The pork stuffing for the sarmi is a mass of chopped or more often ground meat with some additives. By the way, forget the myth that the meat for the filling must necessarily be “fresh” or “fresh”. Any professional will explain to you that in order to acquire a pleasant taste, the meat needs to “age” a little.
What to check?
The smell. Avoid meat that smells musty or rotten. You should not experiment, even if the seller entices you with discounts. The sour aroma is also a warning. It may mean that the beef or pork has been treated with vinegar to remove an unpleasant odor. In general, any chemical odors are unacceptable. The meat should smell like meat, without side “nuances” – period.
The mucus. Don’t listen to the market vendors who will assure you that the meat is fresh and extra fresh. A product that is suitable for food (especially if you are going to cook for a child!) should not be slimy.
The appearance. It is a mistake to think that pieces of bacon with uniform strands are the best. Any professional chef will tell you that cuts with random fat veins are preferable. Such a place is produced in small private farms. Therefore, there is a chance that an “ugly” looking piece is fresher and less loaded with various chemicals used in industrial animal husbandry.
The elasticity. Press the meat with your finger – if it’s fresh, the dent will smooth out quickly. This is one of the most popular product suitability tests.
Lean cabbage sarmi in a casserole – you will lick your fingers with such a unique recipe!
The bacon. If there are bacon layers in the meat, their color and even smell (!) can tell a lot. The bacon in the meat must be absolutely white. No yellowish or other shades! The aroma should be uncompromisingly fresh. At the same time, the bacon and the meat should be equally firm. In case the grease is as hard as a bar of soap, do not buy the product.
In general, if you are going to cook stuffing from minced meat or minced meat, do not buy a ready-made product from the store! Take whole pieces and grind them. Ready minced pork is often very fatty, may be made from raw materials of questionable quality and freshness, may have added dyes. The signs of high-quality fresh pork are as follows: delicate pink color, white fat, pleasant smell of meat, elasticity. Avoid too moist, even wet cuts – excess moisture means that the meat is not fresh, but thawed.
What and why should we add to minced meat for sarmi?
Finely chopped vegetables (most often onions) are added to the minced meat for the sarmi filling for taste and juiciness. Also the middle of old white bread soaked in water – helps retain moisture; evaporating during heat treatment, it will not leave the minced meat dry. Any suitable herbs and spices are added.
Lean cabbage sarmi with raisins – that’s why you shouldn’t forget about the dried grape fruit!
Basic proportions: per kilogram of meat, it is worth putting 100-200 g of raw or 200-300 g of stewed onion, 200-300 g of white bread soaked in water and 100-200 ml of water.
The entrenched tradition of adding milk and eggs to minced meat is technologically incorrect – in a small amount, these additives do not affect either the taste or the texture, but in a significant amount, due to the protein content, they roughen the texture.
The minced meat for the filling needs to be kneaded almost like the dough – for 3-5 minutes. During kneading and beating, the fibers of the meat particles intertwine and the mass becomes more cohesive.
How is juiciness achieved? In order to be juicy, the minced meat must contain liquid and fat. It is true that fat – but only to a certain extent – can be replaced with liquid. From the point of view of taste, it is perfect when the bacon in the minced meat is 20-30% and can be added separately – for example, using a fat pork neck.
