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Kholodets (Meat Jelly)

Kholodets is a cold meat dish common among the Slavic peoples of Eastern Europe.

It is believed that kholodets was cooked in the days of Kyivan Rus. This conclusion was prompted by historians to an interesting fact: in all East Slavic languages, this dish has the same name. This means that kholodets was invented at a time when there were no strong differences between languages.

Jelly, like most meat dishes, was prepared for major winter holidays, such as Christmas. The invention of gelatin contributed to the fact that kholodets began to be made less thick, and more refined ingredients - ham, mushrooms, various spices - began to be added instead of cartilage and bones. However, after the arrival of the Bolsheviks, all "bourgeois" recipes were taboo.

Ingredients

legs, shoulders, veal hooves, pork hooves, pork ears, chicken wings (you can choose several options) — 1 kilogram;
beef leg — 1 kilogram;
onion — 250 grams;
carrots — 250 grams;
parsley root — 100 grams;
garlic — 3-4 cloves;
bay leaf — 5-6 pieces;
allspice peas — 4-5 pieces;
salt, pepper — to taste.

The cooking process

Kholodets is cooked for a long time, but not difficult in cooking. To begin, prepare the cartilage and bones. If you want the kholodets to harden without gelatin, you can't do without them. Cattle bones are cut into smaller pieces so that they fit in the pan. They are not added to the finished dish. The task of bones and cartilage is to give collagen.

Put the cartilage and meat on the bones in a large saucepan with a thick bottom. Fill with water. Cook over very low heat for 7-9 hours until the meat begins to separate from the bones. Important: the broth should only languish, but not boil.
About 2 hours before the end of cooking, add onions, carrots, parsley roots to the dish. Vegetables do not need to be cut.
20 minutes before the end of cooking, put bay leaf and allspice in a saucepan.
When the meat is cooked, remove it from the pan and cut into small pieces. Cut the carrots. Bones, cartilage, onions and spices are not used in the finished dish.
Strain the broth through a fine sieve. Pour it into a clean pan and boil for a minute with finely chopped garlic and salt.
Put meat and carrots in small bowls or other utensils. Pour the broth. Put the finished dish in the refrigerator.
When the liquid hardens, the dish can be served. Jelly tastes best with horseradish, mustard and salt. Bon appetit!

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Kholodets (Meat Jelly)

Ingredients

The cooking process

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