as promised, here is the information:
traditional romanian pastramă is a cured, semi-dry smoked meat, hisorically made from sheep but also made from pork, beef or presumably any other animal that produces sizable cuts of meat. it is not to be confused with pastrami, which is cured and prepared in a very different way and has a very different flavour.
the time-life series, foods of the world," has this to say about pastramă:
the origins of pastramă reach far back into history, when the ottoman empire ruled wallachia and moldavia for hundreds years. the occupying turks imported their own dried meat, called pastirma or basturma, which was made from slabs of beef slabs of beef rubbed in a spice paste and then air dried in high mountain curing houses. this method of preparation was eventually adapted by the local citizenry.
pastramă is traditionally made by employing a dry cure; this is achieved by rubbing a cut of meat with a seasoning mixture consisting of crushed black pepper, nutmeg, sweet red pepper, saltpeter, salt, sugar, crushed allspice and garlic. some forms also include cinnamon, ground cloves and ground coriander seed. the rub is applied consistently over several weeks as the pastramă cures, traditionally in the mountain air. once this process is complete, the pastramă is smoked for flavor and as an aid in preservation.
pastramă is traditionally served sliced very thinly, much the same as spanish serrano ham or italian prosciutto, or grilled as mentioned above. because it is well-preserved, it travels very well can can be employed in a number of ways.
research on pastramă included this interesting account in the 10 may 1921 publication of the wisconsin rapids daily tribune:
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now, all we need is a traditional romanian recipe for this. the greek one looks very clsoe. and good!
if anyone has any romanian contacts and/or can find a recipe and method for pastramă (as opposed to pastrami), please post.
i would very much like to try this with deer!