What is the national cuisine, traditional dishes and food of Estonia? Estonian cuisine: features and traditions What they eat in Estonia

Estonian dishes They are distinguished by an unusual combination of products. Experts note that the main part of the dishes has a slightly sour taste and the aftertaste of milk, to which a variety of, sometimes unexpected, ingredients are added, for example, peas or fish, most often herring or sprat. From ordinary dairy products on the table local residents you can see cottage cheese, whipped cream, yogurt, homemade cheese, which Estonians have a special name for - cheese.

Cereals are very widely used for cooking - pearl barley, barley, but Estonians practically do not use buckwheat. Like mushrooms, you almost never see them on the Estonian table. But they eat a lot of potatoes, and they use them not only on their own, but also in the form of porridges with various cereals.

As for meat, Estonians most often use pork, and they also like to cook from offal, in particular blood and liver. For frying, they mainly use pork lard or fat, but vegetable oil is almost never used anywhere. Estonians eat our favorite butter only with bread, mostly rye. Wheat rolls and long loaves have taken root in Estonia with difficulty.

The assortment of national dishes includes many fish dishes. They say that Estonia is a more “maritime” country than its Baltic neighbors, so fish is used as an appetizer, first and second. Particularly popular is herring, which is pickled or added to soups.

Another feature characteristic of local cuisine is not a large number of seasonings and spices. The most common spices are salt, cumin, dill, pepper and marjoram, and onions are very rarely added to dishes.

The most important dish during lunch is soup. Estonia can be classified as one of those countries whose residents love soups and actively introduce them into their diet. That's why there are a great many of them here. Soups made from meat, vegetables, and cereals can be found on the table of every Estonian. In cookbooks alone you can count more than 20 recipes for milk soups: with fish, mushrooms, even beer.

In Estonia you can try completely unusual soups, such as beer soup or bread soup. From Swedish cuisine comes blueberry dessert soup. Herring soup with potatoes, peas with pearl barley or barley with potatoes are very popular.

Many recipes are used only in Estonia and are especially pleasing to tourists who want to get to know the country and its identity. Therefore, they especially like pea soups with knuckle or cabbage soup with brisket.

Estonians are great masters in “fish” cuisine. The fish is prepared according to unique recipes. IN eastern regions eat more river fish, and coastal areas prefer its marine species - flounder, herring, eel. Fish here is prepared in every way: it is rarely fried, but is mainly used baked, dried, salted, boiled or dried. Only in Estonia can you try milk and fish soups, fish puddings and casseroles, as well as herring cooked with sour cream.

Estonian National cuisine very peculiar. It is unlikely that anywhere outside of Estonia you can try such a popular dish as “kama”, made from flour to which peas, rye, barley or oats are added, and eaten with milk or curdled milk. The Estonians will also treat their guests to their favorite “signature” mulgikapsad - Mulgi-style cabbage cooked with pearl barley and pork. And blood dumplings or blood sausage can only be tasted in Estonia .

To get a complete understanding of local cuisine, guests should definitely try cartlipors - this is the name for meat baked in mashed potatoes. It is very tempting to try blood pancakes, which in Estonia are called “vere pakeogid”. Cheese gourmets will undoubtedly appreciate the taste of homemade fatty cheeses.

Traditional main courses are somewhat reminiscent of German cuisine - pea porridge, stewed rutabaga or turnips with potatoes, but Estonians cannot do without meat. Mostly meat dishes made from pork, although veal and lamb are also used. Moreover, what is very interesting, meat of different varieties is not mixed.

A favorite Estonian meat delicacy is bloody dishes. The local blood and liver sausages are extremely popular among both locals and guests. Estonians also love jellied meat made from pork legs and heads; you should definitely order sulti - the Estonian version of jelly, which is made from pig, veal and lamb tails. You can often find traditional pork knuckle with sauerkraut on the table.

Among national drinks, Estonians give the palm to jelly, the most popular of which is sour oatmeal jelly. They also love milk jelly with cottage cheese and fresh cream. But no less common is bread or cranberry mousse, which is mandatory even on the school menu.

To very unusual, therefore such popular desserts These include interesting dishes based on bread and semolina, prepared from apples and rhubarb grounds, or sweet porridges with the addition of whipped cream.

The confectioners here also enjoy well-deserved fame. Chocolate and nut cakes, pies, and muffins created in Estonia are distinguished by an unusually delicate taste. Among the famous holiday baked goods, it is worth noting the piparkook cookies, which literally means “pepper pie.” The recipe for these delicious, spicy Christmas cookies is kept a big secret by master pastry chefs to this day. Marzipan is another culinary masterpiece of the country. According to ancient legends, one day before the holiday, a servant mixed up all the ingredients intended for baking sweet bread. This is how the famous marzipan turned out, the recipe of which no cook will share.

