Food in Estonia. National Estonian cuisine National dish of Estonians

Singer Yuri Antonov has a song about the streets. In it he sings about the central streets (“high and important”), and also sings about the “quiet, one-story ones.” There are different streets, they say. The same can be said about the cuisines of the peoples of the world. There are famous cuisines: French, Italian, Russian. And there are also those about which we know little. Among them is Estonian cuisine.

I decided to write this material after visiting Estonia. Even in Tallinn I didn't find many national restaurants. I wrote about this in “Gourmet Travel Notes” about Estonia, created specifically for “Culinary Eden”. But Estonian cuisine still exists. What is it like, what dishes are popular with the residents of this small northern country? Let's find out.

Estonian cuisine is the epitome of simplicity. And this, undoubtedly, is its charm. Actually, there is nothing surprising in this simplicity - what other cuisine could there be in a northern country with a generally harsh climate? Just like that - simple and satisfying.

A little history

There is an opinion that Estonian cuisine is poor, but let me disagree with this. Simple does not mean poor. Greek cuisine is also simple (because it is based mainly on peasant dishes), but no one considers it poor.

The food diversity of Estonians was indeed relatively poor, but that was until about the middle of the century before last. The main food product in those days was rye bread. Bread in Estonian - leib. This word means not only “bread” itself, but also food in general in the broad sense of the word. In addition to bread, Estonians ate salted herring, drank yogurt and kvass, and brewed beer. Among the ancient dishes, it is perhaps worth remembering kama. This dish is still prepared today, and the Estonian food industry even produces a ready-made mixture for kama. This is a mixture of flour from roasted rye grains, as well as oatmeal from peas, oats and barley. This mixture is combined with milk or yogurt - the dish is ready. And in some areas of Estonia, oatmeal jelly with butter or milk was very popular.

In general, the main meal of the day for ordinary Estonians (peasants) was dinner, because they usually had breakfast and lunch in the field - bread and herring. Estonian peasants often dined with soup. It could be pea or legume. They also ate cereal and flour porridges. After the abolition of serfdom in 1861 (Estonia was part of the Russian Empire from 1721 to 1918), the situation gradually changed. Peasant fields were now mainly located near the house, which meant that hot food could be prepared and eaten not only in the evening, but also during the day. Since then, lunch has become the main meal of the day.

It is also important to mention holiday dishes - they brought some variety to the Estonian diet. On holidays they often cooked (and still cook, it must be said) sausages stuffed with cereal. Then they began to add blood to the cereal - they prepared a blood meal. Sausage was prepared not only to enjoy, but also for happiness and prosperity, usually for Christmas and New Year.

In addition to sausage, Estonians loved and still love jellied meat (sült). Previously, it was always served at weddings and other holidays. And barley porridge or pancakes were an indispensable attribute of a newborn’s baby shower.

In the middle of the 19th century, Estonians began to grow potatoes. This fact greatly influenced Estonian cuisine - potatoes replaced many cereal dishes and became, in fact, the second bread. The middle of the century before last was a time when the region’s economy and trade were actively developing. Naturally, this could not but affect Estonian cuisine. It became more diverse, the choice of products gradually expanded, and food preparation technologies became more diverse. In the 20th century, these processes continued and accelerated, economic development continued, and the international relations of the young Estonian state expanded (since 1918). In addition, women's magazines appeared, in which much attention was paid to cooking and recipes. Add to this the fashion of those times for various gastronomic courses. All this, of course, gave Estonian cuisine an impetus for development. She became richer. In many ways, of course, these were culinary borrowings from neighbors (Germans, Scandinavians, Russians, Poles), but show me at least one kitchen without such borrowings? For example, pates and salads appeared on the Estonian table, and home canning gained popularity.

The real Estonian cuisine

Nowadays, national cuisine is not very popular in Estonia. It seems that the Estonians themselves will not argue with this. In Tallinn, for example, it seemed to me that there are frankly few Estonian restaurants. There are many reasons, among them the fact that during the years of Soviet power (from 1940 to 1991) in Estonia, as elsewhere in the USSR, a catering system was created in which almost no attention was paid to the national Estonian culinary traditions. Estonians began to be fed Russian, Caucasian and even Central Asian dishes. It is unlikely that this was a deliberate desire of the councils to “overcome” Estonian cuisine. Rather, it is simply the result of bringing the public catering system to uniform standards for the entire vast country. But, one way or another, national cuisine faded into the background in Soviet times in Estonia. Apparently, this, as well as the modern realities of world globalization, explains its current position - still on the sidelines, even in Estonia itself.

