This January, I would like to introduce you to a foreign dish that throughout the years has become more and more popular in Estonia to the point where me and my fellow Estonians consider it being part of our national cuisine.
Plov. Originally, it’s a dish from the Middle East/Central Asia that has gone through a long journey from south to north to our dinner tables. With some touches of local seasoning and ingredients Plov has become one of the most common ”everyday meals” in Estonia. As Estonians love pork so much, one of the main ingredients of the Estonian Plov is definitely pork.
Last year I wrote a lot of about Estonian Christmas customs. But New Year eve NÄÄRID is very important as well. During Soviet times (1945- 1987) Christmas was prohibited and was only New year eve.
Today we have two amazing holiday 🙂
New year eve was as was Christmas perfect time for predictions.
What is maybe interesting and different:
On 31 December there are special (humor) TV shows on all Estonian TV channels, causing a lot of discussion afterwards (Which program was better? Why? etc.).
One more tradition is, that The President of the Republic delivers a speech on radio and TV during the last minutes of the old year.
As probably everywhere New Year is greeted with fireworks and drinking sparkling wine. People wish a Happy New Year (Head uut aastat!) to each other. And it is a good sign when the first New Year wishes are said by a man with dark hair 🙂
Aspic or Meat jelly is a savoury jelly made from meat.
Meat Jelly, Sült is a very good example, how time changes the meaning of some food. In old times Sült was wintertime food. Because it takes 4-6 hours to cook it and this will heat up the kitchen. Because in old times for winter was left only pork legs and heads, which are suitable for cooking Sült. It was “poor” food. And food for the poor. Today all ladies know, how important is collagen…:)
Today, for me, this is a perfect summer dish. Sült is served cold and with cold cottage cheese sauce and boiled fresh potatoes.. yummy 🙂
Sült is a dish traditionally made from a mixture of meat, trotters, hocks, rind and other ingredients that have been cooked for several hours and cooled afterwards, forming a jelly. A traditional Christmas and wedding food served as an appetizer or as a meal itself.
Meat Jelly. Sült
My father still cooking Sült himself. It is very complicated to cook Sült only for 2 persons and still you need a very large pot. So, I buy Sült in summer time from culinary. And in winter time, I get it from my father. This is my father recipe.
OMG :). Did you know that expression OMG will be this year 100 years old?
And Winston Churchill used it the first time to describe the situation in Tallinn (this time Tallinn was Reval).
Now the situation in Tallinn is ok :). Thank you for asking 🙂
But I will present OMG dish. Because of I believe that this or similar dish in each cuisine, because this is dish ” what to do with mashed potatoes leftovers”.
Long long time ago. Poor Soldier came from War.
He was tired and hungry.
Knocked on the door and asked for food. The hostess was stingy and said that she is poor herself and have not any food.
Ok, said Soldier. But do you have an axe? Lets cook an ax soup, then.
This sounded interesting, the hostess heard for the first time about ax soup and agreed.
Soldier put cattle on the stove and added water and an ax. Let it simmer, tasted and said: it is too strong. To make this lighter, we have to add something. Do you have some meat?
Yes, agreed hostess and went to the pantry for meat. During this time soldier hid an ax and changed water.
Hostess brought meat, soldier added this in to the cattle. Let simmer, tasted and asked. This is still too strong. You have very strong ax,.. To make this lighter, please bring some barley…
then they added some vegetable to make soup ” lighter”.
Finally was soup ready. Look, said Soldier: we cooked this so long, that ax is just dissolved!
Hostess tasted soup and was amazed: so delicious, who might have known that ax is so delicious!
This is story about envy, greed and deceit. And how to cook something about nothing 🙂
Now you probably already know, that I prefer dishes which take time max 30 minutes. And this soup is the same. You can cook it in a decent manner: prepare stock and use meat and spend hours to have perfect dish.
But at the afternoon, you have not time. And this is the simplest version to prepare soup. In my opinion cabbage suits with sausages. But you can cook vegan version, or use minced meat or bacon or…. whatever you like.
The first written notices approve that buckwheat was in Estonia already in 14 th of century. Later, in 19 th century became potato more popular, but still buckwheat is very common and popular in Estonian cuisine.
This is my favourite. Easy to cook and healthy to eat.
By book you should buckwheat before cooking, simmer in hot butter. But at least in Estonia buckwheat is too “dirty” and I start buckwheat cooking from washing.
I wash buckweat, pour it in to the boiling water, add some salt and after 15 minutes, strain. Then I heat buckweat in a pot until water has evaporated and add some butter.
Perfect dinner, if you cooked yesterday too much buckwheat:)
Estonian peasants regarded mushrooms primarily as a food consumed during famine or war periods. Mushroom foraging and cooking with mushrooms was more wide-spread in Eastern and South-Eastern parts of Estonia, which had received more Slavic influences. Mushrooms as food gained wider popularity in the 20th century, when they were introduced in magazines and various workshops as tasty and healthy vegetarian food.
I have a good relationship with vegetables. I love growing plants and I love to eat them. But the reason I prefer vegetables is taste. I love the taste of tomatoes or potatoes and this is the reason to enjoy them.
What I can not understand is ” like” food. Why should carrot taste ” like meat” or zucchini ” like fish” or cauliflower as ” real bread”. Why?
I love the simplicity. And the pure taste.
If you have an electric grater, this is the simplest dinner to make. Because of all vegetables are white, you can add some pumpkin, beetroot or carrot to add some colour.
For some reason we have three different foods: meat balls, served usually in sauce. Small meat balls: frikadellid, we are using in soup. And ” kotlet”- what is flat shape minced meat “ball”. Kotlet is served as main dish with potato and sauce and salad.
With this food I will make a great tribute to our good neighbors Latvians. But this is a very good dish and I am from South-Estonia, what is almost Latvia:), so let it be in Estonian blog.
Sunday morning. 7 o clock.
The Cat jumped on the bed ” Krrr…. lazy bums, the sun is shining, wakeup…”
I pulled blanket over the head. I had the intention to sleep at least 4 more hours…
But.. for my amazement, my husband woke up and left from bed room…
Some time later, I realized, that I have to go.
On the couch sat next to each other, Man and Cat. Eyes are glued to the TV screen. Watching racing cars..
Estonian Cuisine. Eesti Toit. 