Romanian cuisineFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaPart of a series on theCulture of RomaniaFlag of Romania.svgHistoryPeople[show]Languages[show]Traditions[show]Mythology and folklore[show]Cuisine[show]Festivals[show]Religion[show]Art[show]Literature[show]Music and performing arts[show]Media[show]SportMonuments[show]Symbols[show]Organisations[show]Portal icon Romania portalv t eA plate of srmlue cu mmlig, a popular Romanian dish of stuffed cabbage rolls (sarmale), accompanied by sauerkraut and mmlig. The cabbage rolls are usually garnished with sour cream, not lemon and olive.Romanian cuisine is a diverse blend of different dishes from several traditions with which it has come into contact, but it also maintains its own character. It has been greatly influenced by Ottoman cuisine, while it also includes influences from the cuisines of other neighbours, such as Germans, Serbs, Bulgarians, and Hungarians.Quite a few different types of dishes are sometimes included under a generic term; for example, the category ciorb includes a wide range of soups with a characteristic sour taste. These may be meat and vegetable soups, tripe (ciorb de burt) and calf foot soups, or fish soups, all of which are soured by lemon juice, sauerkraut juice, vinegar, or traditionally bor. The category uic (plum brandy) is a generic name for a strong alcoholic spirit in Romania, while in other countries, every flavour has a different name.Contents [hide] 1 History2 Ancient history2.1 Dacian cuisine2.2 Roman influence3 Middle ages3.1 Ottoman influence4 Description5 List of dishes5.1 Soups5.2 Meat5.3 Fish5.4 Vegetables6 List of salads7 List of cheese types8 List of desserts9 List of drinks10 See also11 Notes and references12 Other sources13 External linksHistory[edit]In history of Romanian culinary literature, Costache Negruzzi and Mihail Koglniceanu are the compilers of a cookbook 200 reete cercate de bucate, prjituri i alte trebi gospodreti (200 tried recipes, pastries and other household things) printed in 1841.[1] Also, Negruzzi writes in "Alexandru Lpuneanu": "In Moldavia at this time, fine food wasn't fashioned. Greater feast could have included few courses. After Polish bor, Greek dishes follow, boiled with herbs floating in butter, after that, Turkish pilaf, and finally cosmopolitan steaks".[2]Ancient history[edit]Dacian cuisine[edit]Cheese was known since Ancient history. Brnz is the generic word for cheese in Romanian. This word is from Dacian. In addition to cheese, Dacians ate vegetables (lentils, peas, spinach, garlic) and fruits (grapes, apples, raspberries) with high nutritional value.[3]The Dacians produced wine in massive quantities. Once Burebista, a Dacian king, angered by the wine abuse of his warriors, cut the vines; his people gave up drinking wine.[4] Legend says that the Dacian people created their own beer. As a result, beer was made by Romanians.Roman influence[edit]With Romans, came a certain taste, rooted in the centuries for the pastry made with cheese, like alivenci, pasc, or brnzoaice. The Romans introduced porridge, which inspired variations of millet porridges.Middle ages[edit]Maize and potatoes became staples of Romanian cuisine after their introduction to Europe. Maize in particular contributed to an increase in nutrition level and health of the Romanian population in the 16th and 17th centuries, resulting in a population boom.Ottoman influence[edit]For 276 years, Romania was under the rules of the Ottoman Empire. Turkish cuisine changed the Romanian table with appetizers made of eggplant, peppers or other vegetables, as well as various meat preparations like spicy chiftele (deep-fried meatballs, a variation of kofta) and the famous mici (short sausages without casings, usually barbecued). The various ciorb (sour soups) and meat-and-vegetable stews, such as iahnie de fasole (beans), ardei umpluti (stuffed peppers), and sarmale (stuffed cabbage) are also of Turkish (and Arab) influence. The beloved rich (Romanian) tomato salad is a variation of the Lebanese dish. There is a unique procession of sweets and pastries combining honey and nuts, such as baklava, sarailie (serai-gli), halva, and rahat (Turkish delight). These