Overview of Romanian Cuisine

Romania is one of the countries that has a very turbulent history, thus it also has very diverse cuisine. In the Romanian traditional cuisine we will notice marks of various international cuisines. This cuisine was influenced by Turks, Serbian, Germans and Hungarians. Romanians have kept the best recipes from these countries, and successfully tried to adapt to their local traditional cuisine.

Romania has many traditional dishes which will leave you breathless. One of the most famous Romanian traditional dishes is "mămăligă", which is porridge made of yellow maize, and it is also called as the "bread of the peasants". This meal is also known in its Italian form called "polenta". Furthermore, "mititei", also known as "mici", is another traditional Romanian meal made of grilled minced-meat rolls. The mixture for "mititei" is made of beef, pork and lamb blended with garlic, thyme, savory, black pepper, coriander and anise. This dish is best served with beer and mustard. The both names of this meal, "mititei" and "mici", mean "small ones". In Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina you can find them under the name cevapcici.

Another specific meal that Romanians have is "ciorbă", a sour soup made of meat and various vegetables. What is interesting about this meal is that Romanians have made a quite difference between "supa", which is a soup, and "ciorba". In most of the cases soups are clear and have no added acid, as "ciorbă" may contain a huge mixture of soup ingredients, like lemons. Moreover, Romania is well-known to its "brânză de burduf ", which is a salty type of cheese. This cheese has a strong taste, made of sheep’s milk, and it is a little soft in texture. It is made according to a traditional Roman recipe, and even today it is made in the old fashion way: the sweet curd is sliced into very small pieces, salted and then it is hand-mixed in a wooden bowl. After the mixing, the mixture is put in a sheep’s stomach or skin that are carefully cleaned, or in a tube made of pine bark. If the cheese is kept in the tube made of pine bark, it will get specific pine favour. This cheese is unique to Romania, and maybe Romanian cuisine is famous due to brânză de burduf.

One of the most famous dishes that Romanians are very proud to have is "tochitura". It is made of fried pork, smoked bacon and sausages smoothed with white wine. This amazingly tasteful meal is served with mamaliga, Brânză de burduf and egg fried in Romanian style. This dish is extremely popular, and you could find many variations of it around Romania.

A food is nothing without beverage. Like all countries, so do Romans have their specific traditional drinks. "Tuică" is a strong brandy made of plum, and it has many variations in the taste according to the production area. Also, Romania is one of the world’s wine producers, which has numerous types of wine all with amazingly good and specific flavour. You can check the article about Balkan Wines for more informations.

To conclude, even thou Romanian cuisine had many influences during the years, it became very famous and unique. Romanian dishes and beverages are very delicious, and they are true challenge to the whole wide world.

Overview of Romanian Cuisine