Nitko’s False “pasticada”
Pasticada is one of the greatest Dalmatian meat meals. Unfortunately, to prepare it you have to plan it a week in advance, find nice piece of beef (rib eye) up to 2kg, marinate it, and cook it 2 to 3 hours. And there are always guests invited, so they eat it more than you wanted them to eat. Since I like the taste of pasticada, and don’t have all that time, I decided to make it quick with not much ado about it. So this is how it goes:
READY IN: 1hr
SERVES: 4
YIELD: 4 portions
UNITS: US
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DIRECTIONS
- Cut beef into very small cubes, approximately 1cm in diameter.
- Finely mince onion and garlic.
- Cut the carrots into very, very small cubes.
- Sauté the onion in olive oil.
- When onions become yellowish, add beef and carrots.
- Sauté until meat loses liquid; add garlic and wine.
- Make stronger heat.
- Before adding plums, cut them into thin strips. If you don’t have plums, you may add raisins.
- When alcohol evaporates, add tomato and all spices: salt, pepper, nutmeg, cloves, thyme, marjoram, bay leaf and plums.
- Add some more water and cook about 40 minutes on low heat.
- It may be too sour (if the tomato is not from your garden) so you may add some sugar (depends on your taste).
- The sauce must reduce to almost half.
- Sprinkle with chopped parsley leaves at the end.
- It is best to serve with potato gnocchi sprinkled with grated Parmesan, but you may use any kind of pasta or rice.
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