Estonia is a country of good food, whose tastes are shaped by the four seasons and the pure nature of Estonia.

Half of the territory of our country is covered by forests, and a third is arable land, so we are rich in agricultural, livestock and horticultural products, as well as wild berries, mushrooms and game. Due to our interrupted history and half a century behind the Iron Curtain, we have preserved many culinary traditions that the world is only now rediscovering.

Estonians love their food most of all, but they are also curious and willing to try new dishes and cooking methods. Not only in restaurants, but also at home, they enthusiastically mix traditional and new, their own and others - domesticated and simple Italian dishes, as well as borrowings from Asia and America.

Features of Estonian cuisine

Historically, the main meal for the vast majority of the country's inhabitants occurred in the second half of the day. In the evening, the whole family gathered at the table: soup, a meat or fish dish, and drinks (milk, kvass, jelly) were served for dinner.

The specific features of Estonian cuisine finally took shape by the middle of the 19th century: it is based on simple preparations, hearty dishes of meat, fish, beans, cereals and potatoes. National Estonian cuisine is characterized by the use of a small amount of seasonings - due to territorial and climatic conditions in Estonia, and also because for a long time they were very expensive. Today, the main spices in Estonian dishes are marjoram, cumin, pepper and salt, ginger, cinnamon and cardamom.

It is also worth noting the widespread use of milk and fermented milk products in cooking - they are included in sauces, hot dishes, soups and desserts.

Estonians do not use a large amount of additives in the form of seasonings and spices; ordinary salt, caraway seeds and marjoram are enough for them. It is very rare to find fried foods in the kitchen; all ingredients are mostly boiled. The most common food in Estonia is fish (usually herring), pork, a variety of vegetables and black bread.

Usually, Estonian dishes are created from an unusual combination of products and have a special sour taste. It’s hard to imagine a native Estonian’s table without fermented milk products. Milk, curdled milk, yoghurts, cheeses are favorite delicacies in this country.

Basic typical dishes of Estonian cuisine

I would immediately like to mention Estonian soups. This is one of the delicious, satisfying and healthy national dishes. Many tourists are delighted with the original layout of the products. So, for example, in Estonia it is quite natural to find herring soup, sweet blueberry soup or beer soup, and ordinary soups with cereals, potatoes or peas are also served.

Can you imagine Estonia without fish? You should definitely try the smoked trout or grilled flounder. You will simply be delighted with the taste sensations you will experience!

Estonia is also rich in forest products. Many varieties of berries and mushrooms are grown here, so mushroom sauce, pickled saffron milk caps and mushroom salad are always present on the Estonian holiday table. Every housewife is sure to cook delicious jam from berries and fruits for the winter and make pickles from vegetables.

As for desserts, locals are very fond of cupcakes, pastries and sweets with unusual fillings. The pride of the country is Estonian chocolate with nuts. It is recognized as one of the most delicious in the world!

Features of traditional soups

The most important dish during lunch is soup. Estonia can be classified as one of those countries whose residents love soups and actively introduce them into their diet. That's why there are a great many of them here. Soups made from meat, vegetables, and cereals can be found on the table of every Estonian. In cookbooks alone you can count more than 20 recipes for milk soups: with fish, mushrooms, even beer.

In Estonia you can try completely unusual soups, such as beer soup or bread soup. From Swedish cuisine comes blueberry dessert soup. Herring soup with potatoes, peas with pearl barley or barley with potatoes are very popular.

Many recipes are used only in Estonia and are especially pleasing to tourists who want to get to know the country and its identity. Therefore, they especially like pea soups with knuckle or cabbage soup with brisket.

Features of cooking fish

Estonians are great masters in “fish” cuisine. The fish is prepared according to unique recipes. In the eastern regions, they eat more river fish, while coastal areas prefer marine species - flounder, herring, eel. Fish here is prepared in every way: it is rarely fried, but is mainly used baked, dried, salted, boiled or dried. Only in Estonia can you try milk and fish soups, fish puddings and casseroles, as well as herring cooked with sour cream.

Features of preparing second courses

Estonian national cuisine is very unique. It is unlikely that anywhere outside of Estonia you can try such a popular dish as “kama”, made from flour to which peas, rye, barley or oats are added, and eaten with milk or curdled milk. The Estonians will also treat their guests to their favorite “signature” mulgikapsad – Mulgi-style cabbage cooked with pearl barley and pork. And blood dumplings or blood sausage can only be tasted in Estonia.

