Pašticada s njokima (Zadar)

Ingredients for meat and toč:

• 1 kg of beef or beef leg
• 3 carrots
• 2  onion heads
• 5 cloves of garlic ( onion )
• a couple of spoons of fat
• 2 dl of wine vinegar (yeast)
• 3 dl of red wine
• 1 tablespoon of canned food
• 2 teaspoons of sugar
• a piece of celery root
• parsley and celery leaves
• dried fruit (usually prunes, you can also add a couple of dried figs)
• a couple of bay leaves and a little rosemary
• cloves and nutmegs
• salt and pepper

Preparation:

“Pac” should be prepared the night before. The meat is washed, dried, cut on the surface so that pieces of garlic, dry bacon (pancetta) and cloves can be stuck into it. Put it in a large, wide bowl and immerse it in a mixture of homemade wine vinegar (kvasina) and red wine, add carrots, onions ( capula ), garlic, selenium and parsley. The container should be covered and left overnight.

The next day, the meat is removed from the rat and fried well in fat on all sides. After the meat is fried on all sides, water is slowly added and it is fried a little bit more in that temperature. Then the meat is placed in a wide bowl, and 2 onions chopped into larger pieces, 2 carrots cut into larger pieces, garlic, a piece of celery root, a couple of sprigs of parsley and celery leaves, and a few prunes and figs are added. Then everything is salted, a little nutmeg is added and poured with 2 dl of red wine in which a tablespoon of canned food and 2 teaspoons of sugar have been stirred. Put it to cook on a medium-high heat, and when the liquid boils, add another 1 dl of wine mixed with water to the level to cover the meat. When it boils, it is cooked on low heat for at least 3 hours. After the meat is cooked, it is removed from the bowl and cut into feta. The vegetables are taken out and squeezed well to create a thick mixture that should be dark brown in color. After that, the meat and the vegetables are returned to the bowl and cooked for another half hour on very low heat. Towards the end, add 3 tablespoons of finely chopped parsley.

Gnocchi  is kneaded from potatoes, flour, eggs, salt and fat (or oil). Cut into small pieces the size of half a thumb and cook in salted water. When they float to the surface, they are done.

Remark: 

Pašticada is not only a traditional dish of Zadar County, but is prepared all over Dalmatia. It is not a difficult dish, in fact it was prepared mostly only among the citizens and on special occasions, usually for baptisms and special holidays. As with the bridet, each family had a specific method of preparation. Sometimes prosecco is added to the pašticada, sometimes along with dried fruits and apples, sometimes Dalmatian pancetta is also added. This recipe was recorded in the city of Zadar.