A traditional Maramureș soup, sweet and sour, made from pumpkin with yogurt (sămătișă) and a paprika roux. A simple, hearty recipe from Vadu Izei, in the heart of Țara Maramureșului.
🥣 Ingredients
- pumpkin
- water
- yogurt (sămătișă)
- flour
- oil
- sweet paprika
- bacon (optional)
- milk (milk froth)
👩🍳 How to prepare
Peel the pumpkin and cut it into cubes. Bring water to a boil. When it boils, pour the yogurt mixed with flour, stirring slowly in the pot to avoid lumps. Add the pieces of pumpkin. Make a roux of oil, flour and sweet paprika, and pour it into the pot. Let it boil for a few more minutes. If it is eaten as a sweet dish, fry pieces of bacon and pour them on top. Beat the milk froth with milk and pour it into the pot.
📖 The story of the recipe
Recipe from Bledea Maria, 78 years old, from Vadu Izei, a village on the Iza Valley, in the heart of Țara Maramureșului. Pumpkin soup was an autumn dish, made when the pumpkin was harvested from the yard and cooked simply with what the house had: yogurt, flour, paprika and, on holidays, a little fried bacon.
🔍 What’s next
More traditional Maramureș recipes, collected by the Maramureș Museum in Sighetu Marmației, can be found in the Gastro section of our newspaper. Try also the bean soup with sauerkraut.
Recipe source: Maramureș Museum Sighetu Marmației – Maramureș GastroEtnoArt. Photo source: Cookpad (Pumpkin soup with milk recipe, Loredana Ciobotea).
