Tocăniță with pork and vegetables

Name: Tocăniță with pork and vegetables
Ingredients: 400 g pork neck; 1 large onion (200 g); 1 carrot (100 g); 1 green bell pepper (150 g); 3 medium potatoes (400 g); 50 ml oil; 2 tablespoons tomato paste; 1 tablespoon Maggi Secretul Gustului; 1/2 teaspoon ground pepper; 10 g dill; 250 ml water; 500 ml water

Meat - Tocăniță with pork and vegetables by Ludmila N. - Recipia

Tocăniță with pork and vegetables, a Romanian stew: pork neck is browned separately, then simmers with onion, carrot, pepper and potatoes in a tomato paste sauce. It comes out lightly thickened, with potatoes that break down a little and fresh dill at the end. I go for pork neck, not leg, because it stays fattier and doesn't dry out when simmered. Preparation: 20 minutes. Cooking: 60 minutes. Total time: 80 minutes. Servings: 4. About 475 kcal and 22 g protein per serving.

Ingredients

400 g pork neck
1 large onion (200 g)
1 carrot (100 g)
1 green bell pepper (150 g)
3 medium potatoes (400 g)
50 ml oil
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 tablespoon Maggi Secretul Gustului
1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
10 g dill
250 ml water
500 ml water

Preparation

1. Chop the onion finely, cut the pepper into julienne and grate the carrot. 2. Cut the pork neck into 3 cm cubes and dry them with kitchen paper, without rinsing. 3. In a hot pan, with 25 ml oil, fry the meat separately, until browned on all sides, about 8 minutes. Transfer it to a bowl. 4. In a pot with the remaining 25 ml oil, sauté the vegetables for 6-7 minutes, until softened. 5. Add 250 ml water, the potatoes cut into small cubes and the fried meat. 6. Top up with 500 ml water, bring to a boil and leave for 25-30 minutes, until the potatoes are soft. 7. Add 2 tablespoons tomato paste, 1 tablespoon Maggi and 1/2 teaspoon ground pepper, to taste, and leave for another 15 minutes on the heat. 8. Before turning off the heat, add the finely chopped dill.

Notes

Serve the tocăniță with fresh bread so it soaks up the sauce, and with sour pickles. Browning the meat is the step people rush, but if it doesn't brown well, the sauce comes out bland. If the potatoes are cut larger, 3 cm, add them along with the meat, otherwise they fall apart before the pork is cooked. If the sauce is too watery, leave it uncovered for 5 minutes on high heat and it will thicken. If it's too salty, put in a raw potato cut into quarters and take it out at the end. I used carrot mixed with grated pepper, from the freezer, in place of the fresh ones. Maggi can be replaced with 1 teaspoon of salt and 1 teaspoon of sweet paprika. It keeps 3 days in the fridge and is reheated on low heat.