Gourmet Articles

The people of Romania really know how to enjoy food. You will find the Romanians stacking their tables with all sorts of delicious food, especially on certain special occasions which call for a feast. Nowadays talking about good food habits is the "in thing". Nutritionists and doctors are writing articles and columns in almost all the magazines and newspapers about the benefits of eating healthy food, like raw and seasonal fruits and vegetables, fresh from the garden. It means that we should not indulge ourselves in junk food, at least not very often.

The people of Romania are perfectly aware of what healthy food means. However, they have not abandoned their traditionally fine cooking completely in order to subscribe to the health food fad. In every corner of Romania there are regional culinary specialties.

Take the cuisine of Transylvania, for example. The traditional Sunday meal of Transylvania must have a noodle soup with chicken that is raised at the household poultry. The noodles used in the soup cannot be just any noodles however. It has to be prepared at home. This noodle soup is on any list of famous Romanian recipes that you can find.

Several items of Romanian cuisine, which are considered as traditional as the famous noodle soup, are actually borrowed from the cuisine of other cultures. For instance, they usually have a special dish of schnitzel, an Austrian item, along with fried potatoes every Sunday after returning from the church. Like many other people in the world, the Romanians have a long established tradition of going to church on Sundays. And having schnitzel with the finest quality wine and palinca (a strong drink made from grapes or prunes) is almost like a ritual which they are practicing till date.

Preparing sweet dishes is also a very complicated and time consuming event in Romania. Many varieties of pies and cookies are made usually by the women. Vanilla, nuts and cream are also used extensively in the process of making pies and cookies. Baking for these sweet dishes are done usually in a wood stove and a traditional clay oven is used for baking bread.

Romanians usually make their bread at home with traditional ingredients like Wheat flour and potatoes. Adding synthetic flavor is a strict no-no. This home made bread is still one of the all time favourites of the Romanian cuisine, which maintains its taste with a crisp outside layer and spongy inside.

From the long list of the mouthwatering Romanian recipes, it is perfectly understandable why they are famous in the world, be it a recipe of their own or one influenced by other cultures.

This is an age of packaging, and many people around the world are influenced by the wrapping or the colors of the food they buy. There are young people, who have never known the taste of a tomato fresh from the kitchen garden, or for that matter, a chicken fed with corn.

But Romanians can still afford to be traditional in their cooking habits. This does not mean, however, that all Romanians cook at home and eat only traditional delicacies. Many Romanians have got used to dining on processed food of the heat and serve variety, especially those, who have got to cope with a hectic schedule.

However, the traditional world famous Romanian food is something that each individual should try. It is impossible not to like the famous "sarmale", (cabbage rolls), or the different soups and "ciorba", (broth), cooked according to special Romanian recipes.