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List of European cuisines

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Title: List of European cuisines  
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Subject: European cuisine, Global cuisine, Food, Note by Note cuisine, Yamal cuisine
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List of European cuisines

This is a list of European cuisines. A cuisine is a characteristic style of cooking practices and traditions,[1] often associated with a specific culture. European cuisine (also called "Western cuisine") refers collectively to the cuisines of Europe and other Western countries.[2] European cuisine includes cuisines of Europe, including (depending on the definition) that of Russia,[2] as well as non-indigenous cuisines of North America, Australasia, Oceania, and Latin America, which derive substantial influence from European settlers in those regions. The term is used by East Asians to contrast with Asian styles of cooking.[3] This is analogous to Westerners referring collectively to the cuisines of Asian countries as Asian cuisine. When used by Westerners, the term may refer more specifically to cuisine in Europe; in this context, a synonym is Continental cuisine, especially in British English.


Central European cuisine

German sausages and cheese
Telesko vareno, Bulgarian beef soup
Czech cuisine – Prawns atop an egg pancake
  • Bulgarian cuisine is a representative of the cuisine of Southeastern Europe. Essentially South Slavic, it shares characteristics with other Balkans cuisines. Owing to the relatively warm climate and diverse geography affording excellent growth conditions for a variety of vegetables, herbs and fruits, Bulgarian cuisine is diverse.
  • Czech cuisine has both influenced and been influenced by the cuisines of surrounding countries. Many of the fine cakes and pastries that are popular in Central Europe originated in the Czech lands. Czech cuisine is marked by a strong emphasis on meat dishes. Pork is quite common, and beef and chicken are also popular.
  • Hungarian cuisine is the cuisine characteristic of the nation of Hungary and its primary ethnic group, the Magyars. Traditional Hungarian dishes are primarily based on meats, seasonal vegetables, fruits, fresh bread, cheeses and honey. Recipes are based on centuries-old traditions of spicing and preparation methods.
  • Moldovan cuisine - Moldova's fertile soil (chernozem) produces plentiful grapes, fruits, vegetables, cereals, meat and milk products, all of which have found their uses in the national cuisine. The fertile black soil combined with the use of traditional agricultural methods permits growing a wide range of ecologically clean foods in Moldova.
  • Polish cuisine is a style of cooking and food preparation originating from Poland. Polish national cuisine shares some similarities with other Central European[8] and Eastern European[9] traditions as well as French and Italian similarities.
  • Slovak cuisine varies slightly, though sometimes dramatically, from region to region, and was influenced by the traditional cuisine of its neighbors. The origins of traditional Slovak cuisine can be traced to times when the majority of the population lived in villages, in self-sustenance, with very limited food imports and exports and with no modern means of food preservation or processing. This gave rise to a cuisine heavily dependent on a number of staple foods that could stand the hot summers and cold winters, including wheat, potatoes, milk and milk products, pork meat, sauerkraut and onion. To a lesser degree beef, poultry, lamb and goat, eggs, a few other local vegetables, fruit and wild mushrooms were traditionally eaten.
  • Slovenian cuisine there are many distinct cuisines in a country, whose main distinguishing feature is a great variety and diversity of land formation, climate, wind movements, humidity, terrain and history. Slovenia is a borderland country, surrounded by Italy, Austria, Hungary, and Croatia, with established and distinct national cuisines. There is a wide variety of meats in different parts of Slovenia. Dandelion) is Slovenian wild lettuce, which has been gathered in the fields for centuries.

