Croatia Travel Information: Croatian cooking: Slavonian Fish-Paprikash

This is one of the most outstanding recepies from Osijek area in Slavonia and Baranja (north-east of Croatia), which is blessed with good freshwater fish in its rivers. Each year in September or October there is even a best fish-paprikash cooking competition in Osijek.

The paprikash should taste bit hot and spicy. Serve with Riesling (or Graševina) wine as the perfect accompaniment.

Ingredients

½ kg ( app 1 pound) of freshwater fish per person. You’ll get the best result with various fish (70 % of carp, 15% of catfish, 15% of bacon/pike), but you can also use carp only.
1 middle sized onion per 1kg (app 2 pounds) of fish
1 big spoon of sweet grounded paprika per 1kg of fish
1 dl (1/2 cup) of tomato sauce (or tomato paste) per 1kg of fish
2 dl (1 cup) of white wine per 1kg of fish
salt, hot grounded paprika according to taste
2-3 hot pepperoni
1 l (5 cups) of water per 1kg of fish
1 package (16 ounces) wide egg noodles, cooked

Preparation

Clean the fish and cut it in large pieces (or buy it already cleaned and cut). Cook onions in some water and then mixed it with a kitchen mixer.

In a large stockpot put pieces of fish, mixed onion, pepperoni, tomato and cold water, sprinkle grounded sweet and hot paprika and place it over a high heat. After the water starts to boil, simmer it for another 35 minutes over a low to medium heat. 5 minutes before the end, add the wine, salt and hot pepperoni.

You need to be careful not to overdo so the fish doesn’t crumble. It has to stay in large pieces.

Serve it hot with cooled down cooked noodles. Everybody puts some noodles in their own deep plates and then sauce it over with fish paprikash.

Fish Paprikash can be followed by fried (on oil or fried in breadcrumbs) fish stakes served with a potato salad. Just buy a little bit more fish and use the best pieces for fried stakes.

To prepare a good fish paprikash you can also use a cauldron and cook it over an open fire which is a very common tradition in Slavonia and includes a great deal of passion, emotions and even nostalgia.

If you prefer somebody cooking for you, you can taste fish-paprikash in many restaurants all over Slavonia and Baranja and in Zagreb. Some say that among the best is the fish-paprikash prepared in restaurant “Kod Javora” in Osijek, Donjodravska obala 14, phone (031) 506 950.