15 Typical dishes from around the world
Typical dishes from the World!
Whether you have read one or ten of my posts, you already know what is my second passion after travelling: food! I love to eat and I just can’t help but savour typical dishes from around the world during my travels. Every country has its typical recipes, those that tell the culture and culinary tradition of that place, and it is impossible not to try at least some of them.
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15 Typical dishes from around the world
Travel and gastronomy have always gone hand in hand, and trying the local cuisine is a great way to learn about the culture of the places I visit. I confess, I have often chatted with chefs at the end of a meal to find out what their best recipe was, its history and the traditions associated with certain dishes. In short, I could talk about typical dishes of the world for hours!
Instead, I prefer to provide you with some useful hints for savouring tasty typical dishes, suggesting here a selection of dishes that I have personally tried abroad and which I recommend you try, if you get the chance. And, why not, you could even try cooking them at home.
France – Moules et frites
A typical dish from Northern France but known throughout the country, however, is mussels and chips, a simple and quick delicacy to prepare at home.
Creamed mussels with fries is a dish that you will find everywhere in France even if the Belgians dispute its paternity with France. (A bit like Bologna and Modena when it comes to tortellini).
Malta – Stuffat Ta-Fenek
The ingredients of this dish are few, but very tasty: red wine, tomato, bay leaf, onion and olive oil. One could even say that they are fragrant, due to the strong aroma they give off when cooked.
It is a custom in Malta to gather many friends and relatives together in a ‘fenkata’ (we would say ‘rabbitata’).
A Mediterranean custom, like Mediterranean is the dish.
There are very similar variants both in Sicily (rabbit alla cacciatora) and in North Africa.
Canarie: Papas arrugadas con mojo
Due to the island’s impressive biodiversity, especially of fruits, the cuisine of the Guanches, the ancient Canarian population, was mainly characterised by simply prepared vegetables accompanied by gofio, the local bread made from wheat or maize flour.
The gastronomy of the archipelago in the centuries to come was influenced by products imported from the New Continent, the Canaries being right in the middle of the routes to America, and by North African cuisine. Among the typical dishes I recommend, which have remained almost unchanged since ancient times, are papas arrugadas con mojo. These are small potatoes with the skin, boiled in water and plenty of salt. If you ask for them in Tenerife, they will always come with mojo, a spicy sauce made with oil and parsley (mojo verde) or peppers and paprika (mojo rojo).
Spagna – Pella valenciana
Paella valenciana has probably become the first thing you think of when you mention ‘Spanish cuisine’ and I bet you have tried cooking it at home at least once in your life.
But beware, perhaps the ingredients are not quite what you think.
In fact, paella valenciana, is special. Here’s what it’s like: rice, of course, chicken, rabbit, green beans, tomato, garrofò beans, and saffron.
Paella de mariscos, seasoned with seafood, is also very popular in Spain.
Portugal – Bacalhau á la Brás
Cod is a mainstay of Portuguese cuisine, and bacalhau á Brás is one of its most popular interpretations. This dish is a kind of omelette made with cod, fried potatoes and eggs, topped with onion and black olives.
The preparation requires some skill, but the result is a comfort food dish that warms the heart.
You can’t leave Porto without trying it: its creaminess and the delicate flavour of salt cod will win you over at first taste. By the way: here is an article on all the typical dishes to enjoy in Porto! Personally, I find it the perfect dish to enjoy on a cold evening, perhaps accompanied by a good red wine.
Slovenia: Frika
Frika is a traditional Slovenian dish, originating in the Natisone Valley and Carnia (Friuli Venezia Giulia), where this recipe is called Frico.
It is a tasty potato and cheese flan, melted and roasted, cooked in a pan for a long time until an appetising crust forms. Delicious on its own or as an accompaniment to other dishes
Russia – Pelmeni
Pelmeni – These meat-filled tortellini are the most popular and widespread first course in Russia.
Two types of meat are usually used for the filling: beef and pork, both of which are cooked with chopped onion.
The dough, on the other hand, is made with simple ingredients: flour, egg and lukewarm water. Once the dough has been rolled out, it is cut into regular disks 2 mm thick, which are closed after the filling has been inserted. Palmeni are boiled in plenty of water flavoured with a bay leaf.
They are served in broth or butter with a sprinkling of black pepper, or accompanied by sour cream.
Greece – Moussaka
I personally love Greek cuisine. It is one of my favourites. Apart from Suvlaki, which I love, every now and then, even here in Italy, I treat myself to Moussaka, the Greek dish par excellence.
Moussaka is prepared by alternating aubergines, potatoes, minced meat, very creamy béchamel and cheese. The result is a multi-layered lasagna with ingredients that make it a rich and tasty dish.
