White Kielbasa Mediterranean Mashup
This is one of those blogs that you read and say to yourself, "I didn't know that". I found myself saying that a lot the more research I did on this tasty white kielbasa. Did you know that kielbasa is the Polish word for sausage but in German, it's wurst? They both come in many forms, colors and shapes. Some are made with ingredients that we would think belong on the television show "Fear Factor" but they are indigenous to their specific areas.
Research revealed I had"wiejska ([ˈvʲejska]), a farmhouse sausage; it is a large U-shaped pork and veal sausage with marjoram and garlic; its name means "rural"*. Some kielbasas are cold smoked, hot smoked or what I had, pure. In the United States, kielbasa, which may also be referred to as Polish sausage, is smoked and processed with mild flavorings. It's also available in turkey and some like Wellshire Farms are gluten free.
I received a gift of this delicious white kielbasa and wanted to make something special with it. My family is not traditional and with that said, would not appreciate the Oktoberfest Wurst. When I opened the package, the aroma of the white kielbasa cried to me, "grill me and put in me a pot with red and white cabbage, apples and caramelized onions. Serve on a soft roll with whole grain mustard."
Realizing my family would not enter the house if they smelled the cabbage, I needed to come up with another plan. Mash-ups have always seemed fun but I've never imagined how two different ethnic dishes could ever come together. Until now...
After cutting a little piece of the sausage, cooking it on a skillet and tasting it, I realized it was a lean link of pork and veal. It was very mild in seasonings and could take on strong flavors. Strong flavors to me meant Mediterranean, maybe Italian with a hint of Greek seasonings.
The sauce served with this kielbasa is going to be a salmurigghiu. A Sicilan olive oil based sauce with lemon, garlic and oregano and I introduced Greece to the sauce with chopped fresh parsley. Spain brings the heat to the sauce with the red pepper flakes and rounds off the Mediterranean influences.
Let's start our mash-up journey, you'll need:
2 lbs white kielbasa
1 head of garlic chopped fine (yes an entire head of garlic)
1 bunch of parsley chopped
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
1/2 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/4 red tomato (seeds removed)
1/4 tsp fresh oregano chopped or 1/8 dry oregano
1/2 onion sliced thinly
2 lemons
heavy skillet for frying
baking dish (casserole)
extra oil to fry
Salt & Pepper to taste
Salmurigghiu Sauce:
I have made this sauce in my house for years and had no idea it had a name. We had a similar sauce at a Greek restaurant in Cape May, NJ and when I got home played around until I made something that tasted close. Thru the years, I've added and changed the measurements to the sauce to get it where it is today.
In a large bowl, put the oil, 4 tbsp of parsley, 2 tbsp of chopped garlic, zest from 2 lemons, juice from 1 lemon, 1/4 oregano, (salt and pepper to taste) and 1/4 red pepper flakes. Add the tomato and allow this sauce to remain in your refrigerator two hours before you're ready to use it. You want the flavors to marry and intensify.
This sauce is great on grilled fish, chicken or any protein that simply prepared. We like it on boiled potatoes, rice or pasta. The level of heat is up to you. You can add more red pepper flakes or delete them completely. Cilantro would work instead of parsley and I would add 2 tsp of Sazon by Goya flavoring to bring out a more Spanish taste. If you loose your mind and want to put saffron in, use it sparing, beside the cost of the spice, it's very strong. Saffron will turn your sauce a yellow color that may not appeal to all.
White Kielbasa
Time to address the star protein! Pat dry the kielbasa and prepare a skillet on high heat. I'm old fashion and still like the sear of a cast iron skillet. When it's screaming hot, drizzle a little oil and put your kielbasa in with the thinly sliced onion. Cook for 5 mins or until casing is brown. You're not cooking the kielbasa, just browning the casing. Remove and put in a baking dish. In the same skillet, add a drizzle more oil and 2 tsp of the chopped garlic and 2 tsp of chopped parsley and stir quickly around the pan just to heat the garlic. Add on top of the kielbasa when baking.
Add a little water to the bottom of the baking dish the kielbasa is in. Your goal is to steam it in the oven for 10 mins at 350 degrees. (still won't be cooked completed - do not eat yet).
Remove from the oven and set aside. Heat a grill pan on high heat. Place the kielbasa on the grill pan (outdoor grill will work also but I'm too lazy to go uncover the grill for a small job like this - hey I'm honest) and cook turning the kielbasa. Cook 5-7 mins on each side until you get beautiful grill marks on the kielbasa. Now it's cooked if you want to sneak a quality control taste. I suggest you put the sauce on top to get the full effect of how wonderful it will be.
Serving a blank canvas of boiled potatoes, allowed us to get every drop of that wonderful sauce. The kielbasa was mild and the bold sauce didn't mask the taste but complimented the flavor. As if they were meant to be, this mashup may now be known as a happy marriage of flavors!
The only thing missing from this recipe is a name for this dish. A "mashup" is not very appealing.
Any suggestions??
Research source: * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kielbasa