Urban myths, traditions and controversial opinions about “the oldest Romanian street food”

Labor Day has its history. As well as the little ones who are almost automatically associated with May 1st.

It is said that the minis were brought to Romania by the Turks, as were the sarmales, the meatballs, but we adopted them as traditional minis. Probably because they are very good, everyone eats them.

“As in any culinary recipe, there is the question of the authorship of the recipe. Who invented it? They are the little Romanians or they are not the little Romanians. Well, the little ones are also Romanian, because, like many other networks, they have an origin somewhere in the East, but we adapted them. We have perverted our taste. I put pork on them, unlike their oriental ancestors. We put much more garlic than others, we put sodium bicarbonate, which is, again, specifically Romanian” says Cosmin Dragomir, GastroArt.ro culinary historian.

There are conflicting opinions if we look a little in history. Maybe even the specialists say that they are Romanian traditional, then, further back, borrowed from the Turks. The idea is that they are very tasty and are traditionally eaten 1st May.

“The Mitites seem to have appeared in the Balkans, with clear Ottoman, Greek influences. They are found here, they are found in the former Yugoslav space, in Bulgaria, in Greece, in different forms. We also adapted them and they became a traditional food. It is the oldest Romanian street food. In all Balkan areas there are all kinds of urban myths. In our case it is said that at Iordache’s inn, famous for the sausages he prepared on the grill.”

In our country, the small appeared in the 19th century in an inn that was fixed in this place. Called Iordachi’s inn, the place was known for its delicious sausages. But one day, the man was left with a lot of meat and no mat to put it in, so he took the meat and put it directly on the grill. It wasn’t until 1920 that the first recipe for “mici” appeared, which says that they must be made of beef, be 7-8 centimeters long and that musai is served with a pint of beer on the side.

“I know they are Romanian, and at some point they appeared in the context of the grilled sausages. And so the little ones appeared. This is the history I know,” says a man.

“There are many small variations, not just the traditional ones that we know. There are combinations. I prefer those that have sheep in the composition. They can also be made from fish, and vegan ones are being made at the moment. Specific recipes have appeared, the small ones from Lehliu, which have an interesting story. Bon appetit and stay at home!” wishes Cosmin Dragomir.