sweets are nowadays used in confectionery, such as cakes.Description[edit]Romanian recipes bear the same influences as the rest of Romanian culture. The Turks have brought meatballs (perioare in a meatball soup), from the Greeks there is musaca, from the Austrians there is the niel, and the list could continue. The Romanians share many foods with the Balkan area (in which Turkey was the cultural vehicle), Central Europe (mostly in the form of German-Austrian dishes introduced through Hungary or by the Saxons in Transylvania), and Eastern Europe (including Moldova). Some others are original or can be traced to the Roman or other ancient civilizations. The lack of written sources in Eastern Europe makes it impossible to determine today the punctual origin for most of them.One of the most common meals is the mmlig, a type of polenta, served on its own or as an accompaniment. Pork is the main meat used in Romanian cuisine, but also beef is consumed and a good lamb or fish dish is never to be refused.Before Christmas, on December 20 (Ignat's Day or Ignatul in Romanian),[5] a pig is traditionally sacrificed by every rural family.[6] A variety of foods for Christmas prepared from the slaughtered pig consist of the following:Crnai sausages which may be smoked or dry-cured;Caltabo an emulsified sausage based on liver with consistency from fine (pt) to coarse;Sngerete (black pudding) an emulsified sausage obtained from a mixture of pig's blood with fat and meat, breadcrumbs or other grains, and spices;Tob (head cheese) based on pig's feet, ears and meat from the head suspended in aspic and stuffed in pig's stomach;Tochitur pan-fried cubed pork served with mmlig and wine ("so that the pork can swim");Piftie or Rcitur inferior parts of the pig, mainly the tail, feet and ears, spiced with garlic and served in aspic;Jumri dried pork remaining from rendering of the fat and tumbled through various spices;The Christmas meal is sweetened with the traditional cozonac, a sweet bread with nuts, poppy seeds or rahat (Turkish delight).At Easter, lamb is served: the main dishes are bor de miel (lamb sour soup), roast lamb and drob de miel a Romanian-style lamb haggis made of minced offal (heart, liver, lungs) with spices, wrapped in a caul and roasted.[7][8] The traditional Easter cake is pasc, a pie made of yeast dough with a sweet cottage cheese filling at the center.[9][10]Romanian pancakes, called cltite, are thin (like the French crpe) and can be prepared with savory or sweet fillings: ground meat, cheese, or jam. Different recipes are prepared depending on the season or the occasion.[11]Wine is the preferred drink, and Romanian wine has a tradition of over three millennia.[11] Romania is currently the world's ninth largest wine producer, and recently the export market has started to grow.[11] Romania produces a wide selection of domestic varieties (Feteasc, Gras, Tamioas, and Busuioac), as well as varieties from across the world (Italian Riesling, Merlot, Sauvignon blanc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, and Muscat Ottonel). Beer is also highly regarded, generally blonde pilsener beer, made with German influences. There are also Romanian breweries with a long tradition.According to the 2009 data of FAOSTAT, Romania is the world's second largest plum producer (after the United States),[12] and as much as 75% of Romania's plum production is processed into the famous uic, a plum brandy obtained through one or more distillation steps.[13]List of dishes[edit]Soups[edit]Ciorb de cartofiCiorb de burtSup (de pui) cu tieeiBor is fermented wheat bran, a souring agent for ciorb. Bor is also used today as a synonym for ciorb, but in the past a distinction was made between bor and ciorb (acritur), the souring agent for the latter being the juice of unripe fruits, such as grapes, mirabelle, or wood sorrel leaves.Bor de urechiue, wild mushroom sour soupCiorb is the traditional Romanian sour soupCiorb de burt (tripe soup), soured with sour creamCiorb de perioare (meatball soup)Ciorb de fasole cu afumtur (bean and smoked meat soup)Ciorb de legume (vegetable soup)Ciorb de pete "ca-n Delt" (fish soup prepared in the style of the Danube Delta)Ciorb de praz is