Salmon Stew

A slightly different version of a Romanian staple dish

Ștefan Baciu, 03.02.2019, 12:00

The Romanian tochitura, which is a kind of stew, is a
typically Romanian dish made all around the country. To make it you’ll need
pork, beef or chicken meat, and even organs such as liver, kidney, heart or
milt, as well as sliced sausage. The ingredients differ from one region of the
country to another, so Moldavian stew differs from Dobrudjan stew or Oltenian
stew. For example, the Moldavian recipe does not contain tomato paste of tomato
juice, while in Transylvania, where they
really like their smoked pork, the recipe also contains bits of sliced smoked
sausage. The so-called Brasov stew is made in
central Romania,
and typically contains veal, surely under the influence of Saxon cuisine.

Irrespective of the region, there is a similar way of
preparing this stew. Brown the sliced pieces of pork in a pan or a pot, and
then add the sliced onion and two or three garlic cloves, finely chopped. Add a
bit of water or wine, allow to simmer, then add the spices of choice, depending
on what the recipe contains. The stew is served hot with polenta, topped with a
poached egg and sprinkled with cheese.

This type of stew will naturally contain fish in the Danube
Delta, with salmon being the typical dish in the Danube Delta village called
Lunca. To prepare this stew, you need a salmon weighing two or three kilograms,
bones removed. Cut the salmon in small cubes. Salt the cubes a little bit, and
then coat them in flour. Put the salmon cubes in a pan with hot oil. Add the
sliced onion, a little bit of dried thyme, sweet paprika and tomato paste. Cook
the bits of salmon until they become golden brown before adding a glass of wine
or a little bit of water. Allow everything to boil, for about a quarter of an
hour. The salmon stew is best served with polenta and also goes well with a
glass of chilled white dry or semi-dry wine. Enjoy or poftă bună as we say in
Romanian!