Foods Of The World – Poland – Kotlety Mielone – Polish Meatballs

This time I will share a Polish recipe as a part of my little series: Foods Of The World.

Kotlety Mielone a.k.a. Polish Meatballs are extremely popular in Poland and are really quick and easy to make. They are usually eaten as a part of the dinner and are served with boiled potatoes and some cold salad like sauerkraut or pickled/boiled beetroots. That said they are actually not limited to being a dinner meal only. They are perfect as sandwich filling or even as part of a salad.

These particular meatballs were made from pork meat but any type of minced meat would be perfect. If you use chicken or turkey they will have a much more gentle taste obviously.

Let’s start with the ingredients list:

• 750g minced pork
• 1 large egg
• 1 onion
• 2 handfuls of breadcrumbs
• Salt, pepper, garlic, sweet paprika to taste
• Oil for frying
• Fresh Spring onion (the green parts) – optional
• 1tspb chilli flakes – optional

Method:

Peel and fine chop your onion. Fry it on a medium heat until just golden brown. Put aside to cool down.

In a large bowl place your minced meat, 1 egg, 1 handful of breadcrumbs, earlier fried onions and spice to taste.

Mix all the ingredients together until everything is well combined and you have an even looking mixture. Don’t be afraid to work it. This is nothing like the burgers where your meat shouldn’t be touched / poked / pressed too many times. Work it with your hands until the mixture becomes a bit sticky, when this happens you know you have mixed it well.

This recipe will make for 16 meatballs. I normally use half of the mixture to create 8 “standard” tasting meatballs and use the remaining half to make a spicier version by adding fresh chopped spring onions and chilli flakes for some additional heat.

Once your mixture is smooth (more or less) it is time to form our meatballs. Ideally you want them to be about the size of a small egg. But as they are going to be fried and not cooked in any sauce, it is best to flatten them with your palm to make a doughnut shape…. Once they are formed gently toss them around in the remaining breadcrumbs just to give them a final coating that will crisp up nicely when they are cooked.

Fry on a medium heat for about 15 minutes turning them over every few minutes. Make sure that your pan isn’t too hot and your meat balls do not brown too quickly. Time as always makes food taste divine.

Remove from the frying pan and serve.

They are great for freezing if you fancy making a bigger batch, but if you are planning on freezing them it is advisable to skip the onion part. They will last longer in the freezer without the onions.

Happy cooking and I hope you enjoyed this Polish recipe.

This is one extremely full dinner plate 🙂

Foods Of The World – Hungary – Chilled Sour Cherry Soup

*By Nori

Last week I promised Agata a traditional Hungarian summer dish, and here it comes.

I started blogging about food and nutrition when I found myself living on a restricted diet, so I tried to find a dish that is easily transferable to my present lifestyle without losing the original experience.

Sour cherry soup, served chilled in the summer heat is one of our most common dishes in Hungary. It’s very easy and quick to prepare, a real refreshing starter on a hot afternoon, and… every child loves it for its slight sweetness. It was one of my childhood favorites, and that is something to say as I was a very, very picky eater.

My husband and me both enjoy being in an international environment and meeting new people, so we had quite some CouchSurfers stay with us for a couple of days. Of course, I always tried to welcome them with a home-made, traditional Hungarian meal. At least, traditional for us: no, we didn’t always have goulash soup. Sour cherry soup was the simplest, yet the most controversial dish I’ve served for foreigners: it’s sweet, and still, we have it as a starter, not dessert and yes, we serve it chilled, not hot during the main meal of the day (lunch).

And, at last, I chose to share this very simple recipe with you because it’s very versatile: easily compatible with any diet, and there are lots of options to give it a twist. You can also make it all year around with fresh or canned cherries, as well. I’ll share some tips below the recipe!