a leek soupCiorb de pui is a chicken soupCiorb de lobod is a red orach soupCiorb de salat cu afumtur (green salad and smoked meat soup)Ciorb de sfecl, also called Bor de sfecl or Bor rusescCiorb rneasc (peasant soup), made with a variety of vegetables and from any kind of meat (beef, pork, mutton, fish)Sup (generic name for sweet (usually clear) soups, made out of vegetables alone or combined with poultry and beef). The difference between Sup and Ciorb is that the meat and most of the vegetables are removed, the resulted liquid being served with dumplings or noodles. There are also a number of sour soups, which use lemon juice as a souring agent, called Supe a la grec (Greek soups).Sup (de pui) cu glute (clear dumpling soup with chicken broth)Sup (de pui) cu tieei (clear noodle soup with chicken broth)Meat[edit]Mititei, mustard, and bread rollsFrigrui, Romanian-style kebabsCaltabo/chic - a cooked sausage made of minced pork organs and rice, stuffed in a pig's casingCrnai - a garlicky sausage, as in Fasole cu crnaiChiftele - a type of large meatball covered with breadcrumbs or a flour crustCiulama - white roux sauce used in a variety of meat dishesCiulama de viel - veal ciulamaCiulama de pui - chicken ciulamaDrob de miel - a lamb haggis made of minced organs wrapped in a caul and roasted like a meatloaf; a traditional Easter dishFrigrui - Romanian-style kebabsLimb cu msline - cow tongue with olivesMititei (mici) - grilled minced-meat rollsGrtar (usually made together with "mici") - grilled pork/beef with condimentsMusaca - an eggplant, potato, and meat pieOstropel - method of cooking chicken or duckPaprica - GoulashPrjoale - a type of meatballPiftie - preparation is similar to the French demi-glace. Pork stock reduced by simmering is placed in containers, spiced with garlic and sweet paprika powder, the boiled pork meat is added, and then left to cool. The cooled liquid has a gelatinous consistency.Plecoi sausagesRasolSlnin - pork fat, often smokedniel - a pork, veal, or beef breaded cutlet (a variety of Viennese schnitzel)Cordon bleu niel - breaded pork tenderloin stuffed with ham and cheeseMosaic niel - a specialty of Western Romania, which is two thin layers of different meats with a mushroom filling. Other vegetable fillings may be used instead of mushrooms.niel de pui - breaded chicken breast cutletStufat - lamb, onion and garlic stewTob - sausage (usually pig's stomach, stuffed with pork jelly, liver, and skin)Tocan/tocani - meat stewTocni vntoreasc - venison stewTochitur - a Romanian-style stewVarz clit - steamed cabbage with pork ribs, duck, or sausagesVirli - a type of sausage made from a mixture of goat or lamb with porkSarmale - minced meat with rice, wrapped in either pickled cabbage leaves or vine leavesFish[edit]Romanian roe salad decorated with black olives.Salata de icre - roe salad, traditionally made from carp, pike, or various marine fish species, called tarama, with onionPlachie din pete - ragout of river fish with vegetablesSaramur de crap - carp in brinePan de somn rasol - catfish in brine with garlicChiftele de pete - fish cakePaprica de pete - fish paprikashCrap pane - breaded carp filletGhiveci cu pete - fish stew with vegetablesMacrou afumat - smoked mackerel filletVegetables[edit]Ardei umpluiArdei umplui - stuffed bell peppersDovlecei umplui - stuffed zucchiniGulii umplute - stuffed kohlrabiVinete umplute - stuffed eggplantSarmale - stuffed cabbage rolls, also made with grape or dock leavesGhiveci - vegetable stew or cooked vegetable salad, similar to the Bulgarian gjuvec and the Hungarian lecs[14][15]Ghiveci clugresc - vegetable stew prepared by the nuns in the monasteriesIahnie - beans that are spiced up and cooked until there's no more water, forming a soft sticky sauce binding the beans togetherFasole batut - boiled beans that are mashed up, spiced with salt, pepper and a bit of garlic. It is served with diced and fried onions and tomato paste or sauce.Mmlig - cornmeal mush, also known as Romanian-style polenta. Mmlig can be served as a side dish or form the basis of further dishes, such as "mmlig cu lapte" (polenta with hot milk), "bulz" (baked polenta with Romanian sheep cheese and sour cream), "mmligu cu brnz