To get a complete picture of the local cuisine, guests should definitely try cartlipors, which is the name given to meat baked in mashed potatoes. It is very tempting to try blood pancakes, which in Estonia are called “vere pakeogid”. Cheese gourmets will undoubtedly appreciate the taste of homemade fatty cheeses.

Traditional main courses are somewhat reminiscent of German cuisine - pea porridge, stewed rutabaga or turnips with potatoes, but Estonians cannot do without meat. Meat dishes are mainly prepared from pork, although veal and lamb are also used. Moreover, what is very interesting, meat of different varieties is not mixed.

A favorite Estonian meat delicacy is rare dishes. The local blood and liver sausages are extremely popular among both locals and guests. Estonians also love jellied meat made from pork legs and heads; you should definitely order sulti - the Estonian version of jelly, which is made from pig, veal and lamb tails. You can often find traditional pork knuckle with sauerkraut on the table.

National cuisine of Estonia: desserts

You can’t ignore the variety of Estonian desserts. There are a great variety of them, and it is simply impossible to try everything in one trip, but many delicacies can be taken with you as souvenirs.

The most important delicacy in Estonia is marzipan. According to legend, it was invented in Tallinn: a mixture of nuts and sugar was first prepared in a pharmacy on Town Hall Square, and the city residents liked it so much that it quickly became part of the everyday and holiday menu. Now, by the way, there is a small Marzipan Museum in the pharmacy premises, where everyone will be told about the origins and recipes of this traditional Estonian dish. Marzipan candies are made with a variety of additives and decorated with nuts, candied berries, icing and chocolate.

An unusual and delicious rhubarb pie is also very popular in Estonia - you can order it in almost any cafe. Also among the national desserts are jelly (served with cold milk or cream), a variety of pastries (including Christmas spiced “piparkook” cookies), and berry soups.

National Estonian drinks

Among non-alcoholic drinks, Estonians give the palm to various jelly. In addition, fruit drinks, kvass and coffee are very common among drinks. Estonian alcoholic drinks are well-deservedly popular outside the country. Estonians themselves consider beer to be their national drink, which is brewed everywhere here. Each region of Estonia has its own traditional beer. The most popular are dark beer “Saare” and light beer “Saku”. Another traditional invention of Estonian cuisine is honey beer. Homemade beer with juniper is a truly traditional Estonian drink.

“Höegwein” is also very common in Estonia - local mulled wine, which you can not only try in local cafes and bars, but also bring home as a souvenir.

While in Estonia, you should definitely try the famous Vana Tallinn liqueur (“ Old Tallinn"), first released back in 1962. This is a dark brown liqueur with a rum flavor. Vana Tallinn liqueur can be consumed both in pure form, and with coffee or as part of various cocktails. In Estonian stores, the drink is sold in three variations - with a strength of 40.45 and 50 degrees. Another famous Estonian liqueur is raspberry Kannu Kukk. The strong red liqueur has a pleasant rich taste and aroma of caraway seeds.

Modernity

During the Soviet period, Estonian cuisine through state system public catering was influenced by Russian, Caucasian and even Central Asian cuisine.

After the restoration of independence, the country's international contacts began to expand and traditional cuisine began to lose popularity. But, for example, at Christmas, Estonians to this day put jellied meat, blood sausage with lingonberry sauce and roast pork with sauerkraut on the table. For Maslenitsa (Estonian: vastlapäev), buns with whipped cream (Estonian: vastlakuklid) are baked. And in the evening on Midsummer's Day (Estonian jaanipäev, celebrated on June 24), the air over Estonia is filled with the aroma of barbecue and grilled sausages.

Today, a traditional Estonian “cold table” (Estonian külmlaud) usually includes pickled herring with sour cream, jellied meat, whipped liver pate, potato salad, Rosolje salad (Estonian rosolje), pickled cucumbers and pumpkin, ham rolls with filling , meatballs with mayonnaise and stuffed eggs. This holiday menu is still preferred, especially in rural areas.

Dairy products occupy a special place in Estonian cuisine. Milk, curdled milk, yogurt, cottage cheese and homemade cheese are included in the daily diet. A typical breakfast is porridge, omelet or sandwiches, Lately also muesli with yogurt. They drink quite a lot of coffee, preferring light roast varieties of the Scandinavian type.

Soups are a fairly common dish. The most common are potato, cabbage and pea soups. The meat is usually boiled in one piece, the rest consists of potatoes, cabbage or peas, carrots, pearl barley or pasta. Smoked pork is added to pea and bean soup.

