Romanian Mici (Mititei)

Mici also known as Mititei (Romanian for “small ones”) is a Romanian dish of mini sausage-shaped grilled ground meat made from a mixture of beef, pork and sometimes lamb blended with various spices, including smoked paprika.

This recipe is from my friends Jeff and Iulia Orel. Iulia hails from Romania and her American husband, Jeff who’s a chef, has made it his mission to recreate and perfect the dish they’ve enjoyed while visiting Romania.

Ingredients:

• 1 ½ pounds ground beef
• 1 ½ pounds ground pork butt
• 2 tsp. sea salt
• 2 tsp. white pepper
• 2/3 tsp. smoked paprika
• ¼ tsp. coriander
• ½ tsp. cumin
• ½ tsp. cimbru (use savory if cimbru is unavailable)
• 3 tsp. garlic powder or 4 cloves minced into a paste
• 100 ml sparkling water ( ½ cup)
• 2 tsp. baking soda 

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Directions:

1. In a mixing bowl, combine all ingredients except for the water and the baking soda. Mix thoroughly. Cover tightly, or vacuum seal and refrigerate for 24 hours to allow the mici to develop their distinct flavor.
2. When you are ready to make the mici, build a fire and let it burn down to coals, no flames. Alternatively, preheat your grill to 500F.
3. While the wood is burning down to hot coals, I make the mici.
4. In a mixing bowl, add the mici mixture, the sparkling water and the baking soda and mix well with your hands until the mixture feels “sticky”. Jeff recommends using your hands, grabbing large handfuls and crushing them in your hands like you would to crush tomatoes.
5. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil, set aside.
6. Get a bowl of cold water to wet your hands periodically if the meat becomes too sticky.
7. Using a scale, weigh out the meat into 1 ¾ ounce portions (27 portions if you don’t have a scale) and roll them tightly into balls, like you would do with meatballs.
8. Roll out each mici into cylinder shapes like mini sausages (refer to the above photo of raw mici as reference).
9. After the coals are hot, lower the grate as low as possible. Having a spray bottle with water is a good idea in case of flares ups when grilling – flames would negatively impact the flavor and texture of the mici.
10. Place the mici on the grill, the key is to not mess with these, let them form a light crust before you turn them. Flip them once during cooking and let them be. Grill until the internal temperature reaches 140-145F (we know it’s recommended for the temperature to reach 160F, but at that temp, the mici will be less juicy. Up to you!), 8-15 minutes. The mici should have an elastic texture when you squeeze them and they’re done.

Serve immediately!

Note: The mici are best if served with Hrean, a horseradish condiment but yellow mustard would also work. To make your own Hrean, microplane a 3″ piece of fresh horseradish into 1 ½ Tbsp. sour cream.

Yields: 27 mici, 1 ¾ ounce each

Cheers,

Veronique