Recipe

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Episode 127

Pljeskavica

For the meat patties:
1 lb (450g) ground beef
1 lb (450g) ground pork
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon sweet paprika (Hungarian)
½ teaspoon black pepper
½ cup sparkling water
2 tablespoons Olive oil
2 medium onions, finely chopped
vegetable oil, for frying

For the burger assembly:
4 pita bread pockets
Ajvar (See recipe Below)
Kajmak (I used Clotted Cream instead)
onions
pickles

Instructions
In a bowl, mix ground beef and pork, salt, sweet paprika, black pepper and sparkling water. Combine with your hands. Brush olive oil on the surface of the meat mixture. It will help us to retain moisture. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least few hours or overnight.
Add onions to the meat mixture and mix well. Divide to 4 balls and use your hands to pound it to a thin patty. The size should be about 6-7 inches (15-17cm) in diameter.
Grill or fry your patties for about 3-4 minutes per side or more, if desired. Take pita pockets and assemble your burgers by spreading ajvar and kajmak and adding onions and pickles as desired. Enjoy!

Ajvar

Ingredients
• 2 pounds red bell peppers (about 5 medium peppers)
• 1 medium eggplant (about 3/4 pound)
• 5 teaspoons freshly minced garlic (about 5 medium cloves)
• 1/4 cup sunflower or olive oil
• 1 tablespoon white vinegar
• 1 teaspoon Kosher salt, plus more to taste
• Freshly ground black pepper to taste

Directions
1. Light one chimney full of charcoal. When all the charcoal is lit and covered with gray ash, pour out and arrange coals on one side of the charcoal grate. Set cooking grate in place, cover grill and allow to preheat for 5 minutes. Clean and oil the grilling grate. Place peppers on hot side of grill and cook until blackened all over, 10 to 15 minutes. Transfer pepper to a large bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let sit until cool enough to handle, about 20 minutes. Remove charred skin, seeds, and cores from peppers.
2. While the peppers are cooling, pierce skin of eggplant with a fork all over. Place eggplant on cool side of grill. Cover and cook until skin darkens and wrinkles and eggplant is uniformly soft when pressed with tongs, about 30 minutes, turning halfway through for even cooking. Remove eggplant from grill and let sit until cool enough to handle, about 10 minutes. Trim top off eggplant and split lengthwise. Using a spoon, scoop out flesh of eggplant; discard skin.
3. Place roasted red peppers, eggplant pulp, and garlic in a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Pulse until roughly chopped. Add in oil, vinegar, and salt and pulse until incorporated and peppers are finely chopped.Transfer sauce to a medium saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat, then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and season with salt and pepper to taste. Let cool to room temperature then use immediately or transfer to an airtight container and store in refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.