Characteristic of Estonian cuisine are mixed cereal, vegetable-cereal and vegetable porridges, for example, barley and potato porridge mulgipuder (Estonian mulgipuder). The main dish can sometimes be potato porridge or boiled potatoes with a thick sauce made from fat, flour, broth or cream and a piece of meat, minced meat or sausage. A popular dish is mulgikapsad (Estonian: mulgikapsad) - sauerkraut cooked with pork and pearl barley.

Among vegetables, potatoes are in first place in consumption, cabbage and peas are in second, then carrots and rutabaga. Beets are rarely used, mainly in beet salad and in Rosolie salad. Since the early 1990s, potato consumption began to decline, and people began to eat more rice and pasta. The popularity of various semi-finished products is increasing.

Herring and sprat are used more than other types of fish in Estonian cuisine. This fish is fried and made into casseroles, poured with an egg-milk mixture and sprinkled with finely chopped dill. “Tallinn sprat” (Estonian: Tallinna kilud), spiced and salted, are very popular. In the coastal parts of Estonia, flounder is used, in the interior regions fish dishes are prepared from pike and bream, and near Lake Peipus from smelt and vendace. Mainly herring, bream, and eel are subjected to hot smoking.

In meat main courses, lean pork predominates. Estonian cuisine uses the method of slowly boiling large pieces of meat (ahjuliha) in a thick-walled pot either in the oven or in a charcoal oven. It is used for main courses, usually with boiled potatoes. Main courses are prepared from the liver by boiling it in sour cream and cream sauce. Meat dishes also include the popular jellied pork head and legs, which is served with boiled potatoes or bread.

The range of traditional sweet dishes includes bread soup, thick jelly with whipped cream or milk, whipped semolina mousse made from fruit juice, curd cream with jam, apple casserole, bubert, as well as pancakes with jam and various cakes.

Top 10 Estonian dishes you need to try

1. Kartulipors – pork baked in mashed potatoes. For fun, in some cafes the portions are designed in the form of funny pigs with olive eyes and a snout of carrots.
2. Vereverst – blood sausage with barley and chopped bacon.
3. Creamy Dunkles Soup is a first course with beans and smoked pork ribs in a toasted bread pot, topped with a thick creamy sauce.
4. Pirukad are small pies made from yeast dough, filled with rice, stewed vegetables or minced meat.
5. Mulgicapsid is sauerkraut stewed in a cast iron with pork and barley, served with a side dish of boiled or baked potatoes.
6. Vere pakeogid - pancakes made from barley flour stuffed with peas, buckwheat and blood.
7. Mulgicorp - sweet cheesecakes served with sour cream or jam.
8. Kama is a mixture of dried or fried grains of rye, peas and oats, filled with sour milk, jam or honey.
9. Piparkook - crispy cookies with black pepper, ginger and cinnamon, painted with glazed patterns.
10. Marzipan is a shaped cake made from grated almonds and powdered sugar, covered with icing.

Where to try?

Tallinn is famous for its restaurants serving national cuisine. Among large selection you can highlight the most interesting and popular ones.

Restaurant MEKK

Restaurant MEKK offers traditional Estonian dishes in an original presentation. In accordance with the history of the country, the menu depends on the time of year - summer and autumn provide a variety of vegetables and fruits, autumn - berries and pickles, winter - meat and preserves. The menu includes specialties - pork in lingonberry sauce, cake with sea buckthorn and cheese. Home-baked bread and only natural dairy products give the restaurant the status of a cozy and almost homely place.

Address: Suur-Karja 17/19, 10140 Tallinn.

Peppersack Restaurant

Peppersack Restaurant provides the opportunity to try classic Estonian cuisine at its best:

• Pork stewed with sauerkraut.
• Kamu (a mixture of cereals with jam or milk).
• Blood sausage.
• Potato salad.

Dishes are prepared from natural Estonian products without special spices - only salt and herbs are added to the dishes. The deliberately simple interior allows you to focus entirely on the food.

Address: Viru 2 / Vana turg 6, Tallinn.

Restaurant Olematu Rüütel

The Olematu Rüütel restaurant is designed in medieval style. In the restaurant's basement, game meat is roasted over an open fire. The menu delights with romantic names, for example, “Mistress Margaretha’s Weakness,” which hides chicken fillet with cheese, fruit salad and rice. The combination of products in restaurant dishes is unexpected and unusual. The restaurant serves traditional dishes– salted herring, pumpkin cream soup and ice cream.

Address: Kiriku Poik 4a, Tallinn.

Cafe Maiasmokk

Cafe Maiasmokk is the oldest not only in Tallinn, but throughout Estonia.

