50g Romanian cașcaval cheese or cheddar, grated sunflower oil, to fry
For the pickled onion
1 medium red onion, sliced
1tbsp white wine vinegar
1⁄2tsp salt
For the bean stew
sunflower oil, to fry
2 large brown onions, sliced
2 medium carrots, sliced
4 medium garlic cloves, sliced
4tsp tomato purée
400g cooked white haricot beans, from a jar or can
400g can finely chopped tomatoes
4tsp white wine vinegar
1tsp caster sugar
3 bay leaves
1tbsp chopped tarragon, dill or parsley
Method
Start making the flatbread: in a bowl, mix together the flour, salt, sugar, yeast, the 1tbsp oil and 120ml water. Knead until smooth, cover and leave in a warm place for 30 minutes.
It should be a sticky dough, so add a splash of water if it looks too dry – a soft dough will make the breads light. Mix the cheese into the dough and leave it to prove for another 30 minutes.
Make the pickled onion by mixing all the ingredients and making sure to rub the salt into the onion slices. Set aside.
Meanwhile, for the bean stew, heat a thin layer of oil in a large, lidded sauté pan, on a medium setting. Add the onions and carrots and cook for 10 minutes or until they start to caramelise, adding a splash of water to avoid burning. Stir in the garlic, cook for 2 minutes, then add the remaining stew ingredients apart from the herbs. Cover the pan, reduce the heat to low and cook for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally so the beans don’t catch on the bottom of the pan.
Around halfway through the cooking time, divide the flatbread dough into four equal parts and roll each one out to a 16cm circle on a floured work surface.
Heat a generous layer of oil in a small frying pan over a medium setting. Fry one dough circle at a time for 3 minutes, turning often. Transfer each one to a plate wrapped in kitchen foil while you cook the rest.
Sprinkle the herbs over the stew and serve alongside the flatbreads and pickled onion.
Recipes and photographs taken from Danube by Irina Georgescu, photography by Issy Croker, (Hardie Grant, £28)
