I’m Petar Dzaja from Dubrovnik, Croatia. I started cooking when I was 18, not because I wanted to be a chef, but because I had no other choice. I moved far from home, shared a flat with friends, and realized pretty quickly that if I wanted to eat something decent, I’d have to make it myself.
Those first meals were nothing special, but they lit a spark. Over the years, cooking turned into something I genuinely enjoy. And for me, a meal just doesn’t feel complete without meat. Veal from the oven, lamb on the grill, pork belly that roasts for hours until it falls apart, etc. That’s the kind of food that makes me happy.
Why I Created NeedForMeat.com
There are thousands of food blogs out there. Some are vegan, some are keto, some are all about complicated recipes with a shopping list that fills an entire page. What I couldn’t find was a place for people who simply love meat and want to cook it in a straightforward, balanced way.
That’s why I started this site. Here you’ll find:
• Recipes I actually make at home
• Meal ideas you can adapt into your own versions
• Tips and gear reviews (I can’t resist buying new pans and knives, my wife keeps shaking her head about it)
• A few opinions, because food is not just about eating, it’s about sharing and enjoying it together
If I don’t have a recipe for a dish yet, I’ll happily point you to a good one somewhere else. The point of this site isn’t to lock you into my content. The point is to help you make better meals.
My Cooking Style
I’m not a chef, I’m just an experienced home cook. I cook almost every day, whenever I have time, and I keep it simple.
My favorite meals are the ones that take their time. Veal slowly roasting in the oven, osso buco, lamb on the spit, pork belly that turns into something magical after a few hours. I love food that’s juicy, tender, and full of flavor.
For me, cooking comes down to this. Good ingredients. Real flavors. No food snobbery. If you’ve got meat, potatoes, a bit of butter and olive oil, and maybe a salad on the side, you’re already set for a great meal.
What You’ll Find Here
I write the kind of stuff I wish I had when I first started cooking:
- Real recipes I’ve actually cooked
- Tips that helped me learn how to buy, prep, and cook different cuts
- Ideas for meals that are satisfying and doable
- And some opinions — because let’s be honest, I have a few.
I’m not a chef. I’m just a guy who loves food and thinks meat deserves more love on the internet.
What’s Next
Right now, Need For Meat already has more than 50 published pieces of content, and I keep adding new ones piece by piece. Due to my lack of English knowledge, I do use tools to help me craft better and more readable articles – hope you don’t mind it. But all the experience, thoughts, opinions, etc.. are mine.
My goal is to slowly build a real library of recipes, ideas, and cooking tips that any meat lover can use.
For brands
If you are a brand or have a product you believe fits this community, feel free to reach out at admin@needformeat.com. I am always open to reviewing new tools, gear, or ingredients. But let me be clear. Every review on this site is 100 percent unbiased. If I test something, I will share the good and the bad. That way, my readers can trust what they read, and you can trust that the feedback is real.
And at the end of your meeting me, I just want to throw a few images from the BBQ I made a few days back.. Just so you can imagine all the beautiful taste that came out of those steaks 😀 And btw, as you can see, it’s nothing fancy. A simple old barbecue, what’s important is the meat on it 😀
