European cuisine
European cuisine comprises the cuisines of Europe[1] [2] including the cuisines brought to other countries by European settlers and colonists. Sometimes the term "European", or more specifically "continental" cuisine, is used to refer more strictly to the cuisine of the western parts of mainland Europe.
The cuisines of Western countries are diverse, although there are common characteristics that distinguish them from those of other regions.[3] Compared with traditional cooking of East Asia, meat is more prominent and substantial in serving size.[4] Steak and cutlets in particular are common dishes across the West.[dubious ] Western cuisines also emphasize grape wine[dubious ] and sauces as condiments, seasonings, or accompaniments (in part due to the difficulty of seasonings penetrating the often larger pieces of meat used in Western cooking). Many dairy products are utilised in cooking.[5] There are hundreds of varieties of cheese and other fermented milk products. White wheat-flour bread has long been the prestige starch, but historically, most people ate bread, flatcakes, or porridge made from rye, spelt, barley, and oats.[6][7] The better-off also made pasta, dumplings and pastries. The potato has become a major starch plant in the diet of Europeans and their diaspora since the European colonisation of the Americas. Maize is much less common in most European diets than it is in the Americas; however, corn meal (polenta or mămăligă) is a major part of the cuisine of Italy and the Balkans. Although flatbreads (especially with toppings such as pizza or tarte flambée) and rice are eaten in Europe, they are only staple foods in limited areas, particularly in Southern Europe. Salads (cold dishes with uncooked or cooked vegetables, sometimes with a dressing) are an integral part of European cuisine.
Formal European dinners are served in distinct courses. European presentation evolved from service à la française, or bringing multiple dishes to the table at once, into service à la russe, where dishes are presented sequentially. Usually, cold, hot and savoury, and sweet dishes are served strictly separately in this order, as hors d'oeuvre (appetizer) or soup, as entrée and main course, and as dessert. Dishes that are both sweet and savoury were common earlier in Ancient Roman cuisine, but are today uncommon, with sweet dishes being served only as dessert. A service where the guests are free to take food by themselves is termed a buffet, and is usually restricted to parties or holidays. Nevertheless, guests are expected to follow the same pattern.
Historically, European cuisine has been developed in the European royal and noble courts. European nobility was usually arms-bearing and lived in separate manors in the countryside. The knife was the primary eating implement (cutlery), and eating steaks and other foods that require cutting followed. This contrasted with the Sinosphere, where the ruling class were the court officials, who had their food prepared ready to eat in the kitchen, to be eaten with chopsticks. The knife was supplanted by the spoon for soups, while the fork was introduced later in the early modern period, ca. 16th century. Today, most dishes are intended to be eaten with cutlery and only a few finger foods can be eaten with the hands in polite company.
History[]
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Medieval[]
Early modern era[]
In the early modern era, European cuisine saw an influx of new ingredients due to the Columbian Exchange, such as the potato, tomato, eggplant, chocolate, bell pepper, and pumpkins and other squash. Distilled spirits, along with tea, coffee, and chocolate were all popularized during this time. In the 1780s, the idea of the modern restaurant was introduced in Paris; the French Revolution accelerated its development, quickly spreading around Europe.
Central European cuisines[]
All of these countries have their specialities.[8] Austria is famous for Wiener Schnitzel - a breaded veal cutlet served with a slice of lemon, the Czech Republic for world renowned beers. Germany for world-famous wursts, Hungary for goulash. Slovakia is famous for gnocchi-like Halusky pasta. Slovenia is known for German and Italian influenced cuisine, Poland for world-famous Pierogis which are a cross between a ravioli and an empanada. Liechtenstein and German speaking Switzerland are famous for Rösti and French speaking Switzerland for fondue and Raclettes.
