Bosnia and Herzegovina

The dish

This Bosnian street-food breakfast is grilled beef sausages eaten with somun, a type of bread similar to a pita. The sauce is ajvar, made from eggplant and red peppers. The dish is served with raw onion and kajmak, a soft cow cheese. I didn’t have access to actual kajmak, so I made something similar myself.

What we thought

The ajvar brings a sweetness to counter the salty meat and bread. I loved this dish, but my wife and children were not huge fans. The average was a 4.0, with the kids rating it slightly below a 4 while I gave it a 4.4.

Ingredients and directions

Ćevapi

Ingredients

• 2 lb beef chuck
• 1 tbsp + ¾ tsp fine salt
• 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• ½ tsp baking soda
• 1 garlic clove, finely grated
• ⅓ cup ice-cold sparkling water

Directions

1. Grind the chuck with a meat grinder or, if you don’t have one like me, a food processor. Aim for a hamburger-like texture. Put the ground beef in the freezer for 15 minutes.
2. Add the salt, pepper, baking soda, garlic, and sparkling water. Mix for 5–7 minutes until the beef is very sticky.
3. Form logs about ¾ inch thick and 3 inches long. Cover and refrigerate for 45 minutes.
4. Grill over medium-high heat until cooked through, about 15 minutes. Turn frequently so the outside gets nicely charred.

Somun

Ingredients

• 3¼ cups bread flour
• 1¼ cups warm water
• 1¼ tsp salt
• 1¼ tsp instant yeast
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 tbsp olive oil

Directions

1. Mix all ingredients together, then knead for 6–8 minutes until the dough is smooth and elastic. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 40 minutes to an hour.
2. Heat your oven to 500–550°F. I used a little pizza oven I had to cook the bread. Worked great!
3. Divide the dough into 4 pieces and shape into thick rounds. Let rest for 10 minutes.
4. Flatten each round into a disc about 6 inches wide.
5. Bake for 7–10 minutes, until puffed and nicely browned.

Optional: somun is traditionally scored with a diamond pattern before baking. Press a diamond pattern into the dough after rolling it out to keep the traditional look.

Smoky Ajvar

Ingredients

• 3 large red bell peppers
• 1 medium eggplant
• 3 tbsp olive oil, divided
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1 tsp red wine vinegar
• 1 tsp salt, plus more to taste
• ½ tsp black pepper

Directions

1. Heat your broiler to high.
2. Peel the eggplant, then cut the peppers and eggplant into large chunks. Toss with 2 tbsp of the olive oil.
3. Spread the vegetables on a baking sheet and broil until charred, about 20 minutes. Turn once halfway through.
4. Optionally (and more traditionally), peel the skin off the red peppers once they cool enough to touch.
5. Transfer the vegetables to a blender with the remaining 1 tbsp oil, vinegar, garlic, salt, and pepper. Blend to combine but leave some small chunks intact.
6. Pour the mixture into a skillet and cook for 15–20 minutes, stirring often, until thick and jam-like.
7. Taste and adjust salt to preferred levels.

Kajmak

If you can get real kajmak, use it. This is a substitute that approximates the taste. The cool, creamy cheese combines perfectly with the rest of the dish, so I highly recommend either the real thing or this version.

Ingredients

• ½ cup full-fat sour cream
• 2 tbsp cream cheese
• 1 tbsp heavy cream
• ¼ tsp salt

Directions

1. Mix everything together until thick and smooth.
2. Refrigerate until serving.

To serve, give each person

• 2–3 ćevapi
• 1 warm somun

Finely chopped white onion

A spoonful of kajmak

• ¼ cup ajvar

Keep the components separate on the plate. The perfect bite has a little of everything, but mix up the combinations. The flavors come together in wonderful ways.