i smntn" (polenta with telemea (Romanian cheese similar to feta) andcream), etc.Mncare de mazre - pea stewMncare de praz - leek stewPilaf - rice, vegetables, and pieces of meat (optional), often wings and organs of chicken, pork, or lamb. Cooking method is very similar to risotto.Chiftelue de ciuperci - chiftele made of mushrooms instead of meatSniel de ciuperci - mushroom fritter (niel is the Romanian spelling of the German word schnitzel (breaded boneless cutlet), but it may be used to mean any sort of fritter)Plcint aromn - pie with spinach and white cheeseTocan de ciuperci - mushroom stewTocni de glbiori - chanterelle stewZacuscList of salads[edit]Salat de vinete, served on slices of breadArdei copi - roasted pepper salad, with vinegar and sunflower or olive oilCastravei murai - pickled small cucumbersGogonele - pickled green tomatoes, which is the simple version of murturi asortateVarz murat - cabbage pickled in brine, flavored with dill stalksMurturi asortate - pickled mixed vegetables; a combination of any of the following: onions, garlic, green tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, kohlrabi, beets, carrots, celery, parsley roots, cauliflower, apples, quince, unripe plums, small unripe watermelons, small zucchini, and red cabbage. It is most often cured in brine (Turkish version), but also in vinegar (German version).Mujdei - crushed garlic sauceSalat de boeuf - minced meat with boiled vegetables, mayonnaise, and a dash of mustardSalat de vinete - roasted and peeled eggplant, chopped onion, and salt mixed with oil or mayonnaiseSalat oriental - potato salad with eggs, onions, and olivesSalat de sfecl - beet saladSalat de roii - tomato salad, with sliced onions, bell peppers, and cucumber. Flavored with dill or parsley.List of cheese types[edit]Cacaval Penteleu cheeseThe generic name for cheese in Romania is brnz, and it is considered to be of Dacian origin. Most of the cheeses are made of cow's or sheep's milk. Goat's milk is rarely used. Sheep cheese is considered "the real cheese", although in modern times some people refrain from consuming it due to its higher fat content and specific smell.Brnz de burduf is a kneaded cheese prepared from sheep's milk and traditionally stuffed into a sheep's stomach; it has a strong taste and semi-soft textureBrnz topit is a melted cheese and a generic name for processed cheese, industrial productBrnz n coule is a sheep's milk, kneaded cheese with a strong taste and semi-soft texture, stuffed into bellows of fir tree bark instead of pig bladder, very lightly smoked, traditional productCa is a semi-soft fresh white cheese, unsalted or lightly salted, stored in brine, which is eaten fresh (cannot be preserved), traditional, seasonal productCacaval is a semi-hard cheese made with sheep's or cow's milk, traditional productNsal is a type of cheese with a pungent aroma, traditional productPenteleu, a type of Cacaval, traditional productvaier, industrial product (Schweizer Kse)Telemea, cow's or sheep's milk white cheese, vaguely similar to feta. The traditional "Brnz de Brila" (a type of telemea, which has become quite scarce) is spiced with Nigella Damascena seeds, which give it a unique flavor.Urd - made by boiling the whey drained from cow's or ewe's milk until the remaining proteins precipitate and can be collected, traditional productList of desserts[edit]Amandine, Romanian chocolate sponge cake.Papanai, Romanian doughnuts.Covrigi - pretzel[16]Gogoi - literally "doughnuts", but more akin to fried dough[17]HalvaRahat - Turkish delightPlcint - pieColiv - boiled wheat, mixed with sugar and walnuts (often decorated with candy and icing sugar; distributed at funerals and memorial ceremonies)Cozonac - a kind of Stollen made from leavened dough, into which milk, eggs, sugar, butter, and other ingredients are mixedCozonacPandipanOrez cu lapteGri cu lapteLapte de pasre - literally "bird's milk", vanilla custard garnished with "floating islands" of whipped egg whitesCrem de zahr arsCltite - pancakesTurt dulce - gingerbreadChec - coffee cakePapanai - a kind of doughnut made from a mixture of sweet cheese, eggs, and semolina, boiled or fried and served with fruit syrup or jam and sour creamarlot - a custard made from milk, eggs, sugar, whipped cream, gelatin, fruits, and ladyfingers; from the French CharlottePrjituri - assorted pastriesSavarine - savarina[18]Amandine - chocolate sponge cake with almond and chocolate filling, glazed in chocolateJoffre cake - invented at the Casa Capa restaurant in BucharestMucenici - sweet cookies (shaped like "8", made of boiled or baked dough, garnished with walnuts, sugar or honey, eaten on a single day of the year, on 9 March)[19]Pelincile DomnuluiSalam de biscuii - literally "salami of biscuits", with chocolate, biscuits, Turkish delight, and rum essence. Its cyndrical shape resembles a sausage, hence the name.Cornulee - pastries filled with Turkish delight, jam, chocolate, cinnamon sugar, walnuts or raisins, with the shape representing a crescentList of drinks[edit]Afinat - blueberry liqueurBereBragCafeaHorinc is a plum brandy, produced near the border with UkrainePlinc is a strong, double-distilled plum brandy, produced in TransylvaniaRachiu is a fruit brandy. Whereas "rachiu" can be made from any fruit (except plums), "uic" is reserved exclusively to brandy made of plums.Secric is a caraway fruit flavored vodka, similar to the German kmmellibovi is a plum brandy, produced near the border with SerbiaSocat is a non-alcoholic beverage made of fermented elderflower (Sambucus nigra)Rachiu de tescovin is a pomace brandy produced from grapes that have been used in wine production, very similar to the Italian grappauic is a plum brandyTur is a strong, double-distilled plum brandy, named after the village of Tur in northwestern RomaniaViinat is a sour cherry liqueurVinPelin de mai is a wine specialty, usually produced in the spring, flavored with Artemisia dried plantsVodcZmeurat is a raspberry liqueurCeai - in the form of either various plant tisannes (cammomille, mint, tilly flower, a.s.o.) or common black tea, called ceai rusesc in Romanian, which is Russian tea usually served during breakfast.Sirop - syrup made of fir tree, pine, buckthorn, blueberry, raspberry or strawberry with different types of honey or sugarMust - it is the grape juice in the fermentation process but it hasn't become wine yet.See also[edit]Beer in RomaniaFlag of Romania.svgRomania portal Foodlogo2.svgFood portalNotes and references[edit]Jump up ^ Bogdan Ulmu: Retete de la Kogalniceanu & Negruzzi | BucatarescuJump up ^ Lumea nr 17,1946,p 1,Art:O carte de bucate, G. ClinescuJump up ^ "Alimentaia la daci", Dracones.roJump up ^ Strabo, Geography, VII:3.11Jump up ^ Ignatul or Ignat's Day (December 20)Jump up ^ Christmas customs in Romania: "pig's ritual sacrifice"Jump up ^ Making lamb drobJump up ^ Traditional recipe for drob de miel, with step-by-step photosJump up ^ A photo of pascaJump up ^ Pasca recipe^ Jump up to: a b c Educations.com/Study in RomaniaJump up ^ "Final 2009 Data". Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.Jump up ^ uica production consumed 75% of Romanian plums in 2003Jump up ^ Ghiveci: Romanian vegetable stewJump up ^ Recipe for ghiveciJump up ^ Covrigi on displayJump up ^ Varieties of gogoi: photos and recipes (Romanian)Jump up ^ Recipe for savarinaJump up ^ Mucenici: background and recipeOther sources[edit]Nicolae Klepper, Taste of Romania, Hippocrene, New York, 1999, ISBN 978-0-7818-0766-1, ISBN 0-7818-0766-2External links[edit]Romanian CuisineManger l'orientale en Roumanie[show] v t eCuisine of Romania[show] v t eRomania topics[show] v t eEuropean cuisine[show] v t eCuisines[show] v t eLists of prepared foodsCategories: Romanian cuisineNavigation menuCreate accountLog inArticleTalkReadEditView historyMain pageContentsFeatured contentCurrent eventsRandom articleDonate to WikipediaWikipedia storeInteractionHelpAbout WikipediaCommunity portalRecent changesContact pageToolsWhat links hereRelated changesUpload fileSpecial pagesPermanent linkPage informationWikidata itemCite this pagePrint/exportCreate a bookDownload as PDFPrintable versionLanguagesCataletinaDeutschEspaolFranaisBahasa IndonesiaItalianoKurdNederlandsPolskiRomnSvenskaEdit linksThis page was last modified on 4 May 2015, at 15:12.Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply. 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