Cuisine

Traditional Hungarian cuisine reflects the rich and varied flavors of many international influences. Since the first Magyars were nomadic people, they learned from the Turkish and other cultures they came into contact with. Soup was an important staple of their lifestyle. They used a bogrács, a large cast-iron pot that hung on an iron rod over the fire, for cooking soups. It was easily transported with the soup sitting in the pot as the Magyars moved from place to place, and the soup was consumed over days. The bogrács is a very popular cooking utensil even today and soup continues to be an important part of a meal.

Once the Magyars settled in the Carpathian Basin, pork was introduced into the diet with each family raising its own pigs. Culinary transformations occurred through marriage also. After King Matthias and Beatrice of Italy married, she introduced Italian influences into the cooking culture, including turkey, pasta, cheeses, garlic, and onions.

The Turkish may have had the greatest influence on gastronomy as they introduced paprika to the culture. Hungary's climate is perfect for growing the red peppers that are ground up to create the spice. At first, the elite only grew paprika peppers for their decorative value, but the peasants grew it and used it for cooking. At one point in the 19th century, the rising cost of black pepper convinced the masses to switch to paprika, thus dubbing paprika török bors or Turkish pepper. Paprika comes in different varieties, which is important for cooking. It ranges from spicy hot (csípos) to sweet (édes) with other varieties in between, depending on the peppers used.

Another way the Turks influenced the food habits of the early Hungarians was by taking all of the domestic animals with them only leaving the pigs. Due to their religion, they did not care about these lowly animals, making pork an important meat for the Magyars, influencing their cooking culture. Turks are also responsible for introducing strudel, pilaf, lángos, and stuffed vegetables. They also introduced plants such as the tomato, sour cherry, corn, and tobacco.

When the Turks gave Hungarians coffee, it changed the culture in astonishing ways. In the late 1800s, there were over 500 coffeehouses in Budapest alone. Many of the famous ones are where writers, artists, musicians, and other intellectuals gathered to share their passions, network, and create camaraderie.

The Hungarian upper class adopted the French fashion of cooking as did the Austrian aristocrats. Perhaps this is where the love affair with goose liver originated. Middle-class Hungarians incorporated Austrian dishes in their everyday meals, adopting schnitzel, sausages, potatoes, and vegetable stews thickened with flour and lard. Today this thickened vegetable stew is called f?zelék and is a traditional favorite food.

Different parts of Hungary have their regional traditions and favorite recipes, but any good Hungarian restaurant in Budapest incorporates some from each on their menu. Some restaurants specialize in the more exotic fare such as deer, wild boar, or other nondomesticated animals. Often, when deer is on the menu, it is translated as deer and not venison and it will be saddle of deer. This is the breast meat. Regardless of what is on the menu, if it is a traditional Hungarian menu, you are guaranteed that the food will be plentiful and heavy. Hungarian cooking uses a great deal of pork or goose fat, which adds incredible flavors to dishes that would not be possible without them. Sour cream, potatoes, or a form of pasta are also added to enrich a dish, adding to that gluttony feeling after you finish. Just so you do not miss out on any gastronomical experiences, we have put all of the food items you should sample while here in a box at the end of this chapter. Some are discussed within this chapter also.

Lunch, an important meal of the day, begins with soup. Gulyás, often mispronounced as "goulash," is a meat soup usually made with beef or pork, carrots, and potatoes in a rich broth. Travelers often have the misconception that gulyás is a stew. Babgulyás is a hearty and delicious bean soup similar to gulyás. Hungary is famous for its gyümölcs leves, a cold fruit soup, which can be made from sour cherry, peaches, or apricots. Usually it is only served in summertime, making it an excellent refreshing way to start a meal. Sargaborsoleves, a split pea soup that is a good winter seasonal choice, and halaszle, a fish soup, constitute meals in themselves.

Main courses are generally some type of meat dish. Try the paprikás csirke, chicken cooked in a savory paprika sauce. It's especially good with galuska, a pasta dumpling. Pulykamell, turkey breast roasted with various fruits and/or sauces, is also delicious. Another great choice is Pörkölt, a stewed meat dish that comes in many varieties. Töltött káposzta, whole cabbage leaves stuffed with rice, meat, and spices, is another favorite. Cabbage is a winter staple food and appears in pastry also. Remember the word káposzta (cabbage) if you don't want it as your savory little pastry filling.