But Estonian cuisine still exists. Despite the fact that it is not very popular and is not a “world hit,” there is no need to fear for its fate or exaggerate. The ingredients used to prepare Estonian dishes are what the land on which Estonians live can provide. Estonian cuisine actively uses dairy products: sour cream, cottage cheese, cream, and milk itself. By the way, while in Estonia, I learned that local dairy products are exported in large quantities to other European countries and successfully compete with Danish dairy products, which are considered one of the best in Europe.

But modern Estonian cuisine lives not only on milk. Lean and bacon pork, organ meats, fish, cabbage, potatoes, rutabaga, peas - Estonians also eat all this with pleasure. By the way, potatoes and, again, milk are components of a large number of Estonian dishes. Moreover, there are truly amazing combinations of these products with others. Thus, Estonians eat milk with peas and fish, and use potatoes, among other things, as a component of confectionery. In what other kitchen can you find this?

Cooking technologies. In this sense, Estonian cuisine can be classified as so-called “boiled” cuisine. The fact is that the main products (meat, vegetables, mushrooms), as a rule, are boiled during the preparation of a particular dish. Previously, Estonians almost never ate fried food at all. Nowadays they eat it, of course, but mostly they borrowed fried dishes from other peoples. The same applies to frying - Estonians rarely use this method of cooking food, and if they do, they fry the food mainly not in oil, but in milk with sour cream or milk with flour. In this case, the characteristic signs of fried foods (smell of oil, hard crust) are usually absent.

Estonians almost never steam food. Only in liquid medium. Moreover, there is a tradition of changing liquid boiling media. First, products can be boiled in water, and then in kvass, milk, milk-sour cream or milk-egg mixture. The boiling temperature may also change. This, among other things, achieves relative diversity in the taste of boiled food.

Estonian cuisine is very conservative in terms of the use of spices. So it was and so it remains today. Moreover, even those spices that Estonian cuisine still “recognizes” are, firstly, used in small doses, and secondly, only in specific dishes. So, for example, herring is often eaten with dill, marjoram is added to blood sausage, cumin is added to cottage cheese, and parsley and celery are added to some meat soups. But most Estonian dishes are prepared without any spices or seasonings at all.

Like all Balts, the cold table (külmlaud) plays an important culinary role in Estonia. Usually this is black or gray bread (sepik), pickled fish (herring, sprat), herring with sour cream and potatoes or smoked herring, the already mentioned kama or jellied meat, boiled ham or bacon, rye-potato roll or potato salad, butter, hard-boiled eggs, milk, curdled milk.

The hot Estonian table is replete with various soups based on milk (fresh, not fermented milk). These can be milk-cereal, milk-dough, milk-vegetable, milk-fish, milk-mushroom, milk-egg, milk-beer soups. There are also milk soups with dairy products. Among non-dairy soups, it is worth noting various versions of potato soup, as well as cabbage and pea soups. Some of them add smoked lard. Estonian cuisine also includes meat soups. Usually, in addition to offal (they are the ones used for making soups, considering that fresh meat is too good and expensive a product for soup) and vegetables, they also add smoked lamb, ham, corned beef or smoked bacon. This is what gives them taste and aroma.

Fish occupies a special place in Estonian cuisine. In the coastal regions of the country they eat flounder, herring, fish, and eel. But near Lake Peipus, in the East of Estonia, the fish are different: pike, vendace, ruff. Fish is used to prepare fish and milk soups, fish and cabbage soups, and simply fish soups. Fish is also used for preparing second courses. For example, Estonian fish casseroles made from small fish and herring are famous. The fish is baked in them in a mass, in the form of a pudding, but always whole. In such casseroles, lard and dill are also placed between layers of fish. Fish is also smoked, dried, and dried. At the same time, dried and dried ones are used, among other things, for soups, and smoked ones, as a rule, for main courses. Fish in Estonia is usually smoked hot (except for cheese). Lightly salted Baltic salmon is also mentioned in the recipes of some national dishes.

