Feasting Croatia: Peka
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Peka
A Traditional Croatian Dish
Peka is a traditional Croatian dish that is cooked under hot coals for approximately two hours. It comes in two varieties: meat (chicken/veal/lamb) and octopus. It is cooked with potatoes under the peka. Make it low carb by limiting or eliminating the potatoes. Peka is the name of the dish but it is also the name of the lid/cover that goes on top on the pan while cooking.
Let me get to the headline: it is an incredible experience. To cook it traditionally, you need a building dedicated solely to cooking. The building traditionally has a place for a fire, not only to cook peka, but the same building is used to smoke and cure prosciutto and other meats, and it’s made out of stone. It’s typically a one-room building and may or may not have seats around the fire or a table pending on size. Fun fact: Dalmation prosciutto can be cured for up to two years!
Traditionally, peka is made outside of the city where people have space for an extra building. You can also order it at a restaurant but you need to make a reservation 48 hours in advance and put down a deposit. Most times in restaurants, it’s cooked electronically and not with fire/embers.
It is a slow-cooked meal that takes 2 hours to prepare and 2 hours to cook pending on the size of the peka. It involves a lot of drinking while you wait to pass the time. Wine, liquors, rakija. The last time I had it in Split, we met some locals, drove an hour outside the city into the country and had an incredible time. No wifi. No TV. No Netflix. We sat around the fire and drank, ate, and drank some more. It was probably my favorite experience in Croatia. Authentic and off the main tourist path.
If you have a traditional peka, it’s usually used 1-2 times per month for special occasions or when you have guests. It is too much work and too much food to do normally.
Peka is an experience and a process - here’s how it’s done:
Start building the fire to get a good pile of coals/embers
Enjoy meats/cheeses/wines/rakija while the fire builds (a traditional Balkan brandy made from wine water. Pro tip: flavored rakija is significantly better than non-flavored. Honey was my #1)
Continue to build fire for 2-3 hours
Continue to enjoy meats/cheeses/wines/more shots of rakija
Clear a big circle in the middle of the embers for the pan of food
Place pan in said big circle
Place the peka on top of the pan
Put wire ring on top of peka to keep embers in place
Put embers on top of Peka to give the top a heat source
Cook for ~90 minutes
Keep drinking
Take off peka, flip the meat and cook for a bit longer
Enjoy
If you are ever in Split, you can book these types of things on Airbnb Experiences. It is better than any tour of any city in Croatia you will ever take.
