Romanian Xmas delights: Aspic-like dish (in Romanian: Piftie)

Read also: Cabbage rolls with polenta

One of the most delicious Romanian dishes for Christmas meal and also one of my favorite 🙂

Piftie is an aspic recipe prepared traditionally. Generally is made from low-grade pork meat, such as the head, shank and/or hock made into a semi-consistent gelatinous cake-like form. In some varieties, chicken or turkey are used instead of pork. Some recipes also include smoked meat.

The homemade version is what I recommend:

The recipe calls for the meat to be cleaned, washed and then boiled for a short time, no longer than 5–10 minutes. Then the water is changed, and vegetables and spices are added (usually pepper, bay leaves, onion, carrots, celery). This is cooked until the meat begins to separate from the bones by itself; then, the bones are removed, the meat stock is filtered and the meat and stock are poured into shallow bowls.

Garlic is added, as well as thin slices of carrots or green peppers, or something similar for decoration. It is left to sit in a cold spot, such as a fridge or outside if the weather is cold enough. It congeals into jelly and can be cut into cubes (it is often said that good pihtijas are “cut like glass”).