While Estonians are great at preparing fish in different ways and using it as an ingredient for various dishes, meat is a different story. Estonian meat dishes cannot be called original (there are only a few typically Estonian dishes). Second courses are prepared mainly from lean pork, veal, and lamb (often slightly smoked corned lamb). But beef and chicken are not very popular among Estonian cooks. Estonians also hardly eat goose and game.

However, Estonian cuisine is characterized by an interesting way of slowly boiling meat. A large piece (weighing one and a half to two kilograms) is placed in a thick-walled cast-iron bowl, and a little boiling water is poured into it. This meat is cooked in the oven or oven (if available) over coals. That is why it is called “oven meat”. It has a wonderful full taste, natural aroma, and pleasant consistency. Baked meat is usually served cold, with a side dish of boiled vegetables (most often with potatoes), and is also used to prepare other main courses. Often boiled meat and separately boiled vegetables are combined into one dish using a liquid milk gravy.

The Estonian jellied meat already mentioned here, unlike the Russian one, is prepared only from the heads and tails of animals - the legs are not used. In addition, Estonians usually do not mix meat. That is, jellied meat is prepared only from pig tails or only from veal heads. Often the jelly includes the tongue.

Vegetables. Estonians eat a lot of them. In soups, in cereal-vegetable and cereal-vegetable-meat dishes, in fish dishes, even in sweets (rhubarb grounds). Vegetables are either boiled whole or pureed. In any case, vegetables are always flavored with something: butter, sour cream with milk, milk gravy or lard. Estonians eat potatoes most of all, besides cabbage, peas, rutabaga, and carrots.

For dessert, Estonians eat various jelly with milk, cream or cottage cheese (I tried cherry jelly with cottage cheese in Tallinn - very tasty!), they also prepare bread soups, apple and rhubarb grounds, lingonberry and cranberry slurries. People in Estonia also love sweet porridge with whipped cream.

Estonian recipes

At the end there are several recipes so that readers of “Culinary Eden” can, if they wish, cook some Estonian dish at home.

Estonian milk and cereal soup

Ingredients:
3/4 cup barley grits,
4-5 potatoes,
1.5 liters of milk,
1 tbsp. spoon of butter,
0.5-0.75 l of water.

Preparation:
Boil the cereal in water until half cooked, add the potatoes and cook until tender, then pour in the milk, bring to a boil, add salt and butter.

Milk-vegetable soup with rutabaga

Ingredients:
0.5-0.75 l of water,
2 liters of milk,
0.5 cups buckwheat or pearl barley,
swede,
5 potatoes,
2-3 tbsp. spoons of butter,
2 teaspoons dill,
0.5 teaspoons of cumin.

Preparation:
Boil the cereal until half cooked in water, add diced rutabaga, add salt and, after boiling for about 10 minutes, add potatoes, caraway seeds and cook until the vegetables are ready and the water has almost completely evaporated. Then pour in the milk, bring to a boil, add butter and dill.

Potato pigs (kartulipõrsad)

Ingredients:
500 g lean pork,
1-1.5 kg mashed potatoes,
2 eggs,
1 glass of sour cream,
3/4 cup milk,
2-3 tbsp. spoons of rye or wheat flour and semolina,

Preparation:
Cut the pork into slices (3x6 cm) 1 cm thick, fry in a frying pan until almost fully cooked. From boiled potatoes, milk, part of sour cream, flour and 1 egg, prepare a puree so that you can stick it to each piece of pork. Coat the resulting bun with beaten egg, roll in flour or semolina, place on a greased baking sheet and bake in the oven until done. Ready-made koloboks are potato piglets - pour sour cream over them.

Oven meat (ahjuliha)

Ingredients:
2 kg veal or pork,
1 liter of water,
1 onion,
1 medium head of garlic,
a few sprigs of thyme,
0.5 teaspoons of salt.

Preparation:
Wash the meat well, but do not remove films or fat. Place in one piece with vegetables and thyme in a thick-walled cast-iron dish (cast iron, cauldron, cauldron), pour boiling water, close tightly and place in a heated oven over coals and hot ash (in the modern version - in the oven). Bake (and in fact, cook) for 2-3 hours. If there is no oven and you will use the oven, pour more water (1.5 l) and cook for 3 hours over high heat. Serve boiled vegetables or vegetables in milk with the prepared meat.