I also recommend Dolmes (or Dolmadakia) which are one of the most famous and tasty appetisers in Greek cuisine. For those who do not know them, they are vine leaf rolls filled with rice, onions and other spices. From Greece, they have been exported to other neighbouring countries: they are also easily found in Turkey.
Israel – Shawarma
Shawarma is the Israeli street food par excellence. Made with chicken, beef, veal or lamb, it is prepared with a long marinade in vinegar and lemon and a great use of spices, but varies in every part of Israel. It is usually eaten wrapped in pita, a special type of bread similar to our local piadina from Romagna, with vegetables and dripping sauces!
Be careful not to get dirty!
Discover more Israeli recipes and read the article about it.
Cuba – Ropa vieja
Ropa Vieja is a typical Cuban meat dish. You will be amazed by its particular taste, which I recommend you savour in the heart of Havana.
It is a very poor recipe that uses broth meat from which it takes its name Ropa Vieja (old dress), due to its characteristic of fraying easily.
The preparation of the dish changes depending on the spices or vegetables used, although in most cases, peppers and tomatoes are used.
Ropa Vieja is considered a single dish and is usually served with white rice and black beans, or with fried plantain.
It is also a popular recipe in other Latin American countries and may even change its name, like ‘Carne Mechada’.
Japan – Tonkotsu Ramen
Guilty! I know very well that this is a list of dishes I have eaten during my travels and Japan is not yet, alas, among the countries I have visited… but in my defense I can say that in some big cities in Italy, Japanese restaurants are so gourmet that they offer authentic Japanese cuisine (I am not talking about all-you-can-eat).
And it is precisely in one of these restaurants that I tried a very tasty Ramen. Sure, it wasn’t like eating it in a Tokyo restaurant, but still, I was delighted! OK, premise done, now let’s look at the recipe in more detail.
Tonkotsu Ramen is a typical Japanese dish, originally from Fukuoka in Japan, made with noodles. Tonkotsu (pork bone) is the base of the broth, which is simmered with fat and collagen over high heat for several hours. The result is a soup with a distinct pork flavour and a thick, gravy-like consistency. Noodles are thin and straight, and Ramen is served with Beni Shoga, pickled ginger, boiled egg, spring onion and pieces of meat from the broth.
India – Tandoori Chicken
Here is another dish that I have not yet been able to eat in my homeland but have been able to taste in several excellent restaurants in the West.
It is Chicken Tandoori, a dish of Indian origin named after the Tandoor, the cylindrical clay oven in which this preparation is traditionally cooked. Cooking it at home with tools common to all kitchens is very simple. All you need to do is marinate the chicken with yoghurt, lime (or lemon), ginger, garlic and Tandoori masala, a mixture of spices that not only gives it its unmistakable flavour but also the typical reddish colour.
Tandoori Chicken can be grilled or baked, and you can accompany it with plenty of white, boiled rice pilaf.
Sfondo foto creata da freepik – it.freepik.com
Morocco – Tajine
Tajine is one of the most popular Moroccan dishes. It can be made with meat or fish, but the most famous and renowned is prepared with very spicy stewed meat.
The name Tajine is characteristic of the decorated earthenware container in which all the preparation takes place. The artefact consists of two different parts: a flat dish with low edges, on which a cone-shaped lid is placed throughout the cooking process. The lid of the Tajine is made in such a way as to facilitate the return of condensation to the bottom: the meat is thus kept tender and evenly browned.
The success of this dish relies on the cooking result. The meat must stew for a long time, together with the accompanying vegetables (carrots, courgettes, tomatoes, peas, potatoes and onion).
Moroccan dishes are characterised by the use of very varied ingredients and the use of herbs but especially spices. Among the most commonly used spices in Tajine recipes are sweet paprika, cinnamon, pepper, ginger, saffron and turmeric.
USA – Pancake
I still remember the taste of those wonderful pancakes in San Francisco! Eaten in a very simple diner on Thanksgiving Day. Certainly, for an American, the scene might be a little melancholic and like a choice among the many typical dishes of the world also a little banal. As an Italian, however, the experience served to add an interesting detail to my memories of this trip to the USA.
Pancakes are small spongy discs to be stuffed with the most tempting delicacies. We all know them, and we all know that they are also easy to prepare.
And… what’s your favourite filling? You can choose it from the many possible: fresh blueberries, honey or maple syrup or jam.
My favourite is…. of course, melted chocolate!
Well, now it’s your turn.
Let me know which ethnic and traditional dishes from other countries you have already eaten and which, in your opinion, I should definitely try!
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