Eastern European cuisine

A plate of pelmeni. These types of dumplings are usually filled with minced meat.
  • Russian cuisine is diverse, as Russia is the largest country in the world.[10] Russia's great expansions of territory, influence, and interest during the 16th–18th centuries brought more refined foods and culinary techniques, as well as one of the most refined food countries in the world. It was during this period that smoked meats and fish, pastry cooking, salads and green vegetables, chocolate, ice cream, wine, and liquor were imported from abroad. At least for the urban aristocracy and provincial gentry, this opened the doors for the creative integration of these new foodstuffs with traditional Russian dishes. The result is extremely varied in technique, seasoning, and combination. Traditional and common Russian foods include:
Ukrainian borscht with side dishes of smetana, pampushkas and shkvarkas
  • Ukrainian cuisine has significant diversity, historical traditions and is influenced by Russian, Polish, Turkish and Polish cuisines.[12] Common foods used include meats, vegetables, mushrooms, fruits, berries and herbs.[12][13] In Ukraine, bread is a staple food, there are many different types of bread, and Ukraine is sometimes referred to as the "breadbasket of Europe."[12] Pickled vegetables are utilized, particularly when fresh vegetables aren't in season.[12] There are about 30 varieties of Ukrainian Borsch soup,[13] a common dish that often includes meat.[12]
  • Crimean Tatar cuisine is primarily the cuisine of the Crimean Tatars, who live on the Crimean Peninsula in Ukraine. The traditional cuisine of the Crimean Tatars derives basically from the same roots as the cuisine of the Volga Tatars, although unlike the Volga Tatars they do not eat horse meat and do not drink mare's milk (kymyz). However, the Crimean Tatars adopted many Uzbek dishes during their exile in Central Asia since 1944, and these dishes have been absorbed into Crimean Tatar national cuisine after their return to Crimea.
  • Ukrainian wine
  • Azerbaijani cuisine is the cuisine of Azerbaijan. Azerbaijani cuisine throughout the centuries has been influenced by the foods of different cultures due to political and economic processes in Azerbaijan. Out of 11 climate zones known in the world, the Azerbaijani climate has nine.[14] This contributes to the fertility of the land, which in its turn results in the richness of the country's cuisine.
  • Georgian people around the world. The Georgian cuisine is specific to the country, but also contains some influences from the Middle Eastern and European culinary traditions.

Northern European cuisine

An English Sunday roast with roast beef, roast potatoes, vegetables and Yorkshire pudding
Irish stew is a traditional stew made from lamb, or mutton, potatoes, carrots, onions, and parsley.[15]
  • Cuisines of the British Isles
  • Irish cuisine
  • British cuisine is the specific set of cooking traditions and practices associated with the United Kingdom. British cuisine has been described as "unfussy dishes made with quality local ingredients, matched with simple sauces to accentuate flavour, rather than disguise it."[16] However, British cuisine has absorbed the cultural influence of those that have settled in Britain, producing hybrid dishes, such as the Anglo-Indian chicken tikka masala."[17][18]
  • Scandinavian cuisines
  • Greenlandic cuisine is traditionally based on meat from marine mammals, game, birds, and fish, and normally contains high levels of protein. Since colonization and the arrival of international trade, the cuisine has been increasingly influenced by Danish and Canadian cuisine.[19] Since the majority of Greenland is covered by permanent glaciers, the sea is the source of most domestically sourced food.[20] Seafood dishes include various fishes (often smoked), mussels, and shrimp. Ammassat or capelin, a fish in the salmon family is commonly consumed.[21] The national dish of Greenland is suaasat, a traditional Greenlandic soup.[22] It is often made from seal meat, or from whale, reindeer, or sea birds. The soup often includes onions and potatoes, and is simply seasoned with salt and pepper, or bay leaf. The soup is often thickened with rice, or by soaking barley in the water overnight so that the starches leach into the water. During the summer, meals are often eaten outdoors.[21]

Southern European cuisine

Moussaka is a potato based dish popular in Mediterranean cuisine and Balkan cuisine. Several variations exist.
  • Cuisines of the Balkans
A gourmet antipasto platter
  • Italian cuisine - presents popular dishes like Pizza, Pasta, Lasagne, Mozzarella and other well-known food. Italian cuisine has been influenced by Ancient Greek, Ancient Roman, Etruscan cuisines and dates back to 4th century BCE. It maintains strong regional diversity and it uses a vast variety of ingredients, mostly because of the political divisions in Italian history and different climate and resources in the country. Most of the dishes are simple to prepare and not expensive, which is one of the reason it is very popular around the world.
The Catanese dish Pasta alla Norma is amongst Sicily's most historic and iconic.
  • Italian wine
  • Regional Cuisines - in Italian cuisine, each area has its own specialties, primarily at the regional level, but also at provincial levels.[28][29][30] The cuisine has an abundance of differences in taste, and is known to be one of the most popular in the world,[31] with influences abroad.[32] The differences can derive from a bordering country (such as France or Austria), whether a region is close to the sea or the mountains, and economics. Italian cuisine is also seasonal, often incorporating fresh produce. Italian regional cuisines include:
  • Spanish cuisine has a variety of dishes including thousands of recipes and flavors arising from Spain's extensive history with many cultural influences, and variations in geography and climate. It is heavily influenced by seafood available from the waters that surround the country, and reflects the country's deep maritime roots. Spanish wine is a significant part of Spanish cuisine. Regional Spanish cuisines include:

Western European cuisine

Coq au vin is a French braise of chicken cooked with wine, lardons, mushrooms, and optionally garlic.
  • Regional cuisines

Historical cuisines

See also


  1. ^ "Cuisine." Accessed June 2011.
  6. ^ Austrian cuisine
  7. ^ Culinary Influences
  8. ^ "Poland's cuisine, influenced by its German, Austrian, Hungarian, Russian, and other conquerors over the centuries, is not the most distinctive, varied, or subtle in the world, but it has an earthy character of its own." [in:] Melvil Dewey, Richard Rogers Bowker, L. Pylodet. Library journal: t. 110, 1985; "Polish cuisine displays its German-Austrian history in its sausages, particularly the garlicky kielbasa (or kolbasz), and its smoked meats. Similarly, Transylvania's old. [...] As a result of these enforced alliances, Polish cuisine adopted German-style smoked meats and pastries and learned to produce desserts that rivaled those of the Viennese." [in:] The Ethnic Food Lover's Companion by Eve Zibart, p. 114
  9. ^ 'Like Ukrainians, Russians and Poles, Belarusians are still fond of borsch with a very large dollop of sour cream (smyetana) and it is particularly warming and nourishing in the depths of winter. " [in:] Belarus, 2nd: The Bradt Travel Guide by Nigel Roberts, 2
  10. ^ "Russia." The World Factbook. U.S. Central Intelligence Agency. Accessed July 2011.
  11. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Russian Traditional Foods." Accessed July 2011.
  12. ^ a b c d e "Cuisine – Flavors and Colors of Ukrainian Culture." Accessed July 2011.
  13. ^ a b "Ukraine National Food, Meals and Cookery." Accessed July 2011.
  14. ^ Climate zones of Azerbaijan
  15. ^ Home Cooking: Traditional Irish Stew
  16. ^  
  17. ^ "Robin Cook's chicken tikka masala speech". London: The Guardian. 2002-02-25. Retrieved 2001-04-19. 
  19. ^ "Greenlandic cuisine." Official Greenland Tourism Guide. (retrieved Oct 30, 2010)
  20. ^ Kleivan, "Greenland Eskimo," 522
  21. ^ a b "Traditional Greenlandic food." Official Greenland Tourism Guide. (retrieved Oct 30, 2010)
  22. ^ "Recipes of Greenlandic Cuisine." Colonial Voyage. (retrieved Oct 31, 2010)
  23. ^ Public House; Subscription Required. Retrieved 03-07-08.
  25. ^ "Find Your Local! – All about Scottish Pubs." Accessed July 2011.
  26. ^ (Australian) "Drinking etiquette." Convict Creations. Retrieved 24-04-11.
  27. ^ "Taramosalata." Accessed August 2011.
  28. ^ Related Articles (2009-01-02). "Italian cuisine – Britannica Online Encyclopedia". Retrieved 2010-04-24. 
  29. ^ "Italian Food – Italy's Regional Dishes & Cuisine". Retrieved 2010-04-24. 
  30. ^ "Regional Italian Cuisine". Retrieved 2010-04-24. 
  33. ^ "French Country Cooking." Accessed July 2011.
  34. ^ "Bon appétit: Your meal is certified by the UN." Dallas Morning News.The Accessed July 2011.
  35. ^ "Celebrations, healing techniques, crafts and culinary arts added to the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage." United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. Accessed July 2011.
  36. ^ "The Cuisine of Holland" Accessed July 2011.
  37. ^ "German Regional Food Specialties." Accessed July 2011.
  38. ^ Weiss, Melitta Adamson (2004). "Food in medieval times." Greenwood Press. Google Books. Accessed July 2011.
  39. ^ Weiss, Melitta Adamson (2004). "Food in medieval times." (abstract). Greenwood Press. Google Books. Accessed July 2011.