Herring in sour cream (seld koorega)

Ingredients:
2-3 lightly salted herrings,
1-2 onions,
0.5 cups finely chopped dill,
1 glass of sour cream,
0.25 liters of milk.

Preparation:
Clean the herring completely, separate the fish into two halves. Soak the herring fillet in milk for 10-12 hours, then cut into pieces 1-1.5 cm wide and place on a plate in an even layer. Place onion thinly sliced into rings on top, pour in an even layer of thick sour cream and sprinkle chopped dill on top. Serve hot boiled potatoes with the dish.

Fish casserole in dough (kalapirukad)

Ingredients for the dough:
500 g rye flour,
0.25 l of water,
30 g yeast,
2 teaspoons of cumin.

Ingredients for fillings:
500 g fish fillet,
100 g of smoked lard (only river fish meat can be combined with smoked lard),
or 500 g herring fillet,
100 g salted pork lard.

Preparation:
Prepare the dough: knead, let rise, roll out into a layer 1 cm thick. Lay the filling in several layers: fish fillet and thin layers of lard, and lay the herring mixed with small cubes of lard, without cutting the fillet. Pinch it into a small oval loaf and brush the top with cold milk. Bake on low heat in the oven or oven for 45-60 minutes (the oven should be well preheated).

Rutaberry porridge (kaalikapuder)

Ingredients:
2 rutabaga,
1-2 onions,
1.5 glasses of milk,
1 tbsp. spoon of flour,
1 tbsp. spoon of butter.

Preparation:
Boil rutabaga in water, make a puree from it, add onion fried in oil, add salt, pour milk and heat, stirring, for 5-7 minutes.

Milk-vegetable mixture (köögivili piimakastmes)

Ingredients:
1 kg potatoes,
4 carrots,
1 rutabaga,
2 liters of milk,
2 teaspoons flour,
1 tbsp. spoon of butter.

Preparation:
Cut the vegetables into large cubes and simmer until almost done so that the water has completely evaporated. Dissolve flour in milk, pour this mixture over vegetables, boil for 5-10 minutes, add salt and stir with butter.

Daniil Golovin

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Estonian cuisine: features and traditions

Estonian cuisine is noticeably different from the cuisine of other nations, and its national dishes will be unusual for anyone visiting for the first time. These are tasty and nutritious natural dishes, not particularly refined or varied. The basis of Estonian cuisine is simple, hearty meat dishes, as well as fish, vegetables and bread. Of all the known cooking methods, boiling is the most common here. Vegetables, meat and other products are fried extremely rarely.

The formation of Estonian cuisine was significantly influenced by the culinary traditions of the Scandinavian countries, as well as German and Russian cuisine, but despite this it has retained its originality.

National cuisine and its traditions

Estonian dishes 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. Common dairy products on the table of local residents include cottage cheese, whipped cream, yogurt, and homemade cheese, which Estonians have a special name for – cheese.

Cereals are 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.

Estonian cuisine will surprise you with the simplicity of preparing dishes and at the same time their satiety, as well as the availability of products. Despite the fact that there is not a huge selection of dishes in Estonia, and the dishes that are prepared can hardly be called exquisite delicacies, the menu of the country’s residents contains dishes from almost all the ingredients necessary to maintain a healthy diet and give the body strength and energy.

The basis of the Estonian diet is simple but nutritious dishes made exclusively from natural products. Dishes consist of meat, fish, dairy products, bread, vegetables (potatoes, cabbage, rutabaga), beans (peas, beans). Among meat products, Estonians give preference to pork, and among fish products - herring and sprat. Blood sausages and liver are popular in Estonia. Among dairy products, Estonian cuisine is rich in cheese, milk, curdled milk, sour cream, and yogurt. Dishes are often supplemented with these ingredients, resulting in dishes with an unusual composition. Dishes in which milk is added to peas and fish are popular. The uniqueness of Estonian culinary traditions lies precisely in the fact that chefs in the country prepare dishes by combining a wide variety of ingredients with each other.

Among all the cooking methods, boiling is the most common. Frying as a heat treatment method is used quite rarely.

A distinctive feature of Estonian national cuisine is the limited use of spices, herbs and herbs. Perhaps the most popular are salt, pepper, marjoram, cumin, less often, but still, cooking is not complete without seasoning with dill, parsley, celery and green onions. Estonians adhere to a strict distribution of seasonings, that is, they do not add everything to each dish at once. For example, cottage cheese is flavored with caraway seeds, fish with dill, blood sausages with marjoram, meat soups with parsley and celery.

