Since ancient times, the national Slovak cuisine has been formed under the influence of Austrian, German and Hungarian. The resulting dishes turned out to be quite simple to prepare. The main ingredients in this country are meat, dumplings, cheese and dumplings.
The most popular dishes in Slovakia are Spisska pohutka - traditional meat goulash with mushrooms and potato pancakes. No less popular here is the “baked boar knee”. Under such an intricate name is meant the usual fried pork leg. In the menu of local restaurants in Slovakia you can also find dishes such as:
- Baked goose with dumplings
- Roast duck with sauerkraut
- Pork wraps
The hallmark of the traditional cuisine of Slovakia are first courses, which are dominated by vegetable soups, mushroom soup, meat, cheese and garlic. All of them have an amazing flavor that immediately makes you want to eat every last spoonful.
With great respect, local residents also treat Slovak cheeses. The most popular among all are parenitsy and shtepki. Do not disdain local residents and flour confectionery. Tell me, can you deny yourself the pleasure of trying local donuts fried with garlic or Slovak pancakes stuffed with peaches? "Viennese strudel" is considered one of the national dishes of Slovakia, which was borrowed from neighboring Austria.
The most popular drink in Slovakia is beer. Despite the fact that it is not particularly popular outside the country, in terms of taste sensations it is in no way inferior to Czech. Slovak wine will also be a great addition to a dinner party. Of the strong drinks, juniper vodka "Borovichka" and plum vodka deserve special attention.
Slovak cuisine is born from a combination of milk, potatoes, cabbage and their various derivatives. And of course, we must not forget about the meat.
Below we have collected for you five main symbols of the Slovak national cuisine.
1. Lard with cracklings
One of the simplest "aperitifs" before a meal is lard sandwiches. A mixture of fat rendered from pork or goose fat and cracklings (as well as spices, garlic or onions) is an absolutely simple, but very tasty thing. It is usually served in small bowls for spreading on bread. Each chef has his own "secret recipe", so the appetizer is worth trying in different establishments. What you should not do is deliberately refuse the sample under the pretext of "fat content" - believe me, it's delicious.
Lard with cracklings
depositphotos(с)ajafoto
2. Garlic vole
Polevka - stew - is one of the main dishes in Slovak cuisine. It can be anything - meat, vegetable, cereal, but one of the simplest and most elegant is the "chesnakov's vole". In its main composition - broth, flour, cream, spices and, in fact, garlic. And then there may be variations - from mushrooms and potatoes to fennel.
garlic vole
depositphotos(с)vankad
3. Dumplings
This dish can be found in Slovak establishments in several variations at once. The most famous ones are with cheese, which is the Slovak equivalent of sushi for the Japanese, pizza for the Italians or fish and chips for the British. They are made from potato dough mixed with sheep cheese and served with fried lard, washed down with buttermilk or yogurt. Fans of dumplings with feta cheese annually come to the mountain fortress Turetska at the foot of Velka Fatra for the world championship in their preparation and eating. But for our taste, the most magical dumplings are strapachki (a mixture of dumplings, sauerkraut and fried cubes of smoked lard).
depositphotos(с)phb.cz
4. Roast duck with stewed cabbage
The menu of almost any Slovak institution with national cuisine cannot do without roast duck with cabbage. Cabbage to the bird can go sauerkraut, fried, stewed - white or red. Another variation on the theme is stuffed duck with cabbage. The basis of minced meat is rice, walnuts and spices are added to it. A frequent companion of a bird with cabbage is dumplings, ordinary or potato. By the way, Branislav Krizan, the chef of the Matyšák hotel in Bratislava, advises: in order for the duck to turn golden, when frying, it should be watered not with the juice from the roasting meat, but with milk.
Roast duck with dumplings and stewed cabbage
depositphotos(с)ajafoto
5. Skalitsky trdelnik
And for dessert - trdelnik, dough tubes baked on a trdlo (wooden skewer) over an open fire and sprinkled with sugar or cinnamon. Skalitsky trdelnik is a pastry with walnuts, which are made according to the traditional recipe of the monastery cuisine. In October 2007, Skalica trdelnik became the first Slovak food product to receive the EU Protective Label. By the way, every year in Skalitz is held
Many people traveling around Europe undeservedly ignore Slovakia. Excursions are practically not taken there, people fly into Bratislava in raids for several hours on their way to Vienna with a tour or back. One of my friends tried to buy a tour of Slovakia from Russia, the travel agency simply did not understand her and asked again: “maybe to the Czech Republic after all?” I believe that in every country there are aspects that deserve attention. Slovaks are a very sincere people with rich traditions and a language so similar to ours, Russian. By the way, they love Russians, and our culture is close to them.
Maybe that's why in the Slovak menu you can find such favorite dishes as cabbage soup and dumplings? As you may have guessed, today I will tell you about Slovak cuisine.
