Baked Meat Zrazy with Quail Egg

Cooking method

1. Step 1:

   

   How do you make baked meat zrazy with egg and onion? Gather your ingredients. Any meat works for the filling—pork, beef, chicken, lamb. You can even mix a few kinds of meat for even more flavor. I'm using only pork. You can also use store-bought ground meat, whatever's easier for you. If your ground meat is frozen, thaw it first.

2. Step 2:

   

   Rinse the meat well under running water and trim away anything you don't want—sinew and membrane. Pat it dry and cut it into pieces sized for the grinder. Peel, rinse, and dry the onion and garlic too. Cut the onion into quarters. Soak the white bread in milk in a separate bowl, just for a few seconds, then lift it out and gently squeeze it.

3. Step 3:

   

   Run the pork, onion, and garlic through a meat grinder. I usually prefer to grind the meat myself and only buy pre-ground in a pinch—I think it tastes far better this way. But again, if you're short on time, store-bought is easier.

4. Step 4:

   

   Salt the ground meat to taste.

5. Step 5:

   

   Add ground black pepper.

6. Step 6:

   

   Crack in a raw egg.

7. Step 7:

   

   Add the soaked bread to the ground meat. If you like, you can grind it along with the meat—I usually don't. Just crumble the damp bread in with your hands.

8. Step 8:

   

   Knead the meat mixture well—hands work best. Then slap it against the countertop a few times to knock out excess air. This makes the mixture firmer so it holds its shape.

9. Step 9:

   

   Now for the filling. I'm using quail eggs. Boil them for about 5 minutes, then cool and peel them. I chose quail eggs for this recipe because I think they look more interesting when the patty is cut open. But it's not a must—you can use chicken eggs cut in half, or finely chop hard-boiled eggs and mix them with green onion. Go with whatever you like.

10. Step 10:

    

    Prepare the breading. I mix the breadcrumbs with dry spices and salt. You can do the same or just use plain breadcrumbs. Besides the crumbs, my mix has paprika, garlic powder, and ground black pepper.

11. Step 11:

    

    Lightly wet your hands with water. Take a portion of meat about the size of a chicken egg. Roll it into a ball, then press a well into the center, as shown in the photo.

12. Step 12:

    

    Set a whole quail egg, half a chicken egg, or the egg-and-onion filling into the well.

13. Step 13:

    

    Close the meat around the filling, roll each patty in the breading, and place it on a baking sheet greased with oil. You can line the sheet with parchment—then nothing sticks and there's no pan to scrub afterward. Bake the zrazy at about 350°F (180°C) for roughly half an hour, until cooked through. Adjust the exact time and temperature to your own oven.

14. Step 14:

    

    The baked meat zrazy with egg and onion are ready.

15. Step 15:

    

    And here's what the zrazy look like sliced open. Enjoy!