The cafe offers a wide selection of desserts and sweets:

• Tender buns with cream.
• Handmade sweets made from natural chocolate.
• A variety of pies and pastries.
• Desserts with marzipan.

In the cafe you can also visit the marzipan room, where the whole history of marzipan is shown. The cafe has preserved its historical interior.

Address: Pikk tänav 16, Kesklinna linnaosa, Tallinn.

National Estonian cuisine may not be distinguished by its sophistication and variety of products, but everyone will find a dish to their liking.

Natural products and familiar cooking methods make Estonian cuisine attractive to Russian tourists.

Estonian cuisine recipes

Marinated herring

The prepared herring is breaded in flour, salted and fried, then poured with warm marinade and kept in the cold for 24 hours.
Herring 120, flour 5, vegetable oil 5;
for marinade: vinegar 3% x 50, sugar 3, pepper, bay leaf, salt.

Roll pug (pickled herring)

Soaked herring fillets are rolled into tubes, poured with warm marinade, and kept in it for a day. Herring 1000, onion 180, vinegar 3% x 20, sugar 30, spices 0.2.

Pork legs in jelly

Pork legs are chopped in half and boiled with the addition of salt, onion, carrots, parsley and celery. At the end of cooking, add bay leaf. The boiled legs are placed in a mold, filled with broth and placed in a cool place to harden. Pork legs 1100, carrots 25, onions 25, parsley 15, celery 15, bay leaf 0.3, pepper 0.5, salt.

Syyr

The cottage cheese is rubbed through a sieve, boiling milk is added and heated over low heat until it becomes viscous like rubber and the milk thickens.
The resulting mass is poured onto a sieve. Melt the butter in a saucepan, add the curd mass into it and heat, stirring, for 8–10 minutes, then add beaten eggs, salt, cumin and pour into a deep bowl.
The finished cheese is cut into portions of 100–150 g. Cottage cheese 1200, egg 2 pcs., butter 125, salt 8, cumin 10, milk 2400, salt.

Herring soup with potatoes

The prepared fish (with bones) is cut into pieces and boiled. Place potatoes into the strained broth and cook until half cooked, then add sautéed onions and bring the soup until cooked. Served with sour cream. Herring 135, potatoes 200, onions 30, butter 10, bay leaf, pepper, sour cream, salt.

Bread soup

The bread is dried in the oven, soaked in cold water for 2–3 hours, boiled, rubbed through a sieve, sugar and soaked raisins are added and boiled. Then the soup is seasoned with juice and cooled. Serve with whipped cream, sour cream or milk. Bread 65, raisins 15, sugar 30, juice 40, water 150, whipped cream 15, or sour cream 15.

Silgud pekiketmes (herring in sauce)

Lightly fry the lard cut into small cubes, add finely chopped onion and flour, mix, bring the flour to a golden color, pour in the milk, salt and cook over low heat until thickened. Place herring fillet into the boiling sauce, boil for another 8–10 minutes, pour in cream, remove from heat, add dill. Fresh herring 125, lard 60, onion 35, flour 10, milk 150, cream 10, salt.

Kiluworm (stewed sprat)

Gutted sprat, freed from heads and tails, mixed with finely chopped onions, are placed in layers in an oiled pan, peppered, salted, tightly covered with a lid and baked in the oven for 20–25 minutes. Sprat (fresh) 125, butter 10, onion 35, ground black pepper, salt.

Silgu vorm

Potatoes are cut into small strips. The mold is greased with oil, and onions, potatoes, and fish fillets of different varieties are placed in it in layers, and the bottom and top layers should be potato. Beat eggs with milk, salt and pour this mixture over fish and potatoes. Place butter on top and bake (without covering) in the oven over moderate heat. Herring (fresh) 125, herring (smoked) 125, herring (fresh) 125, potatoes 125, green onions 25, dill 15, butter 25, egg /2 pcs., milk 380, salt.

Fish casserole in dough

The dough is rolled out into a layer 1 cm thick, the filling is laid in layers: fish fillet and thin layers of lard, herring is mixed with small cubes of lard, without cutting the fillet. Pinch it, coat it with cold milk on top, bake over low heat in an oven or oven for an hour (the oven must be preheated well). For the test: rye flour 125, water 60, yeast 10, cumin 5; For filling: fish fillet 125, smoked pork lard 25.

Tuhlinott

The meat is cut into small pieces, lightly beaten and cooked together with potatoes and finely chopped onions over low heat in a small amount of water until soft. Then add flour and cook until it has a mush consistency, season with marjoram, dill, and salt. Meat 75, potatoes 250, flour 20, onions 20, dill 10, marjoram, salt.

