21 Most Popular Romanian Foods Worth Craving For 2022
Although Romanian cuisine is indeed lesser-known, you can’t deny how filling, diverse, and delicious the traditional dishes are.
So if you’re ready to extend your culinary knowledge, give this article a read and learn about the must-try favorites you have to get when you visit Romania.
Delightful Appetizers In Romania That Will Make You Go Wow
Every full-course meal begins with an appetizer, so let’s start this article with some of the most popular and well-loved in this lovely country. Read on and find out what they are!
1. Zacuscă – Vegetable Spread
If you’re not a fan of beans, here is a different spread that you can have with your toasted bread. Zacuscă is a Romanian vegetable spread made from roasted eggplant, tomato paste, sautéed onions, paprika, and roasted Hungary sweet peppers.
Zacuscă is typically made in a large quantity after every fall harvest to preserve the veggies. This spread is also typical during fasting seasons in Orthodox Christian majority nations due to the lack of meat, eggs, or dairy at the time.
The name of this lovely dish comes from Slavic, and it means “snack”, “breakfast”, or “appetizer”.
2. Salată de Vinete – Eggplant Salad
From grilling to baking and roasting, eggplants are used in various European and Middle Eastern traditional recipes. Romania is no exception.
Salată de vinete, also known as eggplant dip, eggplant salad, or just vinete, is one of the most popular dishes in Moldova, Romania, and Hungary. This dish uses chopped grilled eggplants, onions, and sunflower oil. Lemon zest can be added at the end to give it more flavor.
Many Americans refer to this dish as potlagel, which is understandable since eggplant was known as patlagea in the old Romanian language. However, the correct name for this dish is Salată de Vinete, with vânătă meaning eggplants in modern Romanian.
3. CaÈ™caval Pane – Fried Cheese
Here’s good news for all the cheese lovers out there: CaÈ™caval, meaning “cheese”, is a ubiquitous ingredient in Romanian cuisine.
It’s used in some of the country’s most popular meals, including CaÈ™caval Pane – breaded and fried cheese. It’s almost like an Eastern European version of mozzarella sticks.
CaÅŸcaval pane is usually an appetizer or a simple snack. This dish will taste amazing next to polenta, mujdei, fried potatoes, salads, or a glass of pilsner.
4. Drob de Miel- Lamb Haggis
A typical Easter supper is incomplete without drob, a traditional Romanian meal made from lamb offals, eggs, herbs, green onions, and soaked bread.
There are a variety of recipes that vary from region to region and even from family to family. Some prefer using pork, mutton, or chicken offals, which is totally fine.
However, lamb offals shouldn’t be substituted with other types of haggis during Easter. This comes from the traditional event when Orthodox believers butcher a lamb in preparation for the Passover festivities, representing Christ’s sacrifice for humanity’s redemption.
Delicious Romanian Main Dishes That Will Blow Your Mind
These delectable Romanian recipes have been produced and passed down from generation to generation. With robust flavors and superb pairings of meat and vegetables, the dishes in this section will surely delight your taste buds.
5. Mămăligă – Romanian Polenta
Mămăligă is a well-loved yellow maize flour polenta in Romania. Although this comforting dish originated as peasant food back in the day, it has now become a high-end meal served at the finest restaurants.
Despite being called “Romanian Polenta”, this is not the typical cornmeal porridge you can have in Italy. Mămăligă is firm and circular, almost like a dome of deliciousness.
This popular Romanian breakfast recipe calls for maize, stock (or water), butter, and seasonings. Mămăligă used to be produced from millet flour, known to the Romans as pulmentum before maize was introduced to Europe in the 16th century. Read More…