Bread occupies a very important place in the Estonian diet; they bake it themselves, purchasing it only on rare occasions.

Estonian dishes are worth trying for lovers of simple but original food. So that you can prepare food at home according to the culinary traditions of Estonia, on our website we offer you step-by-step recipes with photos.

Recipes with step-by-step photos

Kringel
Shortbread pie with rhubarb
Kartuliporss
Mulgicapsad
Piparkukas
Pickled pumpkin

Peculiarities of Estonian national cuisine

Features of the national cuisine of Estonia distinguish it from the cuisine of other countries: the country values uncomplicated preparation, the use of natural products, as well as their nutritional value.

Touching upon the history of the formation of Estonian cuisine, it is worth noting that since ancient times, the main products included in the diet of the residents of the state were fish, meat, vegetables, cereals, and dairy products. By way of life, the bulk of the population were peasants and fishermen, and therefore people could not boast of a lot of free time for preparing amazing delicacies. For this reason, dishes were preferred that could be whipped up and eaten quickly before getting back to work. The tradition of avoiding complex dishes has remained to this day. Also, Estonian cuisine was formed under the influence of the cooking of neighboring countries - Germany, Sweden, Russia. At the same time, Estonia has created its own unique dishes, the analogues of which simply do not exist in other countries.

Traditionally, in Estonian cuisine, foods are practically not fried. They prefer to cook ingredients for dishes, doing this in milk, meat and fish, vegetable broths, and water. As a result of this procedure, the taste of the food acquires peculiar notes, which, out of habit, seem strange to residents of other countries of the world. Tourists are also perplexed when they notice the mixing of seemingly incompatible products, but remain satisfied with the original taste of the dish. An excellent example of such unique dishes is “Kama”. This is the name of oatmeal, made from oats, rye, wheat, barley and other cereals or mixtures thereof, which are served along with yogurt or milk. This dish has a long history and, despite this, the dish has not lost its popularity, because it is in demand among people who adhere to a healthy diet. And this is always relevant for the residents of Estonia. At the present stage, preparing “Kama” is much easier than before, because now you don’t need to grind cereals in a large mortar to make a mixture from them - fortunately, you can easily buy everything you need in the store.

Fish is perhaps one of the most important places in the Estonian diet. The most popular variety is herring. It is used to prepare dishes both for the everyday table and for the holidays. There are a huge number of ways to prepare herring in Estonia, and the dish made from this product always turns out very tasty. Smoked herring is popular, the taste of which is very delicate, and the fish itself turns out to be quite fatty, but at the same time very appetizing. The second place in popularity is occupied by sprat. Trout is slightly less in demand.

Estonian cuisine is distinguished by the presence of many types of bread. The country boasts gray bread known as “Seppik”, traditional barley and rye bread, honey bread, sweet bread with sour notes, and potato bread. Such pastries are an ideal complement to both hot and cold dishes, and are also used in the preparation of many national dishes according to recipes.

In every home you can find sausages made from blood or liver; Estonians decorate the dinner table with meatballs, pork liver pates, nutritious potato salad with stuffed eggs and herring in sour cream sauce. Estonians are fond of jelly called “Kaerakile”, which is cooked with a milk base. All these dishes came to Estonian cuisine from ancient times and do not lose their popularity.

Dairy products play an equally important role in the Estonian diet. Milk, yoghurt, curdled milk, sour cream - the preparation of national dishes is rarely complete without these ingredients. They are used for preparing first courses, for example, milk soups, and second courses, and side dishes, including milk porridges. It is believed that there are about twenty or even more recipes for making soup with milk. Such first dishes are supplemented with fish, mushrooms, vegetables (potatoes, rutabaga, cabbage), and eggs. The peculiarity of the dish is that first of all, all the products are boiled in plain water, reach half-cookedness, and only after that, almost upon completion of cooking, is milk added. The dish is kept on the stove until the dairy product boils along with all the ingredients.

In principle, Estonians love all soups. Whether the first course is vegetable, meat, fish or cereal, every Estonian will certainly try it at least once during the day. Residents of the country give preference to bread soup, barley dish with potatoes, fish dish made from herring and potatoes, and pea dish with pearl barley porridge. Estonia is also famous for such original soups as blueberry and beer.