Vegetarianism is slowly, ever so slowly being recognized in Hungarian restaurants; many establishments now offer a vegetable plate entree, usually consisting of seasonal steamed and grilled vegetables, or cheese plates. Hungarians look on vegetarians with suspicion, regardless of their nationality. Otherwise, vegetarians would do well to order lecsó tojással (eggs scrambled in a thick tomato-onion-paprika sauce), rántott sajt (batter-fried cheese with tartar sauce), or túros csusza tepertó nélkul (a type of noodle with cottage cheese dish). The kitchen should be able to prepare any of these dishes to order, even if they don't appear on the menu.

Snack foods include lángos, a piece of dough pulled into a small pizza shape and served with your choice of toppings: Cheese, ham, and garlic sauce are the most popular, but you can also have powdered sugar and whipped cream. Palacsinta, a paper-thin crepe stuffed with a multitude of offerings for either a sweet or savory light bite, is another excellent choice. Kürtos kalács, a hollow, tubular honey cake, is an old-fashioned pastry cooked on a wooden bolt; it is sometimes available in metro stations and at outdoor markets and fairs, but is best when freshly baked. Fagylalt (ice cream) is the national street food, especially in warm months. Scoops are tiny, so order more than one or you will have more cone than ice cream. Fresh fruit flavors are seasonal: Summer flavors include eper (strawberry) and meggy (sour cherry) and in the fall flavors include szilva (plum) and körte (pear). Summer regulars are delicious fahéj (cinnamon), mák (poppy seed), and rizs (rice).

Hungarian pastries are delicious, but many travelers are surprised that the cakes are not as sweet or moist as other countries' offerings. For the first two years, we thought we were being sold stale cakes since we were foreigners. If you like your pastry with some moisture, choose one of the creamy types. The light, flaky rétes are filled with fruit (apple, plum, cherry), poppy seeds, or cheese. Csoki torta is a decadent chocolate layer cake, and a Dobos torta is a layered cake topped with a shiny hard caramel crust. (Hint: Take the crust off first and eat it separately). Mákos pastry, made with poppy seeds, is a Hungarian specialty. Gesztenye (chestnuts) are another popular ingredient in desserts; some are chestnut cream with whipped cream on top or chestnut cream in a pastry. Béigli, a traditional Christmas holiday pastry, appears everywhere during the season. A log-shaped pastry with crushed walnuts or poppy seeds baked in it like a jelly roll, it is sliced into bite-sized portions.

Picnickers should pick up a loaf of Hungarian bread and sample any of Hungary's world-famous salamis. Before you decide to pack some to take home, check the Customs regulations. A number of tasty cheeses are produced in Hungary as well: Karaván füstölt (a smoked cheese), Edami (Dutch cheese), márvány (similar to bleu cheese), and juhtúró (a soft, spreadable sheep's cheese similar in flavor to feta). In season, fresh produce is cheap and high quality, but variety is limited compared to many other countries. In the winter, fresh fruits and vegetables are slim pickings with apples, pears, cabbage, potatoes, and carrots being the most common choices. In summer, you'll be amazed at the abundance of fresh produce and the low cost, but again limited varieties at the wonderful markets. Strawberries (eper) in May, raspberries (málna), blueberries (fekete áfonya), blackberries (szeder), and sour cherries (meggy) start hitting the market with most one type of berry or another continuing throughout the summer.

Beer, Wine & Spirits -- Hungary never developed a beer culture; as a result, its beer is unremarkable, but don't tell a Hungarian this. They are staunchly proud of anything Hungarian. A number of European beers are now produced under license in Hungary. Among them are German beers, Austrian beers, a Danish beer, a Dutch beer, and a Belgian beer. To our taste, however, all these beers tend to be inferior to those under whose license they are sold and are only marginally better than the best Hungarian beer -- Dreher. Your best bet in Hungary is Czech beer, such as Budvar, Staropramen, or Pilsner Urquell, which are not produced in Hungary under license; they are the real thing.

