WHAT IS KACHAMAK?

Kachamak (Bulgarian polenta) is a traditional Bulgarian dish resembling a thick porridge. Made with yellow cornmeal and butter, and garnished with a spiced buttery sauce, the dish is wonderfully rich and creamy, with a beautiful smoky flavour, and typically served with fatty streaky bacon or feta cheese. It is commonly consumed for breakfast, as a side dish or even on its own as a main course. Preparing kachamak is a laborious job because it requires vigorous stirring during cooking, but the result is so delicious and totally worth the effort.

HISTORY OF THE BULGARIAN POLENTA (RHODOPE KACHAMAK).

To many, it may come as a surprise, but in Bulgaria polenta is a much-loved and truly traditional dish, as it is in Italy. Researching Balkan food history for this blog made me realise how closely connected the Southern Balkan cuisines are to the Italian. That is mostly because of the Romans. Constantinople was once the New Rome, a city of immense wealth and importance. For centuries, Romans had lived in the region and exchanged food traditions with the locals.

Throughout the centuries, corn has been a staple for many nations around the world. Cornmeal dishes similar to kachamak are popular in parts of Western Asia, Romania, Macedonia, Moldova and West Ukraine, as well as in Italy and throughout Africa.

The name of the Bulgarian kachamak is derived from the Turkish word kaçamak, meaning escapade. Although the etymology of the name Kachamak raises questions if the dish may have come from the Turks, that is unlikely. We know polenta existed since Roman times and before the arrival of the Ottomans in the Balkans. There is no clear information on why the dish was names escapade. Perhaps because it’s an adventurous dish or as someone suggested because it’s an escapade eating it!

Kachamak is a popular dish all around Bulgaria, however, this recipe comes from the Rhodope mountain region which has a very old and authentic cuisine.

There are a few recipe variations for the Rhodope kachamak. Some of them are made with potatoes, others with forest mushrooms or meat.

ORIGINES OF CORN.

Even though we all know that corn originated in the Americas, recently I found an interesting article in Oxford University Press revealing that the origins of the cultivated grain were once a mystery to scientists. They could not find the exact match of a wild maze in South America that European cultivated corn comes from.

Initially, it was suggested that maize may have existed in China before the discovery of America which was proven groundless. Then, linguists tried to prove that maize was known both in the Old World and in Africa before 1492. In his works, Fernández de Oviedo y Valdéz, a Spanish colonist, historian and botanist, who participated in the Spanish colonisation of the West Indies, claimed the West Indies’ name for corn was milio. The name raised doubts among linguists. All these theories were proven groundless as well.

The botanical name for maize, Turcicum fromentum or Turkish grain, on the other hand, indicates that, at a certain point in time, botanists believed cultivated corn originated in Turkey. However, in Turkey, strangely, corn is referred to as Roman grain or Christian grain.

So, where does corn come from after all?

Although scientists today are still debating on the origins of corn, it’s pretty clear that corn came from Mexico and was introduced to Europe in the year 1493 by the Spanish. By the 1950s, corn was already an established crop in Spain. The cultivation of maize started in the region of Seville and spread quickly to Portugal, Italy, the South of France and the Southeast of Europe. In the next couple of centuries, corn becomes a widely cultivated crop in the rest of Europe, essential for the survival of many.

In Bulgaria, the local word for maize is tzarevitza. Ethnologists believe this name is derived from the word tzar, which means king. That is confusing, considering maize has always been the poor man’s food. Perhaps, the name comes from the shape of the plant with the corn leaves resembling a crown.

HOW TO MAKE BULGARIAN-STYLE POLENTA (RHODOPE KACHAMAK)?

📋 INGREDIENTS IN THE BULGARIAN POLENTA

You do not need much to prepare this creamy and filling maize dish. The recipe contains only a few basic ingredients – yellow cornmeal, water, milk and butter. Butter is important for the creamy texture of the polenta. For the garnish, you will need a good quality sweet paprika. Hungarian sweet paprika is widely available online and is a good substitute for Balkan sweet paprika. It’s produced from the same variety of sweet red peppers (Capsicum annum L.) introduced to Hungary by the Turks in the 16-17th centuries.

📖 STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS

Step 1: Heat the water and milk in a heavy-based pot. Add 1 tablespoon of butter and salt to your taste. Stir in the butter until it melts.

Step 2: When the mixture comes to the boil, add the cornmeal and stir until it absorbs the liquid. Make a few holes in the cornmeal mass with the handle of your wooden spoon or with a thin rolling pin. Reduce the heat to low and let the corn mixture bubble for 30 minutes.

Step 3: After the 30 minutes, while still cooking it, start stirring the cornmeal mush vigorously for about 10 minutes until it is creamy and smooth. The old ladies back home stir kachamak with a long rolling pin because it is easier, but you can use a wooden spoon with a long handle instead.

Step 4: Heat a small frying pan on your hob and melt the butter for the garnishing sauce. When the butter starts bubbling, add the sweet paprika and stir until it changes colour. The paprika requires only a few seconds of cooking. Be careful not to burn it because the sauce will become bitter if you do!

Step 5: Finish the dish, by pouring bubbling hot smoky butter sauce on top and garnish it with crumbled cheese or crispy bacon. Delicious!!!

🍲 SERVE DELICIOUS RHODOPE KACHAMAK

Instead of gravy, in Bulgaria, the authentic Rhodope kachamak is served with a rich, smoky butter sauce ( step 4). However, you can have Bulgarian-style polenta with so many other sauces or dishes – creamy mushroom sauce or bolognese sauce with meatballs are great with it. You can serve the polenta even with your favourite curry or with beef bourguignon.

Enjoy! 👨‍🍳👨‍🍳👨‍🍳