Marko's Home Cooking

  Čobanac is a traditional Croatian dish from Slavonia region. Historically it has originated as a dish made by sheep herders and it was probably made using mostly mutton, hence the name Čobanac, čoban meaning sheep herder in Croatian. It was a convenient way of cooking a whole meal by using what meat they had and placing it in a pot over fire while staying outside for prolongued periods of time. Nowadays, it is possible to find many recipes for this iconic dish, most of which are wrong as they instruct to use carrots, celery or other vegetables. Čobanac is not a goulash and the only vegetable which should go inside is onion and hot pepper or chili. The most important thing is powdered paprika, which has to be a homemade fine variety produced in villages in Baranja. People which have never tried this will be amazed by the color and rich flavors of this and anyone who has ever tried making Čobanac with store bought paprika has witnessed unsatisfactory results.  Meat also plays ...

Pljeskavica is a complicated dish to make. It has a similar shape to a hamburger and uses minced meat but that's where the similarities end. Pljeskavica contains more fat than a burger and has a different texture. Hot pepper and onion are also a must in every pljeskavica, and the gourmet version adds bacon, cheese and powdered paprika to the mix. The most important part in making this dish is the meat because without proper meat, even if the proper recipe is used the results won't be satisfactory. The ideal meat mix is 60% beef, 30% pork and 10% lard. Pljeskavica is best eaten with baked beans, somun (a type of bun) and young kajmak (sour cream). Prep time: 2 days Cooking time: 20 mins Portions : 2 Ingredients : 400g minced beef chuck 200g minced pork 100g lard 1 onion Fresh hot pepper 1tsp powdered sweet paprika 0,5dcl carbonated water 50g bacon 50g gauda cheese Instructions : In a large bowl squeeze and mix meat well using your hands, add salt to taste, cover with plastic wra...