Mujdei (Romanian Garlic Sauce)
Local name: Mujdei de usturoi
In short: Garlic crushed with salt and loosened with water and a little oil, the sharp Romanian sauce for fried zucchini, polenta and grilled meat. It takes about 10 min in total and makes 8 servings.
- Prep
- 10 min
- Cook
- 0 min
- Resting
- 10 min
- Total
- 10 min
- Servings
- 8
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Calories
- 40 kcal
Mujdei is the fierce garlic sauce of Romanian cooking, made by crushing garlic with salt and loosening it with water and a little oil. There is no cooking and no emulsifying, only force and patience. It comes with crisp fried zucchini, fried fish, polenta, boiled potatoes and grilled meats, and it wakes up anything bland. Make it fresh, and make less than you think you need.
Instructions
- Cut off the root ends of the garlic and remove any green germ from the cloves. Put them in a mortar with the salt.
- Pound with the pestle for about 2 minutes, until the garlic is a smooth, wet paste. If you have no mortar, use a garlic press and then mash the paste with the salt and the back of a spoon.
- Stir in the oil, then add the water a spoonful at a time, stirring until the sauce is cloudy and loose like thin cream.
- Let it stand for 10 minutes so the sharpness settles. Stir in the vinegar and herbs if you like.
- Serve at room temperature with fried or grilled food, polenta or potatoes. Keep leftovers in the fridge.
Tips
- For a gentler sauce, use fewer cloves or blanch the peeled garlic in boiling water for 30 seconds before crushing.
- Use it within 3 days and keep it refrigerated. Do not store garlic in oil at room temperature, because that carries a food-safety risk.
Questions and answers
What do you eat mujdei with?
Fried zucchini, fried or grilled fish, mămăligă, boiled or roasted potatoes, grilled meats such as mici, and bean dishes. A spoonful also enlivens soups.
How is mujdei different from aioli?
Mujdei has no egg and no stable emulsion. It is a garlic and salt paste loosened with water and a little oil, so it is thinner and sharper.
How long does mujdei keep?
Up to 3 days in a covered jar in the fridge. It gets stronger as it sits, so taste it before serving and add a little water if it is too fierce.
How long does it take to make Mujdei (Romanian Garlic Sauce)?
About 10 min in total: 10 min of preparation and 0 min of cooking.
How many calories are in Mujdei (Romanian Garlic Sauce)?
About 40 kcal per serving, with 1 g of protein, 2 g of carbohydrates and 3 g of fat. These values are estimates.
Nutrition per serving
| Calories | 40 kcal |
|---|---|
| Protein | 1 g |
| Carbohydrates | 2 g |
| Fat | 3 g |
| Fiber | 0 g |
| Sugar | 0 g |
| Sodium | 150 mg |
Estimated values, calculated from the ingredients.
