Method

  • Place all the ingredients into a sauce pan.
  • Heat gently, stirring until the sugar has dissolved.
  • Bring to the boil.
  • Remove from the heat and pour over the kotlety.

 

 

Kotlety mielone-2

I wrote the post – Kotlety mielone  quite a while back.

Kotlety is the Polish word for cutlets or chops however mielone means minced – so kotlety mielone are what in the USA are called meat patties or now in England as burgers.

These are a variation on the theme as  I used English sausage meat rather than minced pork.

Ingredients

  • 400g minced beef
  • 250g of premium sausage meat (English style)
  • 1 beaten egg
  • 1 slice of white bread or bread roll, left for half an hour in a bowl with a little milk – do not use the excess milk just the wet slightly squeezed bread

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  • 1 onion finely chopped and fried till golden brown and left to cool.

IMG_20160608_092246618_HDR

 

 

 

 

 

 

  • 1 teaspoon of Italian herbs or similar
  • Salt
  • Ground black pepper
  • Dried breadcrumbs – home made – see Breadcrumbs – Bułka tarta
  • Sunflower oil for frying

Method

  • In a large bowl mix all the ingredients together except for the dried breadcrumbs, it is best to do this using both hands, making sure that all the ingredients are thoroughly combined.

  • If the mixture seems too wet then add a tablespoon full of dried breadcrumbs and mix this in.
  • Pour some dried breadcrumbs onto a large plate or board.
  • Try to make each one the same size, take a handful of the mixture and press it between your hands to make a flattened circle and then place this in the dried breadcrumbs and turn it over to cover both sides and edges.
  • *
  • Once coated place them on a tray dusted with breadcrumbs until you have used all the mixture up.
  • *
  • Preheat the oven to GM4  – 180°C
  • Shallow fry the kotlety in hot oil, depending on the frying pan size,  you can do  4 to 5 at a time, turning them over so that both sides are done.
  • Place them on a metal baking tray and put these into the oven.
  • Keep adding to the tray until they are all cooked.

Super served with creamy mashed potatoes – sprinkle chopped dill or parsley over them before serving.

Here I served them with boiled potatoes and mushroom sauce and Carrot & Apple salad.

I also like them with any sauerkraut or cabbage salad see  Sauerkraut Salads  and  Cabbage Salad.

The Next Day

You can eat any cold kotlety you have left with a variety of salads.

However I often re-heated them in a sauce in the oven – this time I cooked them in tomato sauce and served them with pasta – you can add some grated Parmesan cheese and sniped chives if you like.

 

 

Kotlety with Sauerkraut

Having made kotlety mielone (minced meat burgers ) with first fresh and then cooked cabbage,  I started to think of a variation which in a way is more Polish!

I decided to use sauerkraut and also some fresh mushrooms  – though dried ones might even be more Polish.

Ingredients

500g beef mince

Half a 900g jar of sauerkraut *

150g of mushrooms

1 onion – chopped fine

2 -3  tablespoons semolina

2 eggs

Butter & sunflower oil for frying

Dried breadcrumbs  

Salt  and pepper

* I often freeze the other half of the jar in a plastic tub for another time.

Method

Drain the sauerkraut and rinse with cold water.

Place the sauerkraut in a pan of water and simmer gently for 5-10 minutes.

Drain the sauerkraut and leave to cool then dry  it with a tea towel.

Chop the sauerkraut into small pieces using a sharp knife.

Fry the chopped onion in a little hot oil and butter.

Chop the mushrooms into small pieces and add them to the onions and continue frying until the onions are lightly browned – leave the mixture to cool.

In a large bowl mix the minced meat,  the sauerkraut and onion and mushroom mixture until they are evenly mix.

Add the eggs and mix.

Add the semolina, salt and pepper and mix until you get a uniform mixture.

Try to make each one the same size, take a handful of the mixture and press it between your hands to make a flattened circle and then place this in the dried breadcrumbs and turn it over to cover both sides and edges.

Once coated place them on a tray dusted with breadcrumbs until you have used all the mixture up.

Pre-heat the oven to GM3 – 160°C

Shallow fry the kotlety in hot oil, depending on the frying pan size,  you can do 4 to 5 at a time, turning them over so that both sides are done.

Place them on a  metal tray  and put in the oven and keep adding to these as you keep frying the batches.

 

Served here with gherkins

20180422_200309

 

 

 

 

 

 

They were voted as delicious!

Note

Should you have any left,  you can reheat them in sauce made with chicken or vegetable stock.

 

Zrazy – made with Minced Meat

These zrazy are like the ones made with braising beef in that the minced meat mixture surrounds various stuffings.

The minced meat mixture  is similar to kotlety mielone  &  pulpety – but  zrazy are cooked differently.

You take a large handful of minced meat mixture , place the stuffing on it and then close up the mixture so you have an oval shape with the stuffing on the inside.

Ingredients

500g minced beef

1 beaten egg

4 tablespoons of semolina

1 onion chopped and fried

Salt & pepper

plain flour for coating

Sunflower oil for frying

Stock

500ml of chicken stock

1 -2 bay leaves

3-4 Peppercorns

2-3 Allspice berries

Stuffing

Two stuffings often used are –

Pieces of bottled peppers

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sticks of Gouda cheese or similar

20180130_120003

Method

Pre-heat the oven to GM 3 – 160°C

Mix the beef, fried onion, egg and semolina together.

