These homemade sausages are also known as mici (will translate as “small” or 'little' and pronounced “Meech”) are a Romanian BBQ staple. There is no bbq without these tasty little ones. Mici or mititei is street food in Romania and they are loved by everyone that likes meat. Love at first taste and sight too as they do look appetising.
Generally, people purchase them ready from local butchers raw and grill them at home. Mici is now available to buy here in the UK, but why buy them ( mainly frozen) when they are so easy to make at home. So, please give them a try and let me know how they came out for you.
If you are a Romanian and have visited Romania, you know what I am saying. If you are not, never visited Romania, or never met a Romanian, then, you must try these delicious little ones aka mici (mititei) immediately.
What is mici or mititei?
They are small homemade sausages with no casing and they’re so different in many ways, they're super, super nice!
Ideal for a picnic or BBQ especially to grill them and eat them freshly on the spot there and then. They can be pan-fried or baked but.... they will not be the same.
The best mici are the homemade ones obviously as they’re the real stuff. You know what’s in them and that is an absolute must as far as I believe. No need to add anything nasty for those to be the ‘real stuff’. Many people buy them ready-made because they think they’re too fancy to prepare. They are not. Not at all!!
Keep the recipe simple and you’ll see how beautiful they’ll turn out.
Traditionally the recipe calls for quite a bit of fat but I have made them with super lean (just 5% fat) pork mince and 5% fat content beef mince. The result?! Simply gorgeous, super juicy and absolutely delicious mici. A lot healthier too!
But there is not to say that are no secrets to making those little ones, there are!
The secret to making and preparing mici….
The fat content, as believed by many, isn’t the actual secret to getting nice juicy mici, not at all.
The very secret to good mici or homemade sausages are a couple of things :
- The moisture level - need to add liquids to the mixture (see ingredients)
- Soda bicarbonate and the beer (the star ingredients)
- Fire (need to be cooked on fairly rapid-fire) and this is the key to success.
More Important Tips
- Fresh minced meat/ground meat is important to get the best tasting mici;
- Mici need and must be cooked on fairly rapid fire and this is to keep them juicy and tender.
- Serve immediately as they come off the BBQ;
- For the best results, taste and flavours wise, the mixture needs to rest for a couple of hours in the fridge. No need to rest for more than a couple of hours but if no choice, make the mixture the night before.
Serving Suggestions
- traditionally, mici must be served on their own with your favourite mustard and a cold, cold super good pint of beer. Once you have all these in place you’re good to go.
- they can be served with chips, bread or buns or a salad of your choice too ( I know I will be told off by a Romanian for saying this lol)
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Can I freeze mici?
Yes, you may. If you think you made too much mici mixture and might not use it all, freeze it. Place it in a freezer bag and you may keep it frozen for up to two months. You may freeze it as a chunk or as readily formed mici. If you decide to form the mititei and then freeze them, you may do so but place them next to one another in an airtight container on layers separated by parchment paper. Remove it from the freezer and let it thaw in the fridge overnight to thaw it out.
How long can I keep mici?
They are best when consumed fresh, however, they can be stored in the fridge for 2-3 days. They will need reheating in a pan before serving.
Here’s the recipe folks, and I’ve had quite a few requests for this recipe (sorry for the wait) but here it is now, so let’s start rolling these yummy meaty open amazing little case free sausages.
Before getting these done, here are some more nice BBQ side dishes that you may like to make in addition to enjoying a real feast.
More recipes you might like
Did you make this mici recipe? Leave a comment and even rate the recipe to tell us what you thought and how it came out for you!
Homemade mici - romanian garlicky meat open sausages
Equipment
- glass bowl
- spatula
- tongs
- tray
- mug
Ingredients
- 500 g ground beef (17.7 oz or 2.2 cups) I used 5% fat content
- 500 g ground pork (17.7 oz or 2.2 cups) I used 5% fat content ( you can use more fat content)
- 180 ml beef stock (6.09 floz) ideally homemade * see recipe notes
- 50 ml beer ( 1.69 floz)
- 1 tsp soda bicarbonate * 1/2 US teaspoon as that is larger
- 1 tsp salt * 1/3 US teaspoon
- 2-3 cloves garlic (small cloves) grated and made into a paste
- 1 tsp thyme dry or fresh
- 1 pinch nutmeg (optional)
- 1/2 tsp coriander powder (optional)
- 1/4 tsp ground cumin (optional)
- 1/4 tsp ground pepper
- 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper or chilli flakes (optional)
Instructions
- Place the meat into a bowl, you can give it another whizz into the food processor for a double grinding but don’t worry if you don’t fancy doing this. There is another solution - extra mixing/kneading.
- In a larger mug, I mix the beef stock with a beer so that be carbonate spices seasoning salt pepper and give it a good stir until the salt has dissolved entirely.
- Add this liquid mixture to the meat and mix really well until the mixture becomes almost a paste. And this is your double grinding technique
- You can now work with a dash of oil or water to form the sausages into their shapes. A little touch of oil takes you a long way so just grease your palms with a tiny dash of oil or, use a bit of water. I always use oil. It helps with preventing them from sticking. Place all on a plate or a little tray, something that can easily be placed in the fridge.
- Transfer the open sausages to the fridge to rest for 2 to 4 hours but you can leave them overnight too, it’s absolutely okay.
- Place them onto a hot, hot grill or in a hot pan and cook them on each side ( x 2) for no longer than 4 min.
