EAT IN ASIA / Destinations / Other destinations / Europe / Croatia
Pljeskavica - a Croatian alternative to a regular burger? (Part 2)
Do you love burgers? If so, you must try their alternative. Ćevapčići and Pljeskavica, that is what is so popular in Croatia. And once tried, you will not have doubts why. We already wrote about Ćevapčići (Ćevapčići - a Croatian alternative to a regular burger? (Part 1)), so now, it is turn for Pljeskavica. Pljeskavica is more or less a burger meat served without bread. Just on a plate with side dishes.
The mostly used meat is a beef meat, finely minced and grilled or fried. That depends on the place you have it. Even though it is said to be grilled, it might be in texture and taste as fried on a pan.
The burger meat is usually well fried, has a deep dark color and has a circle or an oval shape. It is about one centimeter high and is not breaded. Pljeskavica is just meat with spices like salt, pepper and sometimes some herbs.
Its size depends on the bar or restaurant and varies from ten to fifteen centimeters in diameter.
The meat is juicy, well-fried, what means no red parts and white fat elements are visible. Of course, the minced meat in itself is a little bit fatty, but a lot of this fat disappears during the frying process.
Pljeskavica is one of the cheapest dishes in the menu, what does not mean that it is the worst one. Definitively not. It is really good and surely worth trying, especially that in different regions and restaurants it is served in another way. Sometimes the difference is only in the side dish. Sometimes in the shape, size and number of meat pieces (at maximum three). Sometimes in the meat. Rarely but still it happens, you could have a lamb or pork meat instead of a beef meat. However, the way of preparing it, stays the same.
As a side dish, usually French fries or baked potatoes are served. If you get a bread, it is usually served as a part of an appetizer that could be eaten with olive oil and balsamic or wine vinegar. Actually, we have never met pljeskavica being served only with bread.
Vegetables or any kind of a salad is rarely added by default. It is good to order some additional ones, as they might add some refreshing tones to the meal.
The basic pljeskavica is served with French fries, ajvar sauce and some white onion cut in small pieces. The ajvar sauce is a mild one but an addition that is nicely tunning the cutlet. Then, onion chops refresh your mouth and allow you absorb new flavors.
A more sophisticated form of serving almost the same is pljeskavica with baked potatoes, chutney and chive. The paprika and tomato chutney is an alternative to ajvar, while instead of onion chops, whole chive sticks are served. Really good! I must say that this way of serving it is much better. Apart from the visual aspect, the composition is much better for me. Well baked potatoes instead of fries, fresh greens and this tick chutney, makes the dish refreshing and much more aromatic, than a regular one.
Another option is to order pljeskavica as a meal to share. In that case you will get the whole set of meats and side dishes served on a one big plate. Separate dishes will be served for each guest. Also, additional cutlery for serving will be added.
As side dishes fries or baked potatoes would be served. Then, you might either get a fresh, mixed salad or grilled vegetables. These grilled vegetables would very often include an eggplant, bell pepper and zucchini.
This way of serving is a good option for couples or a bigger number of friends joining the dinner or lunch. It gives a possibility of enjoying together the pleasure of sharing and tasting different dishes.
The one pljeskavica set for two we had was a real fete. At the beginning the waitress brought the heating board to keep meats and side dishes hot for a long time. And it worked. Although we were talking our time and enjoying the stay in the restaurant, everything was warm till the last bite. To that we got two smaller dishes with a cotton napkin and separate cutlery. Finely, came the meal on a large, oval, stainless-steel plate. On one side meat cutlets were placed. In the middle were golden, baked potatoes. And on the other side of the plate were grilled vegetables. We also got extra large tongs to avoid using own fork for serving meal.
although the set was for two, it was really rich and satiating. Unfortunately, no sauce, neither ajvar nor any chutney was added, what made the meal quite heavy. Nonetheless it was very good and gave us a lot pleasure to eat and share it together. We highly recommend it!
So, remember, a regular burger is something you might get in almost any place in the world (check how do they look like in in Croatia - Are burgers popular in Croatia? and Hungary - Burgers and Hungarian local street food - you must try it!), while pljeskavica is something local and unique for Croatia. Risk and try it too. You will not be disappointed.
