Ròubǐngr (Lil’ Meat Cakes)
Meat cakes made with spices from all over Genghis Khan’s empire like asafoetida and long pepper
City/Region: Mongol Empire
Time Period: 14th Century
Genghis Khan grew up foraging on the harsh steppes with his mother and brothers, surviving on small game, miserable fish, fruit, and roots. Later, the Mongolian horde drank reconstituted bitter coagulated milk and blood straight from the veins of their horses. By the end of his reign, Genghis Khan had access to noodles and bread from China, spices from the Middle East and India, wine, and rice beer, among many other delicious foods.
Those spices are present in this recipe for lil’ meat cakes (“lil’” is actually a better translation than “little”). The asafoetida comes through first when you eat them. It’s such a different flavor for many American palates that it is really noticeable, and then the peppers and coriander come after that first wave of asafoetida umami. I like lamb and thought these were really good, but feel free to swap in a different meat if lamb isn’t your thing.
“Select mutton, 10 chin; remove the fat, membrane, and sinew. Mash into a paste with asafoetida, three ch’ien, black pepper, two liang, long pepper, one liang, finely ground coriander, one liang. For ingredients use salt. Adjust flavors evenly. Use the fingers to make cakes. Put into vegetable oil and fry.”
Ingredients:
- 1 pound (450 g) ground lamb or mutton
- 1/4 teaspoon asafoetida*
- 2 teaspoons ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon ground long pepper*
- 1 teaspoon coriander
- 1 teaspoon salt
- Vegetable oil, for cooking
*See notes below.
Instructions:
- Add the spices and salt to the meat and mix everything together with your hands until it's well combined.
- Form the meat into lil' flat cakes about 1 1/2 inches across and fairly thin. You should be able to get 10 to 12.
- Heat the oil in a pan to about 350° to 375°F (175°C). You want enough oil to come at least halfway up the sides of the cakes.
- Carefully add the cakes to the pan without crowding them (you may want to work in batches). Let them fry undisturbed for 2 minutes. Flip them over and fry for another 90 seconds or until they’re a nice deep brown. Take them out and set them on some paper towel to drain. Repeat the process with the rest of the cakes.
Notes
Asafoetida, or hing, is a very pungent ingredient that imparts a wonderful garlicky umami flavor when cooked. Be sure to store it in a sealed container (or two) or your whole pantry will smell sulphurous. You can find it at Indian markets or at the link below.
Long pepper is hotter than black pepper and has a more aromatic, almost flowery quality to it that's wonderful.
- Link to asafoetida: https://amzn.to/3R2zRRZ
- Link to long pepper: https://amzn.to/3ui5j5L
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