Peka

Peka is a classic Croatian dish that can be found on most menus. However, if you know you want to eat it, you should order it ahead of time because it takes a long time to prepare.

Despite its reputation as the best Croatian cuisine, it is a relatively simple dish. Peka is produced by cooking meat, vegetables, or shellfish in a terracotta dome-shaped lid with potatoes, spices, salt, and oil. This is then coated in coals in a fireplace and left to slowly bake for a number of hours. It can be cooked with any meat or fish (lamb, chicken, and veal are popular). Octopus is an amazing addition to this recipe since it becomes quite tender when cooked under the lid. To mop up the delectable sauce, it is usually served with some Croatian bread.

Ingredients:

• 2 kg of shoulder/flank veal or shoulder/ribs/leg lamb (4.4 lbs)
• 1 tbsp of salt
• 100 ml vegetable oil/2 tbsp lard
• 1 kg of potatoes (2.2 lbs, quartered)
• 2 carrots (roughly chopped)
• 1 quartered big onion
• 1 quartered bell pepper
• 3 garlic cloves (halved)
• 1 tsp of pepper
• 2-3 thyme twigs
• 1/2 cup water (100 ml)
• 100 ml dry white wine (1/2 cup)
  

Instructions:

• Start the fire an hour before you build the peka. Because they produce the longest-lasting embers, choose beech or hornbeam wood. Make sure the firebox (which in the case of peka is usually composed of chamotte/fireclay) is very hot. Clear some space in the middle of the fire once it has turned to embers.
• Season the meat with salt. Place the meat in the center of the pan and grease it with lard/oil.
• Prepare the vegetables and place them in a circle around the meat. Season with thyme and pepper (or any other Mediterranean herb, such as rosemary or sage). Pour in the water as well.
• Cover the pan with the peka lid and place it on the hot firebox. Roast for 30 minutes with one-third of the embers on the lid.
• Roast for another 30 minutes with the residual embers on top and around the peka lid.
• Turn the meat around after opening lid and pouring the wine in. If you see evidence of charring on the vegetables, do the same.
• Replace the cover and the embers. Roast for a further hour.
• Check if the meat is tender by opening the cover. The meat must be fall-off-the-bone tender, and the liquid must be reduced to a minimum. The meat, as well as the vegetables, should be golden in color. It's possible that you'll need another 30 minutes to accomplish this.
• Peka takes at least 2 to 2.5 hours to cook, and you may need to open the lid twice to get the ideal outcome.