- Ashkenazi Jewish cuisine
- Austrian cuisine
- Viennese cuisine
- Czech cuisine
- German cuisine
- Baden cuisine
- Bavarian cuisine
- Brandenburg cuisine
- Franconian cuisine
- Hamburg cuisine
- Hessian cuisine
- Lower Saxon cuisine
- Mecklenburg cuisine
- Palatine cuisine
- Pomeranian cuisine
- Saxon cuisine
- Schleswig-Holstein cuisine
- Swabian cuisine
- Hungarian cuisine
- Polish cuisine
- Liechtensteiner cuisine
- Silesian cuisine
- Slovak cuisine
- Slovenian cuisine
- Swiss cuisine
Austrian strudel
Austrian Wiener Schnitzel
Czech Svíčková
German Currywurst
German pretzel
German Sauerbraten
Hungarian goulash
Polish bagel
Polish pierogi
Slovakian Bryndzové halušky
Slovakian Skalický trdelník
Slovenian Idrijski žlikrofi
Slovenian Prekmurska gibanica
Swiss fondue
Eastern European/Caucasian cuisines[]
- Armenian cuisine
- Azerbaijani cuisine
- Belarusian cuisine
- Georgian cuisine
- Kazakh cuisine
- Moldovan cuisine
- Romanian cuisine
- Russian cuisine
- Bashkir cuisine
- Komi cuisine
- Mordovian cuisine
- North Caucasian cuisine
- Chechen cuisine
- Circassian cuisine
- Tatar cuisine
- Udmurt cuisine
- Yamal cuisine
- Ukrainian cuisine
- Crimean Tatar cuisine
- Odessite cuisine
Armenian khorovats
Azerbaijani piti
Bashkir and Tatar Öçpoçmaq
Belarusian potato babka
Bulgarian banitsa
Bulgarian Garash cake
Circassian Haliva
Crimean Tatar chiburekki
Georgian khachapuri
Kazakh beshbarmak
Moldovan Tochitură
Romanian Cocoloși
Romanian mititei
Russian beef Stroganoff
Russian pirozhki
Russian pelmeni
Ukrainian borscht
Ukrainian pampushka
Northern European cuisines[]
- Danish cuisine
- Estonian cuisine
- Faroese cuisine
- Finnish cuisine
- Icelandic cuisine
- Latvian cuisine
- Lithuanian cuisine
- Livonian cuisine
- Norwegian cuisine
- Sami cuisine
- Swedish cuisine
Danish smørrebrød
Danish stegt flæsk
Estonian kama dessert
Faroese tvøst og spik
Finnish blodplättar
Finnish lihapiirakka
Finnish viili
Icelandic Hákarl
Latvian layered rye bread
Lithuanian cepelinai
Livonian Sklandrausis
Norwegian fårikål
Norwegian lutefisk
Sami Sautéed reindeer
Swedish cinnamon roll
Swedish smörgåsbord
Swedish surströmming
Southern European cuisines[]
- Albanian cuisine
- Basque cuisine
- Bosnian cuisine
- Bulgarian cuisine
- Byzantine cuisine
- Catalan cuisine
- Croatian cuisine
- Cypriot cuisine
- Gibraltarian cuisine
- Greek cuisine
- Ancient Greek cuisine
- Cretan cuisine
- Epirotic cuisine
- Greek Macedonian cuisine
- Ionian cuisine
- Italian cuisine
- Abruzzian cuisine
- Ancient Roman cuisine
- Apulian cuisine
- Arbëreshë cuisine
- Ligurian cuisine
- Lombard cuisine
- Neapolitan cuisine
- Roman cuisine
- Sardinian cuisine
- Sicilian cuisine
- Venetian cuisine
- Macedonian cuisine
- Maltese cuisine
- Montenegrin cuisine
- Ottoman cuisine
- Portuguese cuisine
- Sammarinese cuisine
- Sephardic Jewish cuisine
- Serbian cuisine
- Kosovan cuisine
- Spanish cuisine
- Andalusian cuisine
- Aragonese cuisine
- Asturian cuisine
- Balearic cuisine
- Canarian cuisine
- Cantabrian cuisine
- Castilian-Leonese cuisine
- Castilian-Manchego cuisine
- Extremaduran cuisine
- Galician cuisine
