stu da ni novčić kroz nju ne može da propadne. Priznajem, u početku mi takve sitnice nisu bile važne, ali vremenom sam shvatila o čemu govo- re. Onog dana kada sam to osetila pod nepcem, bila sam baš ponosna na sebe – konačno sam postala pravi Pražak. Tajna je, dakle, u gustini pene. Pivo u Českoj ima dugu i značajnu istoriju, a prva pivara sagrađena je daleke 1118. godine. Samo u Pragu radi oko 800 pivnica u kojima se toči tradicionalno češko pivo. Česi vole da se pohvale umećem da sprav- ljaju skoro 500 vrsta napitka od hmelja i ističu da je greh ne piti pivo u njihovoj zemlji. Najpoznatija piva u Češkoj su plzenski prazdroj, buđe- jovicki budvar, gambrinus, kozel, radegast, krušovice, zlatopramen, sta- ropramen… Razlikuju se po ukusu, boji, količini alkohola, ali sva su kva- litetna jer loše pivo u tako jakoj konkurenciji nema šta da traži. Stranci uglavnom posećuju poznate pivnice u centru grada – U zlateho tygra , U Fleku , U Černého vola , U Provaznice , U Medvidku ... Živeći godinama u Pragu, naučila sam da se najbolje i najjeftinije pi- vo ipak toči u manje poznatim pivnicama poput restorana Sokolovna u Slezskoj ulici na Vinohradima, gde stranci svraćaju samo ako se pre do- laska u Prag dobro informišu. Pivo se odlično slaže sa češkom nacionalnom kuhinjom. Za Čehe bi bilo gotovo nezamislivo da konzumiraju svoje nacionalne specijalite- te bez piva. A uz pivo najbolje idu ovi specijaliteti – kobasica s renom i senfom, zatim najpoznatiji češki specijalitet vepřo knedlo zelo (pečena svinjetina sa kupusom i knedlama), svíčková na smetaně (goveđe me- so u sosu koji se sastoji od pavlake i služi se s knedlama), gulaš (opet sa knedličkama), vepřová žebírka (pečena svinjska rebarca), vepřová ko- lena (pečena svinjska kolenica), teplé bramborové chipsy (vruć krom- pir tanko narezan da podseća na čips, a služi se s umakom od belog lu- ka ili paradajza)... That foam is so thick that even a coin won’t fall through it. I must admit that in the beginning such “little things” weren’t important to me, but in time I under- stood what they were talking about. That day when I felt that on my taste buds, I was very proud of myself – I’d finally become a real Praguer. The secret, thus, in the density of foam... Beer in Czechia has a long and significant history, and the first brewery was built way back in 1118. Just in Prague there are around 800 beer houses. Thanks to this, Prague carried the title of the capital of beer, where this drink has long become a cult. Czechs like to boast about their ability to prepare near- ly 500 types of beverages from hops and note that it is a sin not to drink beer in their country. Their claims used to be supported by the fact that in their bars and beer houses this drink was even cheaper than coffee or water. That is no longer the case, however, and now beer prices, especially in the city centre, are quite high.The most famous beers in the Czech Republic are‘Plzeňský prazdroj’(Pilsner Urquell), ‘Budějovický Budvar’ (Budwieser), ‘Gambrinus’, ‘Kozel’, ‘Radegast’, ‘Krušov- ice’, ‘Zlatopramen’, ‘Staropramen’ etc. They differ in terms of taste, colour and al- cohol content, but they are all of high quality, because bad beer has no place among such strong competition. Foreigners mostly visit famous beer houses in the city centre – ‘U Zlatého Tygra’ (At the Golden Tiger), ‘U Fleků’, ‘U Černého vo- la’ (At the Black Ox), ‘U Provaznice’, ‘U Medvídků’ etc. Having lived in Prague for years, I’ve learned that the best and cheapest beer is actually poured in lesser-known beer houses like the Sokolovna Restaurant on Slezska Street in Vinohrady, where foreigners only drop by if they informed them- selves well prior to arriving in Prague. Beer goes perfectly with Czechia’s national cuisine. For Czechs, it would be almost unthinkable to eat their national specialities without beer. And this tipple is best suited to accompanying these specialities – sausage with horseradish and mustard, then the most famous Czech speciality, Vepřo Knedlo Zelo (roast pork with sauerkraut and dumplings), Svíčková na smetaně (beef sirloin in a cream sauce, served with dumplings), goulash (again with dumplings), Vepřová žebírka (roast pork ribs), Vepřové koleno (roast pork knuckle), Teple bramborove chipsy (hot po- tatoes sliced thinly to resemble crisps, served with a tomato or garlic sauce)...
VEPŘO KNEDLO ZELO
Marek Štepan, kuvar u praškom restoranu Per Te Marek Stepan, chef at Prague’s ‘Per Te’ restaurant
Dumplings occupy a place of honour in a Czech spread. They are served instead of bread with every meat dish. And the most famous speciality is certainly Vepřo Knedlo Zelo. The name of this traditional dish is actually an abbre- viation of vepřov, knedliky and zelí - pork chops, dumplin- gs and sauerkraut. The Czechs comment on their cuisine in the manner of The Good Soldier Švejk, saying: “It’s heavy, it’s gruelling, but so nice”. Vepřo Knedlo Zelo is just such a meal, and we received the recipe for its preparation from Marek Stepan, chef at Prague’s ‘Per Te’ restaurant.
INGREDIENTS FOR THE MEAT:
1.25kg of pork loin as a piece, ½ teaspoon of caraway seeds, 5 cloves of garlic finely chopped, 1 large onion, 1 tablespoon of instant flour, 1 tablespoon of pork lard for roasting FOR THE SAUERKRAUT: 2 tablespoons of pork lard, 2 onions, 1 head of sauerkraut, ½ teaspoon of caraway seeds, 4 teaspoons of sugar, a pinch of salt, 100ml of white wine vinegar, 2 tablespoons of instant flour FOR THE DUMPLINGS 1kg of instant flour, ½ a teaspoon of salt, 1 egg, 20g of fresh yeast, a pinch of sugar, 1 white bread roll chopped into cubes, ½ a litre of milk PREPARATION MEAT Season the pork loin with salt, sprinkle with the caraway seeds, and roll in the crushed garlic on all sides. Place the meat on a baking tray that has been previously filled with a tablespoon of lard and a chopped onion, pour 20ml of warm water over and roast at 140 degrees until softened. Leave the cooked meat to stand for 15 minutes, then cut into thicker schnitzels. CABBAGE Fry the onion with hot lard and caraway seeds, add finely chopped cabbage, sugar, salt and vinegar, then simmer for twenty min- utes. The cabbage is done when all water has evaporated. You can thicken it by adding a little instead flour towards the end of the cooking time. DUMPLINGS Pour the flour into a bowl, season with salt, add egg and milk, then mix everything well. Next add the diced bread roll, mix and leave the dough to stand for an hour to rise. Make three to four rolls from the dough and cook in boiling salted water for 20 minutes. Extract the cooked dumplings and arrange them on a plate, prick them with a fork, and in order to improve their taste you can coat them with a little pork fat.
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