Season with salt & pepper.

Divide the mixture into around 6 pieces

Flatten out each piece and place the stuffing in the centre.

Close up the mixture around the stuffing to make an oval shaped ball.

Dust the ball with plain flour.

 

Lightly seal these by browning then in hot oil.

 

Place the zrazy into an oven proof dish – one that has a lid – so they are not touching.

Pour in the stock – enough to have some at the bottom but do not cover the zrazy.

 

Put the lid on and cook in the oven for 1 -2 hours.

Sauce

You can thicken the stock that the zrazy are cooked in with cornflour or you can add other ingredients such as fried mushrooms and soured cream when you come to serve them.

 

 

 

Two shown here – cut through – one with cheese & one with peppers,  served with a mushroom and soured cream sauce.

Served on Royal Doulton  Carnation – 1982-1998

 

 

 

Kotlety mielone

There is a little bit of linguistic confusion with this dish – I have noticed it in most translations for this recipe.

Kotlety is the Polish word for cutlets or chops as discussed in my  last post.

Mielone means minced – so kotlety mielone are what in the USA are called meat patties or now in England as burgers.

My mother called both dishes kotlety – I would realise from the ingredients as to which dish  was being prepared in the kitchen.

We had kotlety mielone once a week at home, any left would be heated up in a sauce, often mushroom, the next day.

In Poland they would have been made with minced pork but previously this  was hard to get  and my mother found it hard work to use a hand mincer, so she made hers with minced beef using the beef that the butcher would mince for her.

In her original recipe she would use an onion which was grated finely; this was the job that was often delegated to me!  Later on she changed her recipe and would chop up the raw onion finely and fry this up lightly and let it go cold before adding it to the mince mixture.  I now like this second version better, but both are good and you can even do half and half.

Nowadays I  use an electric mini chopper to “grate” the onion.

img_20161024_064841982_hdr

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I used beef in this recipe for years and then tried pork, and also half and half; I like the ones half and half the best,  however I always make sure it is lean pork mince.

Ingredients

500g minced beef or pork, or 250g of each

IMG_20160321_155541079

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1 beaten egg

1 slice of white bread or bread roll, left for half an hour in a bowl with a little milk – do not use the excess milk just the wet slightly squeezed bread

 

1 onion finely grated, or chopped and fried till golden brown and left to cool. (or half and half)

IMG_20160608_092246618_HDR

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1 teaspoon of Italian herbs or similar

Salt

Ground black pepper

Dried breadcrumbs – home made see Breadcrumbs – Bułka tarta

Sunflower oil for frying

Method

In a large bowl mix all the ingredients together except for the dried breadcrumbs, it is best to do this using both hands, making sure that all the ingredients are thoroughly combined.

If the mixture seems too wet then add a tablespoon full of dried breadcrumbs and mix this in.

Pour some dried breadcrumbs onto a large plate or board.

Try to make each one the same size, take a handful of the mixture and press it between your hands to make a flattened circle and then place this in the dried breadcrumbs and turn it over to cover both sides and edges.

Once coated place them on a tray dusted with breadcrumbs until you have used all the mixture up.

Shallow fry the kotlety in hot oil, depending on the frying pan size,  you can do 3 to 4 at a time, turning them over so that both sides are done. Place them on kitchen roll on a plate or metal tray till they are all cooked –  you can keep them warm in a low oven.

I usually serve them with creamy mashed potatoes or lightly buttered boiled rice.

Here they are served with a beetroot & apple salad see  Buraki – Buraczki – Beetroots – Beets.

I also like them with any sauerkraut or cabbage salad see  Sauerkraut Salads  and  Cabbage Salad.

Variations

Sometimes I add some finely chopped peppers or chillies to the mixture and serve them with boiled rice.

You can make the kotlety with minced chicken or turkey.

In Poland many people think that ones made with minced veal are the best.

Jasia’s  Variations

My cousin  Janina (Jasia is the diminutive) in her farm house in the Mazurian lakes in North East Poland made some kotlety mielone which had an addition to the usual recipe. Each one had a small piece of  stuffing inside.  The meat recipe was the same as was the method of cooking but when she was making them, she placed a little extra at the centre and this added an extra dimension to an old favourite.

The stuffing she used  was one of the following:

A cube of cheese – the type which will melt like Gouda or cheddar

A chunk of pickled gherkin.

A thick slice of fried mushroom.

The Next Day

You can eat any kotlety you have left, cold with mustard and any salad.

However if I have any kotlety  left, I often re-heated them in a sauce in the oven, my favourite is mushroom sauce.

I often just make a very quick sauce by frying up some sliced mushrooms in a little butter, adding some stock (mushroom or chicken – made from a stock cube). Add the kotlety  into the pan and heat them through in the oven for around 1 hour.

 

Add some soured cream mixed with a tablespoon of corn flour and out this back in the oven for a while or continue heating it on a top burner.

Super served with creamy mashed potatoes – sprinkle chopped dill or parsley over them before serving.

 

Served on Carnation (1982 – 1998)  by Royal Doulton.