September 22, 2018 - Another record-breaking weekend in Vidovec near Varazdin, as the region's celebrated cabbage breaks the world record again.
If there is one thing that Croatians adore, it is their food festivals. With such a rich regional cuisine, Croatia has some of the most diverse menu options in the world, and a key element to its dishes is a heavy reliance on fresh, seasonal produce. with such a diverse geography, each region has its own specialities.
One of the staples of Varazdin County is cabbage - indeed, the region has its own specially protected form of cabbage, and it is celebrated each year in the village of Vidovec just outside Varazdin at a cabbage festival called Zeljarijada.
I will try anything once, and I must confess I had enormous fun at the festival a couple of years ago, learning a lot not just about cabbage, but of its various uses. These people take their cabbage seriously!
And the festival takes it seriously enough to put in the effort each year to break a world record, which they have done year on year for several years now - creating the longest sarma in the world.
Sarma, a huge Croatian favourite dish, consists of mincemeat and rice wrapped in cabbage leaves and served with mashed potatoes. As a winter warming meal, there is nothing better.
When I first went to Zeljarijada, I witnessed the record being broken (see photo above), an impressive 1,200 metres of sarma, which had been prepared over a 48-hour period by a team of over 30 chefs and helpers.
Last year, the record was smashed, with an impressive 1,320 metres of sarma, and as we reported a couple of days ago, plans were in place to beat that record today.
This year's sarma was presented this afternoon in Vidovec and was measured at exactly 1,333 metres in length, breaking last year's record by 13 metres. Zeljarijada continues tomorrow, and the good news for those thinking of visiting is that there seems to be still some of the record-breaking sarma for tasting. But get there early...
