Cevapcici - serbien meat dish

These three recipes were found in the Milwaukee Journal in December of 2010. 

Erica's CevapciciMakes about 2 pounds or 20 small cevapcici

1 pound finely ground beef

½ pound finely ground pork

½ pound finely ground lamb

1 teaspoon black pepper

2 teaspoons salt

4 cloves garlic, chopped

1 teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon baking soda

Finely chopped onions

In large bowl, thoroughly mix together all ingredients except onions with your hands. Shape mixture into small cylinders about 1 inch in diameter and 2 inches long.

Grill over medium heat about 8 minutes on each side or until well done. Serve with finely chopped onions on a roll.

Susan's Cevapcici (Cevaps)Makes 6 servings

2 ¼ pounds ground pork

1 ½ pound lean ground beef

¾ pound ground lamb

2 egg whites

6 cloves garlic, minced

1 ½ teaspoons salt

1 ½ teaspoons baking soda

1 tablespoon ground black pepper

1 ½ teaspoons cayenne pepper

¾ teaspoon paprika

Finely chopped onions for garnish

Preheat a grill to medium-low.

In a large bowl, combine meats and egg white. Add garlic, salt, baking soda, black pepper, cayenne pepper and paprika. Mix well using your hands, and form into finger-length sausages about ¾ inch thick.

Lightly oil the grilling surface. Grill sausages until cooked through, turning as needed, about 4 minutes per side or until no longer pink in the middle. (Place sausages carefully on grill so they don't slip through.)

To serve: Place cevapcici on a serving platter that has been lined with chopped onions.

David and Mladen's CevapciciMakes about 4 pounds

3 pounds ground beef (use 85% lean; see note)

1 pound finely ground lean lamb (use butt)

1 tablespoon salt

½ tablespoons black pepper

½ tablespoon baking soda

1 tablespoon seltzer water (must have CO2)

2 to 3 small cloves garlic (do not mince)

2 medium onions, cut into discs

Pita or flat bread

Chopped onion

In a nonreactive dish (plastic, ceramic, stainless steel), mix meats together with salt, pepper, baking soda and seltzer. Cover mixture with crushed garlic and onion disks. Wrap tightly and refrigerate at least 12 hours; however, 24 hours is best.

When ready to prepare, remove from refrigerate two hours before grilling.

Remove all the onion and garlic and discard. Mix meats again to incorporate flavors.

Roll up cevapcici by hand. They should be between ½ and ¾ inch in diameter and 2 ½ to 3 inches long. Formed cevapcici should be tight and uniform in thickness. You should get 18 to 20 cevapcici per pound of meat.

Let rest at least 30 minutes

To prepare: Heat grill to between medium and medium-high. Grill until cevapcici is firm and bounces a little off the grill plate when dropped from about 8 to 12 inches.

Roll frequently. No traces of well-done or crispy bits should be on cevapcici.

Put pieces of pita or flat bread over the meat for just a minute or two to warm before removing from the grill.

Serve 5 to 10 cevapcici per person with the bread, onions or kajmak. Kajmak is a mixture of feta and cream cheeses beaten with butter until fluffy.

Note: Beef that is 80% lean can be used, but be careful when grilling, as you can get flames.