Killatuhlid

Slices of lean pork are dipped in lightly salted boiling water and boiled for 20–30 minutes, then the water is drained, the meat is poured with sour cream, covered with diced potatoes, a little water is poured in, salted and simmered until cooked. No spices (not even onions) are added. Pork (lean) 150, potatoes 300, sour cream 60, salt.

The national cuisine of Estonia began to take shape only in the mid-19th century. The culinary traditions of Germany and Sweden have had a huge influence on Estonian cuisine. The basis is quite simple, but aromatic and satisfying “peasant” dishes. It's all about the ingredients that are used to prepare certain dishes. For example: pork, all kinds of cereals, potatoes, fish (herring is especially popular), offal (liver and blood), bakery products (rye bread, rolls and barley flour cakes). In addition, dairy and fermented milk products are very popular. There are more than 20 milk soups alone, prepared according to a special Estonian recipe.

I would like to say something about Estonian soups separately. This is a very common dish in Estonian national cuisine; by the way, it is tasty, satisfying and healthy. In Estonia, there is soup with barley, pearl barley, dumplings, peas, and potatoes. Many will be surprised by herring soup, sweet blueberry soup, unique-tasting bread soup and even exotic beer soup.

Seasonings are used little in Estonian national cuisine, but they are treated very pedantically. Each seasoning corresponds to a specific dish. For example, celery and parsley are added to meat dishes, dill to fish, marjoram to blood sausage (verevest), and caraway seeds to cottage cheese. Almost no national dish is complete without “kastmed” - this is milk, milk-sour cream, or milk-cream gravy.

Estonians are famous fishermen. If you happen to visit this country, be sure to treat yourself to smoked trout (“suitsukala”) and grilled flounder. Lightly salted whitefish will give you pleasant taste sensations, smoked eel, bream, herring.
Estonian forests are rich in berries and mushrooms. Therefore, on any holiday table you will find pickled saffron milk caps, mushroom sauce from golden yellow chanterelles, and a salad of salted mushrooms with onions and sour cream. In the house of every housewife, there must be homemade jam, pickled and pickled cucumbers, sauerkraut, and all kinds of preparations from vegetables and fruits.

Estonia's national pride is its variety of desserts. It is worth trying local cakes, muffins, and unusual candies with milk, coffee, liqueur, nut, mint and other fillings. And Estonian chocolate with nuts is one of the most delicious and high-quality in the world.

Estonians prefer kvass, mead, and birch sap among drinks. As for alcohol, beer comes first, of course. Each region of the country brews its own unique traditional beer. Particularly popular is dark beer - “Saare”, with famous island Saaremaa and light - “Saku”. Also, a good gift, brought from Estonia, will be Vana Tallinn liqueur and local mulled wine - Hoegwein.

They say that Estonian cuisine can be described with just two epithets: simple and hearty. That’s how it is, only there are special dishes in it, the secret of which for the most part lies in unusual combinations of ingredients. For their sake, as well as for the sake of naturalness and originality, which is reflected in every delicacy of local chefs, connoisseurs of delicacies from all over the world come to Estonia.

Story

There is very little information about the development of Estonian cuisine. It is known that it finally took shape in the second half of the 19th century, and before that it was not particularly diverse. The reason for this is the harsh climate of this country and the poor rocky soil. And the local way of life was simple to the point of impossibility: during the day, peasants worked in the fields from sunrise to sunset. Therefore, their main meal was in the evening.

For dinner, the whole family gathered at the table, where the hostess treated everyone to pea or bean soup, porridge made from cereals or flour. The main food products throughout the day remained rye bread, salted herring, yogurt, kvass, and beer for the holidays. And so it was until the abolition of serfdom, when the fields began to be located near the house and it became possible to eat hot food during the day. That’s when the main meal of the day was lunch, and Estonian cuisine itself became more varied.

Somewhere in the middle of the 19th century, Estonians began to grow potatoes and, subsequently, this product replaced cereal dishes, effectively becoming the second bread. Later, as the economy and trade developed, Estonian cuisine also developed, borrowing new ingredients and cooking technologies from its neighbors. At different times, the process of its formation was influenced by German, Swedish, Polish and Russian cuisines. But, despite this, she still managed to preserve her originality and distinctive features, which today are recognizable in almost every Estonian dish.

