Hungary is one of the states of Central Europe, most of it is located on the Middle Danube Plain. Long and warm springs and autumn are a distinctive feature of the local climate, two more features of the Hungarian weather are warm summers and relatively cold winters (the Danube is sometimes covered with ice for quite a long time).
Sometimes Hungary is called an open-air museum: sights are found here almost at every step. And that's not all: in addition to medieval castles and Romanesque temples, there are balneological resorts here, where almost all diseases known to science can be cured. But even that is not all: nutritious, tasty and unusual Hungarian cuisine is also a kind of attraction of the country and deserves a detailed story. So what to try in Hungary?
Food in Hungary
One of the main features of Hungarian cuisine is variety. From time immemorial, the local chefs have been distinguished by their ingenuity and imagination. This is why some Hungarian dishes have dozens or even hundreds of cooking methods. And that is why Hungarian cuisine is so loved and appreciated not only in Hungary, but also far beyond its borders.
The abundance of meat dishes (especially pork) is another distinctive feature of Hungarian cuisine. It is also impossible to imagine the national cuisine of Hungary without onions and especially without paprika, which the locals simply adore. They put it in almost every dish, except, perhaps, desserts. Another specific feature of Hungarian cuisine is the presence of dishes that are both the first (that is, something like soups) and the second (something like a stew).
A lot can be said about Hungarian desserts: this is the Shomloi Galushka cake, the Esterhazy cake, and the kyurteskalach … Here, too, the variety characteristic of the Hungarian national cuisine is clearly manifested.
Hungary's fault cannot be passed over in silence. Tokay wine is especially famous. This spicy alcoholic drink goes well with fatty dishes, but is amazingly tasty on its own. Hungary also produces other types of high-quality alcohol, such as apricot vodka, beer, and Unicum balsam.
Top 10 Hungarian dishes
Goulash
Goulash
Yes, this is a world famous dish - originally from Hungary. It is difficult to say whether goulash is the first or second course, because it is not soup or stew, but something in between. There are several hundred recipes for this dish. The ingredients of goulash can be beef or pork; in the vegetarian version of the dish, meat is replaced with mushrooms. Onions, tomatoes, potatoes, noodles, garlic, paprika, parsley are added to goulash … This list can be shorter or longer, some ingredients can be replaced with others - it all depends on which of the hundreds of goulash recipes the cook chooses.
Halasle
Halasle
Fish soup. Finely chopped fish with onions and paprika are fried in pork fat and then boiled in water or tomato juice. When the fish is boiled, everything is passed through a sieve, large pieces of fish are added to the resulting liquid and boiled until tender. Halasle is usually served in pots, eaten with bread.
Chicken paprikash
Salted and peppered chicken breasts and legs are stewed in broth with onions, garlic, bell peppers and paprika. When the dish is almost ready, add sour cream and flour to it.
Turosh chusa
One of the most original Hungarian dishes. If you want to try something new and unusual, you can order turosh chusa. This is a mixture of noodles, cottage cheese, cracklings and sour cream. Sometimes turosh chusa is served as a second dish, and sometimes it even becomes a dessert.
Lecho
There is no exact recipe for this dish. Lecho is cooked everywhere in Hungary, but having tried it in several different restaurants in the country, you may notice that the taste and composition of lecho are slightly different almost every time. Products required for cooking are onions, tomatoes, bell peppers (paprika can be used instead). Sometimes lecho is cooked with meat. Sometimes all the ingredients are poured with stirred chicken eggs.
Fazelek
Vegetable stew. Sometimes they are stewed with flour and sour cream. Here are the ingredients for this dish: spinach; zucchini; cabbage; beans; potato; kohlrabi; lentils. Only a few of them can be used. As with many other Hungarian recipes, variations are possible here.
Langos
Langos
Hungarian version of fast food. A dish with a long history that dates back to the days of Ancient Rome. Like all ancient recipes, this one is very simple: a cake is prepared from water, flour and yeast, fried in oil brought to a boil - and the dish is ready. Some like langos with cheese, others with sour cream, and still others with garlic sauce. And some people are happy to season langos with all three ingredients at once - it turns out very tasty! This dish can also be a dessert if you spread jam or chocolate paste on the tortilla.
Kerezet
Sheep cheese pate and a number of other products. The dish contains onions, caraway seeds, paprika, mustard, capers, anchovies, sardines and lightly salted caviar. All this is ground and mixed. Beer is also added to the kereset.
Rethesh
Rethesh
Hungarian strudel. The history of this dish begins during the Turkish rule in Hungary: retesh has a lot in common with baklava. But a lot of time has passed since then, and the retesh has gradually transformed. Today it is one of the classic Hungarian national dishes. Rethesh is not necessarily a dessert. Its filling can be fish, meat, cabbage, mushrooms, poppy seeds, cherries, apples or nuts. In order to prepare a classic retesh, not every type of flour is suitable. You can buy special strudel flour in shops in Hungary.
Gundel pancakes
They were invented by the Hungarian chef Karoi Gundel. The secret of pancakes is in their nut-raisin filling, as well as in a special watering. Traditional Gundel-style pancakes are poured with chocolate-rum sauce. Sometimes this dish is served with an alcohol-containing sauce on fire. Burning pancakes look very impressive, but some gourmets believe that this loses the specific flavor of rum (alcohol burns out).
