Machanka, sometimes associated with vereshchaka-style meat gravy, is a hearty Belarusian dish of pork and sausage in a thick, savory sauce.
- Prep
- 25 minutes
- Cook
- 1 hour 45 minutes
- Serves
- 6
- Cuisine
- Belarus
The recipe
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Ingredients
Quantities change with servings; cooking times stay the same.
Equipment
Method
Brown the pork. Pat pork dry. Heat butter or oil in a heavy pot and brown pork in two batches, approximately 3–4 minutes per batch. Transfer to a bowl.
Build the base. Add onions and cook for 8 minutes until golden. Add garlic and optional caraway and stir for 1 minute.
Braise. Return pork to the pot, add 450 ml stock and black pepper, cover and simmer gently for 70–90 minutes until pork shoulder is tender.
Add sausage. Stir in sausage and simmer uncovered for 10 minutes to warm through and bring its seasoning into the gravy.
Thicken without lumps. Whisk flour into the remaining 100 ml cool stock, then mix with sour cream. Temper with a ladle of hot gravy and stir into the pot. Simmer gently 5 minutes, stirring, until thickened; do not boil hard.
Season and serve. Taste, add salt as needed and finish with dill. Serve hot with blini or thick pancakes.
Chef’s notes
- Salt is best added near the end because smoked sausage varies widely in sodium.
- Gentle braising makes shoulder tender while keeping it juicy.
- Sour cream should be tempered into the stew to avoid splitting.
Substitutions
- Pork ribs may be used instead of shoulder; increase the cooking time until tender.
- Plain unsweetened yogurt may replace sour cream but should be added over very low heat.
- Caraway is optional and not present in every family’s machanka.
Storage and Food Safety
Refrigerate promptly at 4°C or below, use within 2 days and reheat until at least 75°C. Store pancakes separately to keep them from becoming soggy.
Serving Suggestions
Blini or thick savory pancakes for dipping, plus pickled cucumber.
Allergens
Wheat (flour) and milk (sour cream and butter). Sausage can contain mustard, soy or other allergens; read labels.
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