Peculiarities

It is not so difficult to characterize modern Estonian cuisine, because Estonians are quite conservative when it comes to cooking. For centuries they have not changed their habits:

• to prepare dishes they use mainly the ingredients that the earth gives them;
• are not fond of spices - they are present only in some national dishes in small quantities;
• they are not sophisticated in their cooking methods - Estonian cuisine is rightfully considered “boiled” simply because local housewives rarely resort to other cooking methods. True, they borrowed frying from their neighbors, but in practice they rarely fry food and not in oil, but in milk with sour cream or milk with flour. Needless to say, after such processing it does not acquire the characteristic hard crust.

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Analyzing it in more detail, it can be noted that:

• The cold table occupies a special place in it, however, like all the Balts. In other words, bread, black or gray, smoked herring, herring with sour cream and potatoes, bacon or boiled ham, potato salads, hard-boiled eggs, milk, curdled milk, rolls, etc.
• As for the hot Estonian table, it is represented mainly by milk soups on a fresh basis with cereals, mushrooms, vegetables, eggs, fish, dough and even beer. Why, they even have milk soups with dairy products! Among non-dairy soups, the most popular are potato, meat, pea or cabbage soups with or without smoked lard.
• It is impossible to imagine Estonian cuisine without fish. They love it very much here and prepare soups, main courses, appetizers and casseroles from it. In addition, it is dried, dried, smoked, and salted. It is interesting that in coastal regions they prefer flounder, sprat, herring, and eel, and in eastern regions they prefer pike and vendace.
• As for meat, it seems they don’t really like it here, since Estonian meat products are not particularly original. For their preparation, lean pork, veal or lamb is most often used. Beef, chicken and even game are rare on the local table. Most often, the meat is boiled or baked in a charcoal oven and served with vegetables and milk gravy.
• One cannot fail to mention the true love of Estonians for vegetables. They eat them a lot and often, adding them to soups, fish and meat dishes and even desserts, for example, rhubarb grounds. According to tradition, vegetables are boiled, sometimes additionally ground into a puree and served with milk or butter.
• Desserts include jelly with milk or cottage cheese, thick fruit or berries, boubert, cakes, pancakes with jam, curd cream with jam, and apple casserole. In addition, Estonians hold sweet porridge with whipped cream in high esteem.
• Among the drinks in Estonia, coffee and cocoa are held in high esteem, and tea is less common. Alcohol - beer, mulled wine, liqueurs.

Basic cooking methods:

People who have studied the peculiarities of Estonian cuisine involuntarily get the feeling that each of its dishes is original in its own way. In part, yes, and this is best illustrated by a selection of photos of national delicacies.

Potato pigs are unique balls of fried pork slices, which are rolled in a mixture of milk and mashed potatoes, baked and served with sour cream gravy.

Estonian jellied meat differs from Russian jellied meat in the ingredients used for its preparation. It is made from heads, tails and tongue without legs.

Oven meat is a dish that is boiled in a cast iron pot in a charcoal oven and served with vegetables.

Herring in sour cream is a dish made from lightly salted herring, cut into slices and soaked in milk. Served with herbs and sour cream.

Fish casserole in dough is an open pie filled with fish fillet and smoked lard.

Rutabaga porridge - mashed rutabaga with onions and milk.

Bubert - semolina pudding with egg.

Rhubarb compote - rhubarb compote thickened with starch. It resembles jelly, but is prepared differently.

Blood sausages and blood dumplings.

Syyr is a dish made from cottage cheese.

Suitsukala – smoked trout.

Useful properties of Estonian cuisine

Despite the simplicity and richness of local dishes, Estonian cuisine is considered healthy. Simply because it gives due place to vegetables and fruits, as well as fish and cereals. In addition, housewives in Estonia are not fond of cooking, which undoubtedly affects their life, the average duration of which here is 77 years.

Estonian cuisine is famous for its simplicity and naturalness. Historically, Estonians prepared their main dishes from pork or fish, cabbage, peas and dairy products; practically no spices were used.

Estonian cuisine does not differ in great variety and sophistication, which is due to the limited range of products historically available to residents of Estonia. Estonian cuisine is based on a variety of soups and porridges made from pork and fish (herring) with the addition of barley and pearl barley and vegetables (cabbage, peas, and later potatoes).

A typical breakfast consisted of porridge (barley, barley or oatmeal), sometimes milk, honey or jam were added to the porridge, and more often pork cracklings and butter were added. Each meal was accompanied by rye bread; salted herring was also a frequent guest on the table. For lunch and dinner, cabbage, pea or bean soup was prepared in pork broth.

The festive table was decorated with blood sausage with the addition of cereals, jellied meat and pancakes made from barley flour. The obligatory dishes on the table were dishes made from milk - cottage cheese, cheese and butter. With the advent of potatoes, the list of Estonian dishes has expanded significantly.

