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Makarony po-flotski
Navy-style pasta with minced beef
Makarony po-flotski (макароны по-флотски): navy-style macaroni tossed with minced beef fried with onion
Navy cooks in the Baltic Fleet at Kronstadt fed whole crews on this, and it went on to become the canteen and student-hostel supper of the Soviet Union: tubes of pasta tossed in a frying pan with beef mince and plenty of onion until everything is a little crisp. It is salty, peppery and comforting, and children love it. Eat it straight from the pan with a pickled cucumber or a quick tomato salad. A common mistake is crowding raw mince into a cold pan so it stews grey instead of browning. Chef's tip: fry the drained pasta in the meat fat for the last two minutes without stirring too much, so some tubes catch and turn golden.
- Total time
- 30 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp salt for the pasta water
- 2 tbsp sunflower oil
- 2 onionsfinely chopped
- 16 oz beef mince
- ¾ tsp salt
- 1 tsp black pepperfreshly ground
- 1 garlic clovecrushed
- ⅓ oz fresh parsley or dill (optional)chopped
- 4 pickled cucumbers (optional)to serve
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Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Bring a large pan of water to a boil with the 1 tbsp salt for the pasta water and cook the 12 ½ oz short tube pasta (penne, rigatoni or macaroni) for 1 minute less than the packet says, until just al dente. Drain, keeping a mug of the water.
11 minStep 2: Meanwhile heat the 2 tbsp sunflower oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat and fry the 2 onions for 6 minutes, until soft and golden.
6 minStep 3: Turn the heat to high, add the 16 oz beef mince and break it up. Fry for 8 minutes, stirring, until there is no pink left, the juices have evaporated and the meat crackles and browns. It must reach 160°F.
8 minStep 4: Season with the ¾ tsp salt, 1 tsp black pepper and 1 garlic clove and fry for 30 seconds, until the garlic smells sweet.
1 minStep 5: Tip in the drained pasta and 3 tablespoons of the cooking water, toss well, then leave over a medium-high heat for 2 minutes, until a few tubes turn crisp at the edges.
3 minStep 6: Scatter over the ⅓ oz fresh parsley or dill and serve hot with 4 pickled cucumbers on the side.
1 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 560 kcal
- Protein
- 32 g
- Carbs
- 66 g
- Fat
- 18 g
- Fibre
- 4 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does makarony po-flotski take?
- About 30 minutes in total: 5 minutes to prepare and 25 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- What can I use instead of onions?
- 2 shallots per onion.
- What can I use instead of garlic clove?
- ½ tsp garlic paste or ⅛ tsp garlic powder per clove.
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