Lithuanian cuisine

Nothing else can characterize the nation better as its cuisine. In this respect Lithuanian culinary traditions are the brightest in Eastern Europe.

Lithuanian cuisine is notable for its diversity of dishes from potatoes and meat. A lot of gourmets consider it to be too much simple and even coarse. In all probability this opinion has been formed after visiting expensive restaurants in the center of Vilnius. In fact if you want to know what a real zeppelin is you should do otherwise. In other words you can choose some modest place somewhere in a Lithuanian town (for example Druskininkai or Palanga). But best of all Lithuanians cook for themselves that’s why if the majority of visitors of this café are native people than its cuisine will be really Lithuanian.

Aforesaid Zeppelin is maybe the most well-known Lithuanian dish. It is a kind of dumpling with the filling from meat and a smoked suet. This dish is cooked differently depending on the regions of Lithuania: in Klaipeda you’ll be offered to try it with a fish filling, in Zhemaitia (the region in the western part of the country) you’ll be offered a special gravy with sour cream and mushrooms.

As it was already said a potato is the basis of Lithuanian cuisine. A lot of dishes are cooked from it. Among them there are kugelis (a potato pudding), shvilpicai (potato sticks) and also a potato sausage which is called vedere.

A native Lithuanian treating is rye bread. Besides this varieties of bread (with caraway, honey, herbs, raisins etc), there’s a dish in Lithuania called “labas” which is original in its simplicity: the seeds of sunflower, garlic and cheese are added to the fried sliced bread. If there’s the best snack to beer in the world than it’s unlikely it’s called otherwise.

Cheese is called the product number one in Lithuania. Several hundreds of kinds of cheese are counted in the republic: beginning from traditional tough cheese to fruit or smoked ones. The last kind which Lithuanians themselves consider the best one in the world goes with beer very well. It looks like the Germans and Scandinavians who come to Lithuania in drink tours agree with the residents of the country on this very point.

A famous Lithuanian “Zhalgiris” continues the theme of alcoholic drinks. But it’s not a famous Lithuanian basketball club as you could have thought at the beginning. It’s a king of Lithuanian liqueurs which is the strongest drink here. It’s able to make a commonly prepared taster drunk very easily. The fortress “Zhalgiris” is a bit lower 75%. But there are dozens of weaker kinds which are prepared on the basis of aromatic herbs for those who are afraid of trying the ones mentioned above. Except for having this cheer effect they are useful for people’s health. But of course you shouldn’t forget about your dose.