Modern national cuisine of Estonia

The modern national cuisine of Estonia is diverse, many dishes are borrowed from other national cuisines - German (sausages), Hungarian (goulash) and Polish (bigos). Estonians still serve:

• Aspic.
• Blood sausage.
• Roast pork and sauerkraut.

For Maslenitsa, Estonians fry pancakes from different types of flour (wheat, buckwheat, oatmeal) with a variety of fillings (lingonberries, caviar, fish, caviar, cottage cheese). Estonian cuisine has expanded to include desserts and salads; for example, scones with whipped cream and potato salad are extremely popular.

Various pickles are widespread in Estonian cuisine:

• Pickled tomatoes and pumpkin.
• Salted cucumbers.
• Lecho and tomato paste.

Typical products for Estonian cuisine are milk, cheese, butter and cottage cheese. Recently, yogurt has been added to this list. Dairy products are consumed by Estonians in large quantities.

What to try in Estonia

Most of the dishes worth trying in Estonia contain pork. The first place deservedly goes to the stew of pork, pearl barley and sauerkraut (mulgikapsas) - a fatty, very filling dish that must be eaten with rye bread. The next dish could be pork baked in mashed potatoes (kartulipors) - in many restaurants it is served in portions in the form of small pigs. For fish lovers, Estonian cuisine offers tender smoked trout (suitsukala).

A popular dish among tourists is kama - a mixture of boiled cereals with jam, honey and milk. An excellent dessert would be a bun with marzipan or a marzipan figurine, which can be bought in shops in the center of Tallinn.

Before gastronomic tour To travel to Estonia, you must take care of obtaining a visa in advance. Read how to do it yourself.

National Estonian desserts and drinks

There are two main desserts in Estonia – onion jam and pepper cookies (piparkook).

Jam was traditionally made from onions with the addition of honey, but now honey is replaced with sugar. Pepper cookies are prepared with the addition of black pepper, cinnamon and ginger, and covered with glaze patterns. These cookies are still popular among Estonians at Christmas.

National drinks include red beer and oatmeal jelly. Red beer is served in almost all traditional Estonian taverns, and the red color is achieved by adding berries. Oatmeal jelly is traditionally prepared from oats by long boiling. Added to oatmeal jelly:

• Berries.
• Milk.

Where to try

Tallinn is famous for its restaurants serving national cuisine. Among the large selection, we can highlight the most interesting and popular ones.

Restaurant MEKK

Restaurant MEKK offers traditional Estonian dishes in an original presentation. In accordance with the history of the country, the menu depends on the time of year - summer and autumn provide a variety of vegetables and fruits, autumn - berries and pickles, winter - meat and preserves.

The menu includes specialties - pork in lingonberry sauce, cake with sea buckthorn and cheese. Home-baked bread and only natural dairy products give the restaurant the status of a cozy and almost homely place.

Address: Suur-Karja 17/19, 10140 Tallinn.

Peppersack Restaurant

Peppersack Restaurant provides the opportunity to try classic Estonian cuisine at its best:

• Pork stewed with sauerkraut.
• Kamu (a mixture of cereals with jam or milk).
• Blood sausage.
• Potato salad.

Dishes are prepared from natural Estonian products without special spices - only salt and herbs are added to the dishes. The deliberately simple interior allows you to focus entirely on the food.

Address: Viru 2 / Vana turg 6, Tallinn.

Restaurant Olematu Rüütel

The Olematu Rüütel restaurant is designed in a medieval style. In the restaurant's basement, game meat is roasted over an open fire. The menu delights with romantic names, for example, “Mistress Margaretha’s Weakness,” which hides chicken fillet with cheese, fruit salad and rice. The combination of products in restaurant dishes is unexpected and unusual.

The restaurant also serves traditional dishes - salted herring, pumpkin cream soup and ice cream.

Address: Kiriku Poik 4a, Tallinn.

Cafe Maiasmokk

Cafe Maiasmokk is the oldest not only in Tallinn, but throughout Estonia. The cafe offers a wide selection of desserts and sweets:

• Tender buns with cream.
• Handmade sweets made from natural chocolate.
• A variety of pies and pastries.
• Desserts with marzipan.

In the cafe you can also visit the marzipan room, where the whole history of marzipan is shown. The cafe has preserved its historical interior.

Address: Pikk tänav 16, Kesklinna linnaosa, Tallinn.

National Estonian cuisine may not be distinguished by its sophistication and variety of products, but everyone will find a dish to their liking.

Natural products and familiar cooking methods make Estonian cuisine attractive to Russian tourists.