Cevapcici (Yugoslavian Sausage)
Why I Love This Recipe
These are very simple to make and delicious to have as a main dish or appetizer. They are typically made with ground lamb, ground veal and ground pork. You can substitute the meats to your likings but they taste best with those three. Cevapcici (pronounced: chev up chee tsee) are great with a Tzatziki Sauce for a dip or as a condiment.
Ingredients You'll Need
1 lb ground lamb
1 lb ground veal (or beef)
1 lb ground pork
1 large onion, peeled and grated (or minced very fine in food processor)
3 cloves garlic, minced fine
3 tbsp hot Hungarian paprika, or 3 tbsp sweet paprika and a little cayenne
2 tbsp freshly ground black pepper
Salt to taste
Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
Olive oil for basting
Tzatziki Sauce:
2 pints plain yoghurt
2 cucumber, peeled, grated and drained(salt cucumber to help it release it’s liquid)
4 cloves garlic, minced fine
Fresh dill, finely chopped (add last to taste or omit)
Juice of 1 lemon
Salt and ground white pepper to taste
Pinch of cayenne pepper
Directions
Mix all the ingredients, except the oil, thoroughly. Cover and place in refrigerator for a minimum of two hours, overnight is best. Remove from refrigerator, mix thoroughly again and roll the mixture into little "fingers" about 1 inch by 3 inches. Rub lightly with olive oil and grill or broil until done. They are best on the barbecue.
Serve with Tzatziki Sauce (recipe follows). Alternatively, they can be served another traditional way on a bed of chopped onion and side of Pogaca (flat bread like Focaccia) or in Pita bread with chopped onion and/or Tzatziki Sauce as condiments.
Makes about 18-20 depending on how big you roll them.
Tzatziki Sauce: Mix all the ingredients together and serve with Cevapcici as a dip.
You can also serve with Kajmak (type of cream cheese) or Ajvar (roasted pepper and eggplant relish...recipe is posted here on Bakespace) or combine the two to make a dip.