A hand-flattened disc of the same spiced minced meat used for cevapi, grilled and served in lepinja flatbread — essentially the kebab family's burger. The stuffed version (punjena) hides molten kackavalj cheese inside.
Also known as: pleskavica, plieskavica, Serbian hamburger, Leskovac pljeskavica, punjena pljeskavica
Watch it made
Ingredients
- 500 g coarsely ground beef chuck, minimum 20% fat
- 200 g ground pork neck (or all beef, as in the south)
- 100 ml chilled sparkling water
- 1.5 tsp fine salt
- 1 tsp hot paprika and black pepper
- 4 lepinja or thick pita breads
- Kajmak (or thick sour cream mashed with butter)
- 1 onion, chopped
- Ajvar
How to make it
- 1
Knead the meats with salt, paprika and the sparkling water until sticky, then cover and refrigerate overnight; the rest builds the springy bind.
- 2
On wet palms, slap each portion flat into a disc wider than your hand and about 1.5 cm thick.
- 3
Grill over strong heat 4-5 minutes per side without ever pressing down.
- 4
Toast the lepinja cut-side down in the drippings while the meat rests a minute.
- 5
Serve the pljeskavica in the bread loaded with kajmak, raw onion and ajvar.
Pro tip: Overnight maturing of the salted mix is not optional folklore: salt and time restructure the proteins into the elastic, juicy chew that separates pljeskavica from a burger that merely looks like one.
The story of Pljeskavica
Pljeskavica is what happens when ćevapi is flattened into a single disc, and it is the Balkans' answer to the burger without ever having been influenced by one. The name comes from the verb for clapping or slapping, describing how the mixture is flattened between the hands, and it is a fixture from Belgrade to Novi Pazar.
Leskovac, in southern Serbia, is its acknowledged capital and holds an annual grill festival where the size of the pljeskavica is a point of open competition. The stuffed version — punjena — with molten kačkavalj cheese inside is a Serbian invention that has spread across the region.
The technique that defines it
The mixture is the same family as ćevapi: minced beef, or beef with pork and lamb, worked with grated onion, salt, pepper and — crucially — a little bicarbonate of soda and cold water or sparkling water. The soda raises the pH, which helps the proteins hold water and gives the characteristic springy, juicy texture.
It is then rested, traditionally overnight, which lets the soda work and the mixture firm. Shaping is done by slapping the ball flat between wet palms into a disc considerably wider than the bread it will go in, because it shrinks. Grilling is fast over hot coals, turned once, and it should stay slightly pink at the centre.
Choosing your ingredients
Beef with around 20 percent fat is the base; many recipes add pork for fat and lamb for flavour, in roughly 60:30:10. Very lean beef gives a dry, dense disc. The onion should be grated and squeezed, and the mixture needs the overnight rest to be right.
Lepinja — the soft Balkan flatbread — is the correct bread and it should be warmed on the grill so it absorbs fat. Kajmak, the region's clotted-cream dairy, is the traditional spread and there is no real substitute; thick crème fraîche is the closest. For punjena, use kačkavalj or another firm melting cheese sealed fully inside the meat.
Mistakes that ruin it
No resting time
The bicarbonate and salt need hours to work. A mixture grilled immediately is dense and grey.
Making it too small
It shrinks considerably. Shape it wider than the bread you plan to use.
Cheese not fully sealed
In the stuffed version, any gap and the cheese escapes into the fire. Seal the edges completely.
Overcooking
Slightly pink at the centre is correct. Cooked through it becomes a dry patty.
How it is served
In warmed lepinja with kajmak melting into it, raw onion, ajvar (the roasted red pepper relish) and urnebes for those who want heat. Chips are usual on a restaurant plate. Beer or rakija. In Serbia it is treated as a full meal rather than a snack, and portion sizes reflect that.
Questions about Pljeskavica
What is the difference between pljeskavica and ćevapi?
The same mixture, shaped differently: ćevapi are small fingers, pljeskavica is one large flattened disc. Pljeskavica is served in lepinja bread like a burger.
Why add bicarbonate of soda?
It raises the pH so the meat proteins hold more water, producing the springy, juicy texture that defines Balkan grilled mince.
What is punjena pljeskavica?
The stuffed version, with kačkavalj cheese sealed inside the meat so it melts as it grills.
What is kajmak?
A Balkan clotted-cream dairy product spread onto the hot bread. Thick crème fraîche is the nearest substitute.
