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Cooking Croatian: Lamb "stew" from No Reservations

Posted on 4/25/12 at 1:34 pm
Posted by kfizzle85
Member since Dec 2005
22022 posts
Posted on 4/25/12 at 1:34 pm
*Highlighted the questions for the tl;dr.

I have trawled the internets for for hours the past few days, used google translate to translate websites in Croatian, and I've come up with a fat goose egg here. So I come to the last bastion of hope, the F&D Board.

Did anyone see this episode last week (or this week, IDK it was on the DVR)? At the tail end they were at a winery on a coastal island and this guy was making this "stew." The only thing they said was it had been cooking for hours and it had lamb (and other assorted meats that they did not name). It looked delicious, but I can't find shite on this. Can be seen here around the 1 min mark for a brief moment.

It looked like it was basically a tomato base, but it was lighter in color than what I would typically think a tomato-based "stew" would look like. I'm sure there's wine in there, and I was assuming it was red, but maybe its white? Apparently ~70% of their wine production is white, but the coastal area is mostly red, and they were on the coast, so I'm not sure. Before they served it the guy dumped the rice into the pot with the meat and let it cook together.

So I ask, does anyone know of a place with Croatian recipes? I found plenty for "Croatian lamb stew," but they all had peas in it and this most definitely did not, which I think is due to most of the recipes being the inland region instead of the coastal region, and they were served over rice, as opposed to having the rice incorporated (I'm pretty sure its aborio based on looking silky and the way in which it was cooked, and the strong Italian influence on this part of the region they mentioned during the show).

I think I can craft it up by getting a feel for the spices Croatians use (not hard to find) and modelling it off of an Italian dish, but I was hoping someone might have more insight into the actual dish.

Lastly, does anyone know where you can get lamb shoulder and Croatian wine in Houston? I haven't looked for the shoulder yet, but Spec's didn't have any. Another search pulled up some place called Houston Wine Merchant, but they only had Slovenian wine, not Croatian. I planned on substituting it with Primitivo from Puglia since my searches said this was comparable, but as stated, I'm not even sure its red, and now that I look at that video again, I'm pretty sure its not. Any help here from some Croats is appreciated.
Posted by offshoreangler
713, Texas
Member since Jun 2008
22314 posts
Posted on 4/25/12 at 1:37 pm to
Try Phoenicia, the original one, not that shitty one downtown.


Or Richard's.
This post was edited on 4/25/12 at 1:42 pm
Posted by kfizzle85
Member since Dec 2005
22022 posts
Posted on 4/25/12 at 1:42 pm to
One is an 8 minute walk from me at any given moment in the day, the other is a 19 miles away.

eta: Richard's much closer.
This post was edited on 4/25/12 at 1:43 pm
Posted by Neauxla
New Orleans
Member since Feb 2008
33443 posts
Posted on 4/25/12 at 1:42 pm to
quote:

Lastly, does anyone know where you can get lamb shoulder and Croatian wine in Houston? I
You moved to Houston?
Posted by kfizzle85
Member since Dec 2005
22022 posts
Posted on 4/25/12 at 1:43 pm to
Last July.
Posted by Fratastic423
Baton Rouge
Member since Feb 2007
5990 posts
Posted on 4/25/12 at 1:45 pm to
I have no advice for you, however I will be keeping a sharp eye on this thread because that dish did indeed look amazing.
Posted by kfizzle85
Member since Dec 2005
22022 posts
Posted on 4/25/12 at 1:50 pm to
I'm making it whether I find a recipe or not, so I'll bump it Saturday with pics.
Posted by kfizzle85
Member since Dec 2005
22022 posts
Posted on 4/25/12 at 2:40 pm to
Whole Foods by my apt has lamb shoulder = win.

eta: No one got wine, need some wine experts to help me on the Croat-Italian wine connection. I may have to order some of the internets but that shite is super expensive.
This post was edited on 4/25/12 at 3:06 pm
Posted by Athanatos
Baton Rouge
Member since Sep 2010
8141 posts
Posted on 4/25/12 at 3:37 pm to
I wouldn't get hung up on Croatian wines. I have had a lot of shitty Croatian wines.
Posted by Napoleon
Kenna
Member since Dec 2007
69071 posts
Posted on 4/25/12 at 3:43 pm to
Most of Belle Chasse seems to be Croatian, ask them or try Drago's.

Though there is a huge difference in cuisine from Zagreb to the Dalmatian coast.
Posted by Cold Cous Cous
Bucktown, La.
Member since Oct 2003
15045 posts
Posted on 4/25/12 at 3:46 pm to
Primitivo is actually a Croatian grape that was imported to Italy. You can basically throw a rock from the Apulian coast and hit Yugoslavia, so it makes sense.
Posted by kfizzle85
Member since Dec 2005
22022 posts
Posted on 4/25/12 at 4:07 pm to
quote:

I wouldn't get hung up on Croatian wines. I have had a lot of shitty Croatian wines.