Hungarian wines are excellent. The most renowned red wines come from the region around Villány, a town to the south of Pécs near the Croatian border. As a result of an aggressive marketing campaign mounted by the former Communist regime, many travelers are familiar with the red wines from Eger, especially Egri Bikavér (Eger Bull's Blood). However, Eger wines, though rich and fruity, are markedly inferior to Villányi reds. The country's best white wines are generally believed to be those from the Lake Balaton region, though some Hungarians insist that white wines from the Somló region (northeast of Lake Balaton) are better. Tokaj wines -- száraz (dry) or édes (sweet) -- are popular as aperitifs and dessert wines. Travelers seeking advice on Hungarian wines are encouraged to visit one of the full-service wine stores in Budapest. You can also pick up the free pamphlet Wine Regions in Hungary at Tourinform.

Unikum is the Hungarian national liqueur similar to Germany's Jagermeister or Italy's Fernet Branca. This aromatic bitter liquid is a taste worth acquiring. It is still produced according to the original recipe owned by the Zwack family (the current owner of the company, a Zwack family member, was Hungary's first ambassador to the U.S. after the fall of communism). The distilled fruit brandy Palinka is another variety of Hungarian firewater that is often referred to as schnapps. It is a liqueur with high alcohol content and some fruit or honey flavor. Palinka is traditionally brewed at home where apricots, plums, pears, or honey are plentiful; folk wisdom claims it has medicinal value. Only the better brands have much fruit flavor at all.

Coffee & Tea -- Hungarians drink kávé (coffee) throughout the day, either in coffeehouses or less seldom in standup coffee bars. With the vast popularity of cappuccinos, lattes, and other specialized coffee drinks, various coffee brands have infiltrated the market trying to stake their claim. The menus in a number of coffee shops have expanded greatly. In general, when ordering coffee in Hungary, you are still ordering espresso. An "American" coffee called hosszú kávé (long coffee) will be an espresso with additional hot water added, nothing close to filtered coffee. Cappuccino and its variants with chocolate shavings, cinnamon, or vanilla dust on top are now available in most coffeehouses, as is koffein mentes (decaffeinated coffee). Tejeskávé, a Hungarian version of café au lait, is another option.

Tea drinkers will have a less difficult time than in the past; most food establishments have come to recognize the tea drinker and offer a selection of teabags to choose from. Tea is now readily available in bars and cafes, plus there have been a number of tea cafes that have opened and are prospering. For more variety and a peek at Hungary's burgeoning world of herbal medicine, look for teas in any of the numerous tea or herbal shops: gyógynóvény, herbárium, or gyógytea.

Water -- While csapvíz (tap water) is safe to drink in Budapest, it isn't generally offered in restaurants because they would rather you order water, which is bottled and they charge for it. If you want to avoid the cost of water, ask for tap water specifically, stating "not bottled." Hungarians increasingly drink Ásványvíz, a carbonated mineral water; szóda víz, carbonated tap water; or szénsav mentes (purified bottled water). More of this specific water drinking is part fashion or enjoying the carbonation, and not due to the quality of the water. All of these varieties of water are available at all restaurants as well as at delicatessens and grocery stores.

You Haven't Been to Hungary if You Haven't Tried . . .

Fozelék This hearty dish is somewhere between a soup and a stew in consistency, but without any chunks of meat or vegetables. There are a number of varieties, but green pea, potato, and chicken are the most popular. The vegetable varieties sometimes contain animal fat, so vegetarians should ask ahead of time.

Lángos Many cultures have their own variety of this. This is dough that is deep-fried in fat, and then topped with shredded cheese and/or ham, finally sprinkled with garlic juice. Due to tourist demand, there are now many types of toppings, but a Mexikói (Mexico) is not really authentic. The best place to sample these is in the Central Market Hall Központi Vásárcsarnok at IX. Vámház körút upstairs on the right-hand wall of food booths.

Halászlé This is fish soup, usually made with carp, pike, or perch, but sometimes with a couple of different fish. Widely available in restaurants.

Palacsinta The French call these crepes. The Hungarians call them a national treasure. There are a number of fillings to make these a complete meal. Some palacsinta restaurants have complete menus of entrees and desserts consisting of three to five crepes for a fixed price usually under 800 Ft ($4.30/£2.30). If you just want to sample one, they are on many restaurant menus.

Somlói Galuska A rich and treasured dessert, this will satisfy a chocolate lover's sweet tooth. Served in a bowl, cubes of spongy cake are sprinkled with a rum flavoring, and then vanilla sauce is poured over the moist cubes followed by a topping of chocolate sauce, which is finished off with whipped cream. A dieter's nightmare and often on restaurant dessert menus.

