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More than 1 ton of Tsalapish babek, prepared by local craftsmen, was looted at the holiday in the village today, the mayor of the village Ivaylo Danailov told “Maritsa”. A celebration of “Tsalapish babek and wine 2023” is being held for the third year in a row in the village of the same name. This year, 20 foodies took part in the competition for the delicious stuffed fuski with meat, and 18 in the wine competition.
The competition for the tastiest tsalapish babek, prepared according to the traditional recipe for the village, turned out to be the most contested. Three masters went to a runoff after the jury found it difficult to choose the winner, as the meze prepared by all three proved to be worthy of the prize. However, the Oscar for the tastiest Tzalapish babek ended up in the hands of 13-year-old Ivelin Dzivkov, who brought a sample of his grandfather Ivan Bambalov’s specialty. He received a certificate and a special plaque, which was personally handed to him by the mayor of the “Rodopi” municipality, Pavel Mihailov.
In the competition for the best homemade wine, the winner is Atanas Bayrev.
With many songs and folk dances, the celebration, organized by the town hall and the local community center, continues. Even early in the morning, the most visited were the stalls with tzalapishka babek of the local chefs. By noon the goodies were looted.
Meanwhile, it became clear that on Tuesday the Patent Office issued a patent for the local meat specialty. The City Hall and the Municipality of Rodopi already own the brand “Traditional Tzalapishki Babek”. The goal is to give it only to those masters who have followed the traditional recipe when preparing the babeka. The goal is to resume local production, and the association “Tsalapishki babek” will participate with this brand in farmers’ markets.
The secret to the taste of Tzalapishka Babek is due both to the products and to the long maturation. In the past, it lasted half a year, and the consumption of the finished product took place during the harvest.
The original recipe for Tzalapishki Babek calls for only minced pork, not ground pork. As for the spices they are nice red and black pepper, salt and cumin.
The flavored meat is placed in a pig’s stomach or duodenum and smoked naturally within a day. Then the meat is dried in a ventilated place for about a month. In the past, the northern eaves were used.
Smoking used to happen with the help of a nut noise. The meat was left to cool, then carefully hung on hooks in the hearth for about an hour or two. Then the sausage is moved to an airy place. The action is repeated within a week until it is finally moved to the attic or left to dry in a saivant. Locals say that thanks to smoking, the meat is protected from mold and can be stored until next summer.