- Mici must be served with mustard and a super cold glass of beer. HEA VEN!
Notes
- To make the beef or lamb stock at home I always choose oxtail or lamb neck and boil these for a good few hours. They can be made separate or mixed it really does not matter.
- If you don’t eat pork replaced this with lamb but if you do, feel free to mix all three types of meat to a ratio of 2:1:1 meaning 2 parts of beef, 1 part pork and 1 lamb. It’s a sensational one.
- Needless to say that I always add chilli flakes to spice things up a little or serve them with nice 'n spicy mustard.
- Resting time it’s an important step as they will soak in all the spices and all flavours will blend in nicely.
- Mixing the meat is crucial - this needs mixing by hand until resembles a paste
- Mici can be grilled, ideally on the charcoal grill but a gas or electric grill would do the job too. They can be even fried in a pan or baked in the oven.
- These need to be grilled on quick-fire. High temperature is another secret to PERFECT MICI and turned a couple of times - this is for the best-looking mici (see picture below) but also for delivering some really nice mouthwatering and very juicy mici 'little ones' 😉
- To check whether Mici or the little ones are cooked to perfection while on the grill tap them harder with a fork or the tongs and if they are bouncy, they are ready.
Donna says
I made Mici just yesterday, but used another recipe. It was very close to this one but used 2 teaspoons of baking soda (as we call it in the US). The taste was fabulous but the texture was spongy. I'm convinced that baking soda was the culprit as this recipe calls for a quarter of the amount I used. Next time, I'm using this recipe. Thanks.
Ramona says
Hi Donna,
Thank you so much for stopping by.
I do think 2 US tbsp it's quite a lot of soda bicarbonate but it depends on the meat quantity. Please use my recipe next time and see how it goes, but, I am sure you will find it better ;-). It would be absolutely lovely to know when you make it, and how it went.
Susan says
These were simply FANTASTIC!!! My husband's boss is Romanian and they have made this for him several times because it is is favorite. They even go to the Romanian restaurant here in Las Vegas. He told me that these (my first time ever making them) were the BEST he ever had and he told me he really meant it. THANK YOU!
Ramona says
Awww, thank you so much for your lovely feedback and comment dear Susan.
I’m so happy you liked them and with a comment like that coming from a Romanian for my mici recipe I can only feel chuffed 🤗.
How funny though, I’m actually just making mici now they are on fire as I type this message to you.
I do hope you guys were not short of beer and mustard. Noroc 🍻
Chana says
I truly liked your mici recipe .Really what I was looking for and so so authentic to the real street ones I have had in Romania if not better now that are made at home with all natural ingredients. Brilliant recipe - it is saved and the only one I would follow going forward. Excellent and thanks for sharing. I will try your Spanish omelet too - that's next on my list. It looks amazing!! Thanks for all these wonderful recipes you share here Ramona. 😉
Ramona says
Thanks so much dear Chana, I am thrilled you liked my mici recipe - they are truly wonderful, and although they are a BBQ season dish I must admit I make them all throughout the year sometimes pan-cooked or in a griddle pan. I am looking forward to your feedback on the Spanish omelet too. Enjoy!!
Jonathan says
After living in Romania for a couple years I came home and tweaked "Mici" a bit. I pretty much follow your recipe but I also add some well chopped fresh herbs, such chives and italian parsley, in addition to thyme. I also mince the garlic so it mixes in better (and try to use elephant garlic). I serve them with grilled flatbread and creamy cole slaw. Even my Romanian wife thinks they are great that way (though she says it is not really mici without mustard)
Ramona says
I totally agree with you Jonathan, mici are so great and versatile and can be tweaked endlessly to everyone's liking - you are great for tweaking the recipe - I do too, and have it however I fancy at that particular time. Your version must be absolutely amazing so keep up the good work!! If you want them authentic, yes, mici with mustard is the way but who can ever say we cannot tweak the recipe? I am all up for it. Noroc! 😉
Thank you so much for stopping by and for your lovely comment.
Gemma says
Hey just wanted to give you a verdict on this recipe. It is the best recipe for these little Romanian beauties, oh yes, Definitely the best recipe for Romanian mici I have ever made. A M A Z I N G!! I have saved it and I will frame it - thanks Ramona, I am forever grateful!!
Ramona says
Aww, Gemma , you have made my day! Absolutely wonderful! I am super grateful for your feedback and I am soooo happy that you liked my mici recipe. I hope you will give other recipes a try and give me a verdict on. I am looking forward to that!
Gina says
Good recipe. Close to real thing but IMO you’re way off on garlic 2-3 small cloves? I’d say more like the whole head.
Ramona says
Hi Gina and thanks for your feedback, it is greatly appreciated.
I am very glad you liked my mici recipe. They are truly delicious, aren't they?. The only reason this recipe it's not quite the real thing but close to it, it's because I do not add the fat amounts an original recipe calls for. There are two reasons for this:
- the fat amount
- the spices added
I don't feel there is a need for more than 5-10% fat but this is entirely my opinion and my liking as I do like to cut on my unhealthy habits.
I do agree with you on the garlic, you can go as garlicky as you wish and this is a personal choice. This recipe can definitely cater for anything between 3-4 cloves to a whole garlic head. Absolutely! This is entirely left to everyone's taste and preference.
Thanks again! xx or xo 😉
Bobby says
A buddy of mine recommended your blog on Facebook. I can see why. Great posts here.
Ann says
These look delicious! I have never made these before, but I am excited to give these a try! Thanks for the share!