Ingredients for approx. 8 servings:

• 1 kg or 2 pounds of sour cherries, pitted (fresh or canned)
• 1 piece of clove
• 1 small piece of cinnamon (about 1×1 cm)
• 2 tablespoons of xylitol, sugar, or other sweetener to taste
• 1 teaspoon of lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons of corn or tapioca starch*
• ½ cup of yogurt or plant (soya) based yogurt*

* Obviously, the traditional recipe does not use starches, but plain wheat flour and sour cream instead. The flour only plays a role in the texture of the soup, so this change makes no difference, while this way this dish becomes gluten free. I substituted the sour cream with yogurt because I’ve discovered during my travels that sour cream is not as common in other countries, but yogurt should be available for everyone. A plant based yogurt can turn this soup into a dairy free, vegan dish.

1. Just simply put the cherries in a big dish, pour in approx. 1.5 liter cold water, drop in the clove and cinnamon pieces, lemon juice, your sweetener of choice and start heating.

2. In a small bowl, mix the yogurt and the starch until smooth. Once the soup is really hot, almost boiling, take about a cup of the juice out f the pot and mix it well with the yogurt and starch.

3. Now pour the starchy mixture to the rest of the soup, boil it for only a couple of seconds and take the soup off the heat. (It’s important not to leave it boiling so the cherries stay crisp.)

4. Chill it in the refrigerator and serve.

Serving options:

You can add some more yogurt (or sour cream), whipped cream or even vanilla ice cream when serving and it still remains a starter – however, you can have some more for dessert, if you like…

My favorite twist on this recipe was when I had it in a restaurant served with mint flavored whipped cream: you can also make this at home by adding some mint extract to the cream before whipping it up.

I hope you enjoyed this very simple Hungarian recipe and try it this summer. Enjoy!

If you liked this post please visit my blog at www.ingeniouscooking.com and follow me on Facebook or Twitter.

Foods Of The World – India – Chicken Liver Pepper Fry

*By Anjana

Hello lovely readers, I am Anjana from At The Corner Of Happy And Harried. I am so glad to be guest blogging at your lovely blog, Agata. Thanks a bunch for the opportunity!

Today I bring you a spicy and delicious recipe from southern India – chicken livers cooked in a spicy masala and finished by pan frying with a dash of black pepper. Don’t be put off by the long ingredient list. The method is pretty simple and you can find all these items at your nearest Indian/Asian store.

This dish is my husband’s absolute guilty indulgence. He can, and usually does, finish it off in one sitting! Have it with a cup of steamed white rice or Indian flat breads like rotis or naan. Provide a fresh green salad on the side and you have a lovely meal!

CHICKEN LIVER PEPPER FRY

You will need:

• Chicken livers – 1 lb (450 gm)
• Oil – 3 tbsp, preferably coconut oil for flavor and aroma
• Mustard seeds – 1/2 tsp
• Red chili flakes – 1 tsp
• Curry leaves –  a few
• Onion – 1 large, finely chopped
• Ginger and garlic paste – 2 tsp
• Green chilies – 2, slit lengthwise
• Turmeric powder – 1/4 tsp
• Red chili powder – 1 tsp
• Coriander powder – 1 1/2 tsp
• Garam masala powder – 1/2 tsp
• Black pepper powder – 1/2 – 1 tsp (as per taste)
• Salt – to taste
• Lemon juice – 1 tsp

How to:

• Clean the chicken livers. To clean them properly, combine a teaspoon of turmeric powder in a cup of milk and immerse the livers for at least 15 minutes. Drain the liquid, wash them under cold running water and cut them in to medium-sized pieces. This is the best way to clean the livers and helps to get rid of the slightly bitter taste.
• Meanwhile, heat oil in a pan. Add the mustard seeds, red chili flakes and curry leaves. When the mustard seeds start sputtering, add the onions and saute till they turn golden.
• Now add the ginger and garlic paste and green chilies. Saute well till the raw smell is gone. Add all the masala powders and salt. Saute for a minute and add the chicken livers.
• Mix well, cover and cook. You may not need to add any water, since a lot of liquid comes from the livers. But keep checking once in a while to see if it needs a sprinkling of water.
• Once the livers are almost tender, open the lid and increase the heat so that most of the liquid evaporates. The oil will separate now. Dry roast the livers for a couple of minutes. (You can skip this step if you want a curried dish.)
• Check seasoning and add more salt or pepper powder if you want. Add a teaspoon of lemon juice and remove from heat.
• Serve hot with steamed white rice and curry or Indian flat breads like chapathis, rotis or naan. Goes well with warm tortillas and a fresh red onion salad too!

