Drob de miel

Ingredients

Offal

• 1set of lamb offal
• liver, heart, kidneys and lungs
• water, for boiling
• 1 tablespoonvinegar
• salt

Herbs and aromatics

• 8spring onions, finely sliced
• a large bunch of dill, chopped
• a large bunch of parsley, chopped
• a bunch of lovage, chopped, optional
• 3 tablespoonsoil or lard
• salt and black pepper

To bind

• 6eggs, beaten
• 4hard-boiled eggs, whole
• 80 gfresh breadcrumbs
• or 3 slices of bread soaked in milk

To wrap

• 1 pieceof caul fat, prapore
• or streaky bacon rashers
• or baking paper

To serve

• spring salad
• pickles
• bread

Directions

1. Roast lamb and other dishes use the rest. Check what is legal where you are. It is what keeps a lean offal loaf moist. Soak salted caul fat in cold water first. Give it about thirty full minutes. Rinse it well and then pat it dry. Cleaning the offal takes real work. Rinse everything thoroughly under cold water.
2. Trim away all tubes and membranes. Cut out any hard or discoloured parts. Soak the kidneys separately in cold water. Add a splash of vinegar to that water. Give them about thirty minutes.
3. Rinse everything again afterwards. Put the cleaned offal in a large pot. Cover it with plenty of cold water. Add a splash of vinegar and some salt. Bring it to a boil and skim the foam. Keep skimming until no more rises. Let it cook for about thirty minutes. The offal should be firm and cooked through.
4. Lift it out and let it cool down. Chop all the cooked offal finely. Aim for pieces about half a centimetre. Chop all of the herbs very finely. The mixture should look genuinely green. Heat the oil in a wide heavy pan. Fry the spring onions for four minutes.
5. Add all the chopped cooked offal. Fry it together for about five minutes. Take it off the heat and let it cool. Combining it needs a light hand. Put the cooled offal mixture in a bowl. Add all of the chopped green herbs. Add the breadcrumbs or soaked bread. Beat the eggs and add them in. Season it well with salt and black pepper.
6. Mix it thoroughly with your hands. It should hold together when pressed. Add more breadcrumbs if it is loose. Fry a small piece to taste the seasoning. Adjust the salt and pepper accordingly. Assembling it takes some care. Line a loaf tin with the caul fat. Let it overhang the sides generously. Spoon in half of the offal mixture. Lay the whole hard-boiled eggs down the centre.
7. Set them end to end in a line. Spoon the rest of the mixture over them. Press it down firmly to remove air pockets. Fold the overhanging caul fat over the top. It should enclose the loaf completely. Heat the oven to 180C before baking. Set the tin in a roasting tray. Bake it for about seventy-five minutes. The top should be browned and firm.
8. Cover it with foil if it browns too early. Judging when it is done takes a skewer. Let it cool completely in the tin. It sets quite firm as it cools. Turn it out and cut it into thick slices. Serve a spring salad alongside. It keeps four days refrigerated.

Technique

• Romanian Orthodox Easter follows a long fast excluding meat and dairy, and a lamb is slaughtered for the feast that breaks it, with drob using the offal so nothing is discarded.
• Caul fat, called prapore, is the lacy membrane around the stomach, and it melts away during baking while basting the lean offal loaf continuously.
• Lung is part of the traditional mixture but is prohibited in human food in some countries, including the United States, and the dish works well without it.

Substitutions

• Streaky bacon rashers stand in for caul fat where a butcher cannot supply it.
• The lung can be left out entirely, with liver, heart and kidney the essential parts.

Variations

• Some households add rice to the mixture to stretch it.
• A version with more lovage is made where the herb is available.
• Similar offal loaves are made across the Balkans for Easter.

History

Lamb offal, herbs and eggs baked in caul fat for Easter, using the offal of the lamb slaughtered for the feast.

Frequently asked questions

What is Drob de miel?

Drob de miel is a main from Romania: easter lamb offal loaf with herbs and eggs. Lamb offal, herbs and eggs baked in caul fat for Easter, using the offal of the lamb slaughtered for the feast.

How long does Drob de miel take to make?

Drob de miel takes 1 hour of preparation and 1 hour 15 minutes of cooking. The recipe makes serves 8. It is rated hard to make.

What can I substitute in Drob de miel?

Yes, within limits. Streaky bacon rashers stand in for caul fat where a butcher cannot supply it. The lung can be left out entirely, with liver, heart and kidney the essential parts.

What is the most important thing to get right in Drob de miel?

Mix it thoroughly with your hands. It should hold together when pressed. Add more breadcrumbs if it is loose. Fry a small piece to taste the seasoning. Adjust the salt and pepper accordingly. Assembling it takes some care. Line a loaf tin with the caul fat. Let it overhang the sides generously. Spoon in half of the offal mixture. Lay the whole hard-boiled eggs down the centre.