World Cup Special - Serbia

 

Sopska Salata, Pasulj and some extremely high proof Serbian vodka (phew... certainly cleaned out the airways)

This World Cup we are certainly getting through the countries....   this white bean stew, normally served with meat and/or sausage, seemed to be a perfect recipe to investigate Serbian cuisine.  It was easy to replace the meat with TVP and the feta cheese in the salad with vegan feta cheese.  All topped off with a high proof vodka that kind of complemented the soup. 

Šopska Salata

I found this easy salad that appears to be very common salad for the Balkan region.  Typically you would not be able to see anything underneath the cheese when this Serbian salad is served; so maybe it should be called cheese salad?

Sopska Salata

Ingredients

• 1 large cucumber sliced
• 2 large tomatoes diced
• 1 bell pepper sliced
• 2 scallions or spring onions sliced
• 8 Tablespoons Serbian white cheese or feta crumbled
• Chives for garnish

For the Dressing:

• 2 Tablespoons sunflower oil
• 2 teaspoons white wine vinegar
• Salt and Pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Combine all the prepared vegetables into a salad bowl
2. Prepare the dressing by whisking the oil, vinegar, salt and pepper together.
3. Dress the vegetables by tossing lightly with the dressing
4. Top the salad with the cheese (plenty of cheese)

Vegan Serbian White Bean Soup (Pasulj)

When looking for vegan dishes from different countries it is amazing how you come across wonderful stories around various dishes.  I was particularly interested in this story around Pasulj from immigrants to Canada sharing this dish which encapsulated the longing for their home country and the disbelief of their adopted country's liking of sweet and savory together... peanut butter and jam being the prime suspect.  Anyway hear about this tale at https://immigrantstable.com/pasulj/ from Ksenia Prints. 

Pasulj (White Bean Soup)

Ingredients

• 4 onions, finely diced
• 3 cloves garlic
• 2 leeks
• 2 carrots
• 3 slices celery root/ celeriac (about finger thick)
• 2 cans white beans
• 2 cans diced tomatoes
• 8 cups (2 liters) vegetable stock
• 200 g freekeh, cracked or tvp
• 2 tablespoon tomato paste
• 2 teaspoon marjoram
• 2 teaspoon oregano
• 2 bunch parsley, chopped
• 1 teaspoon celery salt
• 2 teaspoon onion powder
• 4 teaspoon paprika powder, sweet
• 1 teaspoon smoked salt (optional)

Instructions

1. When using TVP, submerge this in enough vegetable broth to cover it.We did this about an 1/2 before preparation of the rest of the ingredients.
2. Finely dice the onions, and the garlic.
3. Saute in a fairly large pot.
4. Chop leeks, carrots, and celery root finely.
5. Add the vegetables to the onions and let them sautee briefly.
6. Now you can add all the other ingredients and let the soup simmer for about 20 min on medium heat.
7. Season the soup and garnish the soup with some freshly chopped parsley or other herbs.

Score: Serbia 2 Switzerland 3

Football Score : 5 (Very exciting game with loads of goals... Serbia unlucky not to win as seemed a more impassioned team but could not hold off the strong Switzerland team )

Food: 3 (super delicious; could have done with a whole lot more spice... maybe some more paprika but still a wonderful dish.)