Slovak cuisine was greatly influenced by neighboring countries - the Czech Republic, Poland, Ukraine and Hungary. The kitchen is characterized meat dishes (usually pork), potatoes, dumplings, thick sauces and cheeses. Sour sauerkraut is also common here. When eating in Slovakia, bread is very important.
So let's take a look at what it is Slovak lunch.
The most famous first course is thick sauerkraut soup (kapustnica), which includes meat, sausages and mushrooms. The cabbage recipe varies depending on the region of the country. During Lent, cabbage is prepared without meat, but at the same time dumplings, sour cream and potatoes are added to it. Sometimes cabbage soup is compared with Russian cabbage soup.
If you do not like cabbage, then as a first course you can order garlic soup (cesnaková polievka), which is usually served not in a plate, but in a loaf of bread.
Meat soup lovers will appreciate goulash soup (gulášová polievka), which is also served in a loaf of bread.
The second one can be ordered cheese dumplings (bryndzové halušky), which include potatoes, flour and smoked pork meat with lard. Unlike Ukrainian dumplings, Slovak dumplings are more brackish and small. As a rule, dumplings are served with a glass Zhinčica (žinčica) - drink made from goat's milk.
You can also choose one of the meat dishes for the second. The variety of second courses is evidenced by menus from different restaurants.
We opted for the goose leg with potato dumplings.
By the way, dumplings (knedľa)- a traditional Czech side dish - is also popular here. Simply put, these are boiled pieces of dough or potatoes. They can be with different fillers. There are even sweet dumplings. In the photo below, goulash with dough dumplings.
While eating, do not forget about beer. The most popular beer brands in Slovakia are - Dobré pifko, Popper, Palatín, Šariš, Steiger, Topvar, Kelt.
Wine can be ordered for dessert. The wine is produced in 6 wine regions located in the southern part of Slovakia. Slovak wines are popular in neighboring countries. The most common grape varieties grown in Slovakia include Veltlínské zelené, Rizling vlašský, Frankovka modrá, Svätovavrinecké, Rulandské biele.
Our lunch is over, and in the end I want to give you the addresses of two restaurants and cafes that we especially liked during our stay in Bratislava.
Restaurant Slovak pub
- Address: Bratislava, Obchodná 613/62
Restaurant Bratislavsky Mestiansky Pivovar
- Address: Bratislava, Drevená 8 and Bratislava, Dunajská 21
Cafe Kaffee Mayer with amazing desserts
- Address: Bratislava, Hlavne namesti 4
Photos of desserts are attached below.
The national cuisine of Slovakia is distinguished by satiety and unpretentiousness, and Austrian, Hungarian and Balkan culinary traditions influenced its formation and development. It is this fact that has made many national dishes of Slovak cuisine more spicy and, to some extent, much more interesting.
As in any Slavic country, meat is widely used in Slovakia, pork and chicken are especially popular. The favorite dish of many Slovaks is goulash with potato pancakes and mushrooms called Spisska pohutka. In addition, goose meat dishes are often prepared: for example, a baked carcass of this bird with kendliks or a duck stuffed with sauerkraut.
Served in a wide variety of forms - smoked, stewed, fried or boiled. While in this country, be sure to try Pechono boar knee (fried pork leg). Although many recipes of Slovak cuisine are not originally local, but, for example, Czech, they have taken root in this country so much that they have acquired the status of national ones.
Slovaks simply adore fish and any dishes based on it. Fortunately, the country is rich in numerous rivers and lakes, where you can get these inhabitants of the reservoirs. The most delicious and valuable fish is trout, which is a rather important component of a traditional Slovak dinner.
Be sure to try the local first courses, which have an incomparable aroma and are amazingly tasty. There are more than one thousand recipes of Slovak cuisine for their preparation: there are vegetable, meat, cheese, mushroom and even garlic soups.
Regarding side dishes, we can say that there are also a large number of them, and basically these are all kinds of Slovak dishes prepared on the basis of other vegetables or root crops. In addition, here you can find a lot of different dumplings, dumplings and dumplings, which are often served with cheese, paprika and bacon. One of the most common dishes is Khalushki (dumplings with cheese).
Confectionery and various types of pastries in Slovakia are very tasty. Perhaps it is due to the direct influence of Austrian traditions. Slovak housewives will definitely treat you to pancakes with peaches, as well as an excellent snack for any dish - donuts with garlic and butter, which are called Longos.
Regarding alcoholic drinks, we can say that although the local wine is cheap, it is of quite high quality and therefore is in high demand. Varieties such as Račenska Frankovka, Zeleny Velteliner and Vlašské Riesling deserve special attention. Champagne wines are not inferior to them in quality.