I thought about you earlier when I was thinking of who to ask about this.

quote:

Drago's


I have had conversations with some actually.

quote:

Though there is a huge difference in cuisine from Zagreb to the Dalmatian coast.


That's what I gathered from the show and research, which is why I ignored all of the recipes that I found, which all looked to be inland and not coastal.

quote:

Primitivo is actually a Croatian grape that was imported to Italy. You can basically throw a rock from the Apulian coast and hit Yugoslavia, so it makes sense.


I read this, which is why I intended to substitute it with that, but again I'm not even sure if its red or white since the sauce is almost orange. I mean it'll probably taste great regardless, I'm just trying to make it more Croatian and less Italian other than the spices.
This post was edited on 4/25/12 at 5:30 pm
Posted by kfizzle85
Member since Dec 2005
22022 posts
Posted on 4/26/12 at 10:45 am to
Update for those interested:

Did some more digging on the internets, found this site https://winesofcroatia.com/, which has a blog and a facebook account. So I sent the person a message and lo and behold, got a response this morning:

quote:

Check out Croatian Cuisine on Facebook. They have an app too:

https://itunes.apple.com/hr/app/croatian-cuisine-best-of/id496808151?mt=8

As for the wine, I think they were drinking BIBICh R5 Riserva with the ragu; it is a blend of Babic, Lasina, and Plavina. A bit lighter in style than Zin/Primitivo/Crljenak. In Dalmatia, many people drink white wine with lamb, especially a richer, oxidized style call "zutina". Bibich has one called Debit Lucica which is wonderful with lamb.

Blue Danube Wine Co. is San Francisco has many Croatian wines and can ship to most states.

Hope this helps - and thank you for checking out our blog!

Best,
Cliff


That's right friends, there is an iTunes App for Croatian Cuisine. Steve Jobs . I have another question out to him regarding a suitable substitute since I can't find any Croatian wine in Houston and I want to make this this weekend. I have another email out to another blog called https://dalmatiagourmande.blogspot.com/, so I think I've made some progress.
Posted by Rickety Cricket
Premium Member
Member since Aug 2007
46883 posts
Posted on 4/26/12 at 10:48 am to
Ol' Cliff coming through in the clutch

Posted by Fratastic423
Baton Rouge
Member since Feb 2007
5990 posts
Posted on 4/26/12 at 10:53 am to
Nice work, good luck and let us know how it goes.
Posted by kfizzle85
Member since Dec 2005
22022 posts
Posted on 4/26/12 at 11:03 am to
Me and Cliff go way back bro.
Posted by kfizzle85
Member since Dec 2005
22022 posts
Posted on 4/26/12 at 11:06 am to
Going to buy the lamb shoulder from WF tonight, whereby it will meet its 36ish hr marinade tonight. While buying that I will decide what else to put in there, meatwise. Possibly a pork shoulder if I can get them to slice one down a bit. More likely just whatever they have that suits my fancy and fits the low and slow the best. They also seem to be really big on the cured meats over there.
Posted by Fratastic423
Baton Rouge
Member since Feb 2007
5990 posts
Posted on 4/26/12 at 11:21 am to
The last time I made a recipe from No Reservations, it was the Naples episode where that Italian women was making the read sauce with meat. They said sausage and random parts, so I went to the LSU Dairy store and picked up like lamb neck pieces which worked well, alongside the better cuts of meat.
Posted by Bucktown Tiger
New Orleans, Louisiana
Member since Jan 2005
130 posts
Posted on 4/26/12 at 11:25 am to
I'm first generation Croatian. I have tried everywhere in NOLA to find Croatian wine, with no success. I have had Croatian wine shipped through blue danube's website. Easy and not that expensive.

The lamb stew (goulash) is a very simple slow cooked dish that usually consists of olive oil, onion, celery, wine, tomato sauce, and salt and pepper, and lamb. Vegeta is a Croatian seasoning that is widely used, and can be found at many specialty food stores. I buy my at Balestras in Belle Chasse (not going to do you any good in Houston). Good luck and enjoy.
Posted by kfizzle85
Member since Dec 2005
22022 posts
Posted on 4/26/12 at 12:27 pm to
Yes, apparently Vegeta is the Tony's of Croatia. Appreciate the info.

eta: Do you have any recs for wines from Blue Danube?
This post was edited on 4/26/12 at 12:30 pm
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