Have you tried chicken livers? Do you like it dry or curried?

I hope you enjoy this lovely recipe. And do pop in at my blog here . I would love to have you over. You can also find me on Facebook, Pinterest and Bloglovin’.

Foods Of The World – Sri Lanka – Cantaloupe and Blueberry Salad

By Amila Wickramarachchi from Food Corner

Who doesn’t like a refreshing salad in a hot summer day?

This Cantaloupe and Blueberry salad is a really simple and quick dessert I tried with some yogurt and honey over it. Specially during a hot summer day, having a healthy snack with some fruits is a perfect idea and melons come to my mind first. I have tried many recipes with different melon types and this is one of the easiest and quickest desserts I have ever tried!

I used a melon baller to scoop cantaloupe, but it is not necessary. Instead use a fruit knife and cut cantaloupe into small bite size cubes of similar size. Taste of blueberries was really good with cantaloupe balls and yogurt added some rich smooth flavor to it. I used natural low fat yogurt to keep it healthier.

Over the fruits, I added some fresh lime juice. Lime juice gave a good flavor to this salad. Once honey is drizzled over, it looked perfect and delicious. I couldn’t wait until I finish the whole bowl.

Below is the simple and quick recipe for Cantaloupe and Blueberry Salad. Try this when you are in need for a snack or a dessert in a hot summer day!

Ingredients (Serves 2):

• ½ of a Cantaloupe
• 1 cup Blueberries
• 1 cup Natural yogurt
• Honey to drizzle
• 1 tsp. Lime juice

Method:

First scoop melon with a melon baller (or cut into cubes)

In a bowl, mix cantaloupe balls together with blueberries and lime juice.

Add natural yogurt over it.

Drizzle over some honey as per taste.

Cantaloupe and blueberry dessert is ready to serve.

Mix other fruits together with cantaloupe balls for different tastes.

Enjoy!

About the author:
Amila Wickramarachchi is a Food Blogger who loves to share her recipes and moments of the culinary journey in her Food Blog ‘Food Corner’. Food Corner is mainly a collection of Sri Lankan recipes; however there are recipes from other lands as well as other kitchen related posts.

If you would like to know more about Sri Lankan food please visit Amila blog Food Corner or Facebook page or follow @slfoodcorner on Twitter.

Stop Hunger Now: Grow the Cause Campaign

About the Campaign
For Christmas 2013 WORLDFOODS wishes to give something back to those in crisis.
Stop Hunger Now is a charity that aims to end world hunger in our lifetime, a cause which is close to WORLDFOODS Global Business Director May Foong’s heart. WORLDFOODS wishes to help feed the poor, who can’t feed themselves.
WORLDFOODS will be implementing a Christmas Charity campaign in which they look to match the first 5,000 “Likes” they receive on their Facebook page with a donation of $1 to Stop Hunger Now.
WORLDFOODS will use the power of social sharing to raise awareness around this cause.

About Stop Hunger Now
The Mission of Stop Hunger Now is to end hunger in our lifetime by providing food and life-saving aid to the world’s most vulnerable and by creating a global commitment to mobilizing the resources to make this happen.
They have been fulfilling this commitment since they were founded in 1998.
In 2005 they launched their meal packing programme perfecting an assembly process of small meal packets that contain essential vitamins and minerals and have a 2 year shelf life. These cost only 25 cents. This means that a $1 dollar donation from WORLDFOODS will feed four hungry mouths.
Stop Hunger Now works with international partners to have these meals shipped and distributed.
70% of their meals are provided to transformational development programs such as school feeding, vocational training, early childhood development and orphanages.

How you can help
Join the campaign and spread the word.