However, the most favorite drink of Slovaks is. The most popular and delicious varieties include foamy drinks called Sharish and Topvar. There is nothing surprising in the fact that local beer is so tasty, because it was brewed around the time when the first cities appeared in Slovakia.
In addition, local vodka deserves attention, along with tinctures, which are usually infused with juniper. Such a drink is called Borovichka and is quite famous outside the country.
Since Slovakia borders simultaneously with Austria, Hungary, Poland, the Czech Republic and Ukraine, this has left a serious imprint on its cuisine.
That is why, being in any of the local restaurants, among other things, you will definitely find on the menu Hungarian goulash soup, Austrian strudel, Polish dumplings and “pies” (a type of dumplings) and in some places even Ukrainian borscht. However, Slovak cuisine still exists. Its basis, first of all, is soups - thick, fragrant, usually with smoked meats, often seasoned with sour cream. Let's start with them.
SLOVAK SOUPS AND SNACKS
(Fazul'ova polievka): thick, rather spicy, cooked with red beans and several types of smoked sausages.
(Cesnakova polievka): a garlic-flavoured, thick creamy soup, often topped with cheese, served with croutons. Contrary to expectations, it is not too sharp, by the way.
Cabbage butterfly(Kapustnica): A sauerkraut soup with smoked sausages, reminiscent of Russian stewed cabbage hodgepodge, but thinner in consistency. In some places dressed with sour cream.
As for snacks, be sure to pay attention to dumplings with cheese(Halusky s bryndzou), which are purely outwardly very similar to our lazy dumplings, and fried cheese breaded (Vyprazany syr) - for this dish, a locally produced cheese called Ostiepok is used.
WHERE IS THERE WITHOUT MEAT?
However, do not think that this is where the Slovak national dishes end. For example, here they perfectly know how to bake meat. Local chefs are equally good at cooking beef, lamb, and pork.
In the photo: baked beef ribs in the Liptovska Izba restaurant
One of the Slovak specialties can be called baked pork knuckle(Pecene udene bravcove koleno). However, in the Czech Republic this dish is also considered their own, but they call it “Baked Boar Knee”. However, nothing surprising - the Czech Republic and Slovakia have been part of the same state for so long that even local dishes are mixed here.
In the photo: Slovak pork knuckle
The chef of the restaurant at the Druzba hotel told me that this dish takes about three hours to prepare. First, the shank is boiled with vegetables for an hour and a half, and then baked in the oven for about an hour. Between cooking and baking, it is marinated in a special mixture of lemon juice, mustard, salt and honey, after which it is stuffed with garlic cloves. Cooking this dish, of course, takes a long time, but it is very tasty.
In the photo: "Cigansky spiz - pork on a skewer with onions and peppers.
In one of the local restaurants "Liptovska Izba" in the town of Liptovsky Mikulas, in which I ended up, I was offered "Cigansky spiz" - a local cooking option pork skewers with onion and pepper. Unlike the barbecue that is familiar to us (and closely related to this dish), the meat is marinated only slightly before cooking, which is why it may seem slightly fresh in taste.
In the photo: Janosikova kapsa - chicken stewed in a thick meat sauce with spices
However, I was personally very impressed by another local specialty - chicken with mushrooms stewed in a thick meat sauce with spices, “packed” in a potato pancake - the same “pocket” (this is how kapsa is translated from Slovak).
FOR SWEET: DESSERTS AND LOCAL WARMING DRINKS
As for desserts, in my opinion, you should definitely try tender and airy dumplings with poppy seeds. You can drink all this either with local wine, which is produced here a lot, or with Czech beer, but personally I preferred “varne wine” - a local version of mulled wine. And good, and tasty, and according to the weather - it warms perfectly.
In the photo: dumplings with poppy seeds - a traditional Slovak dessert
If you ended up in Slovakia in the very cold, then you should switch to heavy artillery and try local warming drinks. Among them there are a number of Czech vodkas - juniper Borovicka, very reminiscent of gin in taste, several fruit types (strength from 35 to 40 degrees) - pear (Hruskovica), raspberry (Malinovica) and apricot (Marhulovica). And the most daring will certainly be interested in trying the local moonshine, the strength of which reaches 52 degrees - plum brandy (Slivovice).
In the photo: Slovak tinctures Demanovka and Slivovice
Of the Slovak strong drinks, in fact, one can name Demanovka cranberry liqueur (it exists in several other types, for example, on herbs), as well as a whole line of seven types of TatraTea strong drinks (strength from 22 to 72 degrees), in which you can find citrus and peach flavors, wild berries and more. In general, it will not be possible to freeze here, even if you really want to.
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Maria Causeni- Professional journalist and PR man, I travel for my own pleasure. For some time now I have been trying to figure out how to simultaneously satisfy my interest in world architecture and extreme sports, my love for warm climes and snowy peaks.
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