Turós táska (sweet cheese bag) A cheese filled strudel-type dessert and available in most bakeries.

Túró Rudi This is so Hungarian, you will not find it outside of the country. Many returning visitors look for it on their first day back. Shaped like a small log, it is a cheese called quark, which is thinly coated with chocolate. The most famous is the "natur" flavor, though there are others with fruit added. The original is in a white, red-dotted wrapper. You will not find this on any menu, but if you venture into any convenience store or supermarket, they will be plentiful in the refrigerator case. They are welcomed sweets by Hungarian parents for their nutritional value and low cost, about 80 Ft (45¢/2p).

Menu Terms

Bors -- black pepper

Fóételek -- main courses

Fózelék -- vegetable purée

Gyümölcs -- fruits

Halak -- fish

Húsételek -- meat dishes

Italok -- beverages

Kenyér -- bread

Leves(ek) -- soup(s)

Paprika -- red pepper/paprika

Sajt -- cheese

Saláták -- salads

Só -- salt

Tészták -- pasta/dessert

Tojás -- eggs

Vaj -- butter

Zöldság -- vegetables

Cooking Terms

Csípos -- hot (peppery)

Forró -- hot (in temperature)

Fott -- boiled

Friss -- fresh

Fuszerezve -- spiced

Hideg -- cold

Párolt -- steamed

Pirított -- toasted

Pörkölt -- stew

Rántott -- fried

Roston sült -- broiled

Sült -- roasted/baked

Sútve -- baked/fried

Töltött -- stuffed

Soups (Levesek)

Gombaleves -- mushroom soup

Gulyásleves -- goulash soup

Húsleves -- bouillon

Karfioleves -- cauliflower soup

Krémleves -- cream of whatever is before it

Lencseleves -- lentil soup

Paradicsomkrémleves -- cream of tomato soup

Zöldborsöleves -- pea soup

Zöldségleves -- vegetable soup

Eggs (Tojás)

Kolbásszal -- with sausage

Rántotta -- scrambled eggs

Sonkával -- with ham

Szalonnával -- with bacon

Tükörtojás -- fried eggs

Meat & Poultry (Hús és Baromfi)

Agyonsütve -- well done

Bárány -- lamb

Bécsi szelet -- Wiener schnitzel

Borjú -- veal

Csirke -- chicken

Félig nyersen -- rare

Gulyás -- goulash

Kacsa -- duck

Kotlett -- cutlet

Közepesen kisütve -- medium

Liba -- goose

Marha -- beef

Pulyka -- turkey

Sertés -- pork

Tokány -- ragout

Fish (Halak)

Csuka -- pike

Fogas Balaton -- pikeperch

Halászlé -- fish stew

Pisztráng -- trout

Ponty -- carp

Tonhal -- tuna

Vegetables (Zöldság)

Bab -- beans

Burgonya -- potato

Fokhagyma -- garlic

Gomba -- mushrooms

Hagyma -- onion

Káposzta -- cabbage

Paradicsom -- tomato

Sóska -- sorrel

Spenót -- spinach

Tök -- squash

Zöldbab -- green beans

Salads (Saláták)

Fejes saláta -- green salad

Lecsó -- stewed pepper, tomatoes, and onion

Paprikasaláta -- pickled-pepper salad

Uborkasaláta -- cucumber salad

Vegyes saláta -- mixed salad

Fruits (Gyülmölcs)

Alma -- apple

Barack -- apricot

Cseresznye -- cherry

Dinnye -- watermelon

Körte -- pear

Málna -- raspberry

Meggy -- sour cherry

Narancs -- orange

Ószibarack -- peach

Sargadinnye -- cantaloupe

Szeder -- blackberry

Szilva -- plum

Szóló -- grapes

Desserts

Almás rétes -- apple strudel

Dobos torta -- layer cake with caramel candied frosting

Fagylalt -- ice cream

Ischler -- chocolate-dipped shortbread cookie sandwich

Lekváros palacsinta -- crepe filled with preserves

Meggyes rétes -- sour-cherry strudel

Túrós rétes -- cheese strudel

Beverages

Barna sör -- dark beer

Fehér bor -- white wine

Kávé -- coffee

Koktél -- cocktail

Narancslé -- orange juice

Sör -- beer

Tej -- milk

Víz -- water

Vörös bor -- red wine