Top 12 Grilling Recipes for the Eastern European Cook

These Eastern European chopped meat recipes can be formed into hamburgers, sausages without casings or meatballs that can be skewered, if desired, and grilled, broiled, pan fried or baked in the oven. Leftovers are delicious cold in sandwiches with grainy mustard.

Smoked or fresh Polish sausage on the grill is an easy treat, especially if you purchase the sausage. Throw it on greased grill grates and cook until done. Make sure to grill the fresh sausage low and slow to fully cook the pork. If you're really ambitious, try making your own Polish kielbasa sausage.

There are many variations of raznjici. Some use only pork, others use a combination of pork and veal, and sometimes lamb. The meat is usually marinated before being threaded on skewers (a great project for the kids) and grilled. If you don't want to fuss with making your own marinade, Italian dressing works in a pinch.

Spit-roasting suckling pigs is a tradition among some Eastern Europeans, notably Serbians, Croatians, Slovaks, Lithuanians and others. It's considered the only way to barbecue and is the preferred way of feasting for major holidays and celebrations. Read all about spit roasting meats.

Spit-roasting lamb is a tradition among Serbians, Croatians, Slovaks, Bulgarians, Lithuanians and other Eastern Europeans, especially for Easter and other holidays, and special occasions like slavas. Read all about spit roasting meats.

Croatian kotlovina is typically made on a special pan crafted in Croatia, but a wok will work in a pinch. This is a specialty of Zagreb, the capital city of Croatia. The word kotlovina comes from kotao, the name of the stove upon which the big round cooking pan is placed. The kotao looks like a pot belly stove that is fed with wood. This dish is a specialty from the areas surrounding the capital city of Zagreb, namely, Podravina, Medimurje, and Zagorje.

The pomegranate vinaigrette serves a dual purpose in this easy grilled salmon dish. It is a marinade and a dressing that is drizzled over the finished dish, which can be eaten as an entree or over lettuce for a main-course salad. Eastern Europeans are extremely fond of salmon and pomegranates, a fruit they inherited from their Middle Eastern and Mediterranean neighbors, and which some Eastern European regions cultivate. The salmon can be grilled on an indoor or outdoor grill.

Filet mignon is French for "dainty filet" and is a common cut of beef tenderloin eaten throughout Eastern Europe. I like to sear the meat on the grill just to get the marks and then bake it in the oven until done. The end result is juicy, fork-tender tenderloin. The sundried tomato butter recipe will yield leftovers to be used on bread or noodles.

This smoked pork chops recipe is very fast and easy. Grill it very briefly on both sides, basting with honey or maple syrup, if desired.

This easy recipe for grilled chicken breast with pomegranate vinaigrette can be prepared like the filet mignon recipe, above. Create the marks on the grill and finish in the oven for a juicier breast.

This recipe for Balkan pork and peppers or selsko meso can be prepared on the grill or in a skillet. As you might expect, the results are superior on a grill because of the smoky flavor. But sauteing / stewing has the advantage of making the pork very tender.

Here are step-by-step instructions for grilling, broiling or roasting red peppers. When flavored with garlic and oil, they're a perfect accompaniment to roasted meats.