Blood in Food. Recipes

Vinegared blood. (Xidato aima. Chania of Crete)

fresh blood from the pig’s neck

200 gr meat from the pig’s neck, 1 cm diced

1 onion finely chopped

3 tbs olive oil

 3/4 cup vinegar

ground salt ground black pepper

Strain the blood and add salt in order to prevent coagulation. Sautè the onion and meat, briefly in olive oil. Add some water and cook. When they are almost done add the blood, vinegar, salt and pepper and cook until xidato will be thick but pourable.

Aimaties.Based on a recipe from «Choirosfagia in Syros» by Filena Venardou, p. 61. (Βενάρδου Φιλένα, Τα Χοιροσφάγια της Σύρου, Αθήνα 2001).

60 cm cleaned and washed pig’s large intestine

1 tbsp pig fat

2 spring onions, finely chopped

1 tbsp olive oil

½ cup raisins ground pepper

4 allspice bean

½ tsp dried mint

olive oil for frying

Mix the fat with the olive oil, heat the mixture and sautè the spring onions until transparent. Add the blood, spices, mint, and raisins. Stir the mixture well and over low heat, to be thick. Cool to room temperature before stuffing it to intestine. Do not overstuff the sausage. Transfer the sausages in a jar and cover them with warm pig’s fat, until ready to use. Aimaties are served sautè in olive oil and cut in slices.