Dishes from Wallachia

The Wallachian cuisine was influenced by the Greek and oriental one, by the French and even by the Italian cuisine. Wallachian recipes include lots of vegetables, meat, meat products, fish, milk, pasta and fruit. Rooster, goose or pork jelly are some of Wallachias staple dishes. In the old days, foreign guests who were invited to princely banquets were simply taken aback by that dish, which also had bits of vegetables in it, which made a very good impression thanks to vegetables lively coloring. No less amazing were fruits preserved in brine, such as apples or melons, which always went with the fatty dishes.

Ștefan Baciu, 28.02.2016, 14:13

The Wallachian cuisine was influenced by the Greek and oriental one, by the French and even by the Italian cuisine. Wallachian recipes include lots of vegetables, meat, meat products, fish, milk, pasta and fruit. Rooster, goose or pork jelly are some of Wallachias staple dishes. In the old days, foreign guests who were invited to princely banquets were simply taken aback by that dish, which also had bits of vegetables in it, which made a very good impression thanks to vegetables lively coloring. No less amazing were fruits preserved in brine, such as apples or melons, which always went with the fatty dishes.

Soups were soured with under-ripe fruit, such as green cherry plums or grapes. Later stocks were soured with lemon and wheat bran brew, which was of Russian origin, with vinegar being much less used for that. Stocks could also be soured with sauerkraut juice. Chicken, beef as well as lots of vegetables were used to prepare the stock. The nobles very much favored the meatballs sour soup, with sour cream dressing and garnished with lovage leaves.

Here is the recipe for the meat jelly, one of Wallachias traditional dishes. If you want to prepare chicken jelly, you need a kilo of chicken wings and drumsticks, as well as a bunch of chicken feet and heads, so that the jelly congeals as quickly as possible. You also need two onions, two carrots, a head of garlic and a bunch of fresh parsley leaves. Leave the meat to boil, together with the carrots and the onion. Skim and allow everything to boil until the meat comes off the bone easily. Add a bit of salt towards the end.

Remove the meat, mince it and strain the remaining juice, which you then put in a bowl, mixing the mashed garlic into it. Get a larger pot or a couple of bowls ready and fill them with carrot rounds, fresh parsley leaves, or maybe thinly-sliced bell peppers in vinegar, as well as the pieces of meat. Pour the juice over all that, very carefully, so as not to make a mess of the entire setting. Allow everything to cool, then place the pot or the bowls in the fridge. The jelly is ready to serve the following day. Enjoy!