- Madrilenian cuisine
- Valencian cuisine
- Turkish cuisine
Albanian Tavë kosi
Andalusian gazpacho
Balearic ensaïmada
Basque talo
Bosnian ćevapi
Catalan pa amb tomàquet
Cretan Dakos
Croatian Zagorski štrukli
Cypriot Afelia
Greek gyros
Greek souvlaki
Greek spanakopita
Italian polenta
Italian ravioli
Italian spaghetti
Kosovan flia
Lombard risotto
Macedonian Tavče gravče
Madrilenian squid sandwich
Maltese rabbit stew
Montenegrin njeguški pršut
Neapolitan pizza
Portuguese bacalhau
Portuguese Cozido à portuguesa
Roman Carciofi alla Romana
Sammarinese Bustrengo
Serbian Pljeskavica
Sicilian cannoli
Spanish churro
Spanish omelette
Spanish tapas
Turkish doner kebab
Turkish macun
Valencian paella
Venetian carpaccio
Western European cuisines[]
- Belgian cuisine
- British cuisine
- English cuisine
- Cornish cuisine
- Devonian cuisine
- Dorset cuisine
- Victorian cuisine
- Northern Irish cuisine
- Scottish cuisine
- Welsh cuisine
- English cuisine
- Dutch cuisine
- French cuisine
- Corsican cuisine
- Haute cuisine
- Cuisine classique
- Nouvelle cuisine
- Lyonnaise cuisine
- Irish cuisine
- Luxembourgian cuisine
- Mennonite cuisine
- Monégasque cuisine
- Occitan cuisine
Belgian Boulets à la Liégeoise
Belgian moules-frites
Belgian waffle
British bangers and mash
British full breakfast
British Sunday roast
Cornish pasty
Corsican fritelli
Dutch kibbeling
Dutch stamppot with rookworst
English Christmas pudding
English fish and chips
English shepherd's pie
French escargot
French pot-au-feu
French quiche
Irish breakfast roll
Irish stew
Luxembourgian Judd mat Gaardebounen
Monégasque Barbajuan
Northern Irish pastie supper
Occitan aligot
Scottish haggis
Welsh crumpet
See also[]
- Early modern European cuisine
- Medieval cuisine
- Jewish cuisine
- Romani cuisine
References[]
- ^ Culinary Cultures of Europe: Identity, Diversity and Dialogue. Council of Europe.
- ^ "European Cuisine." Europeword.com Archived 2017-10-09 at the Wayback Machine. Accessed July 2011.
- ^ Kwan Shuk-yan (1988). Selected Occidental Cookeries and Delicacies, p. 23. Hong Kong: Food Paradise Pub. Co.
- ^ Lin Ch'ing (1977). First Steps to European Cooking, p. 5. Hong Kong: Wan Li Pub. Co.
- ^ Kwan Shuk-yan, pg 26
- ^ Alfio Cortonesi, "Self-sufficiency and the Market: Rural and Urban Diet in the Middle Ages", in Jean-Louis Flandrin, Massimo Montanari, Food: A Culinary History from Antiquity to the Present, 1999, ISBN 0231111541, p. 268ff
- ^ Michel Morineau, "Growing without Knowing Why: Production, Demographics, and Diet", in Jean-Louis Flandrin, Massimo Montanari, Food: A Culinary History from Antiquity to the Present, 1999, ISBN 0231111541, p. 380ff
- ^ "Cuisine from Central Europe". Visit Europe. Archived from the original on 23 August 2012. Retrieved 1 July 2013.
Further reading[]
- Albala, Ken (2003). Food in Early Modern Europe. Greenwood Publishing Group. ISBN 0313319626. Retrieved 6 June 2017.
- R & R Publishing (2005). European Cuisine: The Best in European Food. Cpg Incorporated. ISBN 1740225279. Retrieved 6 June 2017.
- European cuisine
- Food- and drink-related lists
- Cuisine by continent