Meat dishes served as main dishes are prepared in a special way. Traditions have developed so that preference is given to pork. Cooking requires special dishes, the walls of which will be quite thick. The meat is left to simmer in such containers, due to which it becomes tender, juicy and at the same time retains its excellent taste without losing useful substances from its composition. There are many recipes, in addition to boiling, when the meat is baked in the oven. To do this, they take fresh meat products, salted and smoked ones.

One of the most popular meat dishes is jellied meat - “Stilt” in Estonian. In some countries, any meat is poured with broth, which is also mixed together to form a prefabricated meat. In Estonia, they are used separately, without combining beef and pork.

The most common side dish is potatoes, cooked with various products and served in addition to meat or fish dishes. Potatoes are also the main ingredient for preparing some dishes.

Hot dishes are also served with all kinds of gravies, which do not have a sharp or spicy taste due to the fact that spices and bitter seasonings are practically not added. Such gravies are most often prepared from dairy products - milk or sour cream.

Instead of burgers, hot dogs, shawarma and other popular “snack” foods, street kiosks offer a wide selection of blood sausages stuffed with various cereals, sweet treats such as curd cheese, milk chocolate, to which chefs-traders add marzipan, nuts , pieces of dried fruit, marmalade, jelly.

Now a little about the meal schedule. For breakfast in Estonia, it is customary to eat one of the unsweetened porridges with sandwiches. The composition of such “sandwiches” is rye bread, on pieces of which salted or smoked herring cut into slices is laid out. Such sandwiches are replaced with others - fried bread in butter, served with tomato sauce, cheese, eggs or sweets - jam, preserves. An Estonian lunch consists of any kind of soup, which is mandatory, and a choice of a second one - meat stew with vegetables, mashed potatoes, which is also a side dish, baked, stewed, smoked herring, trout, pork knuckle, ribs. Dinner in Estonia also includes dishes made from meat or fish. Sweet-tasting soup is often served as dessert.

So, now you have much more information about the peculiarities of Estonian cuisine, you know what the residents of the country prefer to eat for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Now we will tell you more about this.

Main dishes

Estonia will delight every gourmet with main courses, because, despite the lack of sophistication in terms of food, courses - first, second and appetizers - turn out to be very original and attractive.

Among first courses, soups play a dominant role in the Estonian diet. The most popular are, of course, those brewed with milk. Such dishes taste very unusual, but interesting. The use of the following milk soups is quite common: fish, pea, vegetable, egg, mushroom, milk (that is, those prepared from a mixture of various dairy products - yoghurt, sour cream, cream). All these varieties of the first dish, in addition to the presence of milk in them, are also united by the technology of cooking recipes: first of all, be it vegetables, mushrooms, eggs, fish, peas or another ingredient, they are boiled in water, and when the components are almost ready, milk is added and remove from the stove as soon as the entire composition boils.

There are also soups with a cereal base, which are complemented with flour, dairy products and vegetables. Elementary in terms of preparation and very famous in Estonia are dumpling dishes called “Klimpisuppi”. What is their simplicity? The fact is that the dumplings are simply boiled in milk. The final result is a very tasty and original dish.

Vegetable soups are in demand no less than others. In Estonia, people dine on first courses of cabbage, potatoes, and peas, the peculiarity of which is that smoked lard is added to the food during the cooking process, albeit in small quantities. Not least of all are soups made from meat or fish. It is important to note that most often cooks in restaurants and cafes, and housewives when cooking at home, do not use meat fillet, but offal - liver, heart, ventricles, navels, kidneys. This trend developed because previously the price of meat in Estonia was too high to add it to soups. This tradition has survived to this day.

Second courses are presented with meat and fish. Also, dishes made from these products can be served as snacks, if they are not supplemented with anything special. The fish is dried, smoked and dried. The purpose of smoked fish is to be the main ingredient in recipes for second courses, and dried and dried fish is to complement first courses. It’s hard to imagine Estonian cuisine without herring and sprat. These varieties are the most popular. Based on them, a delicious casserole is prepared, the peculiarity of which is that the fish is placed in pots, simmered, and a sauce of milk, sour cream and eggs is added. Worthy of attention are “Suitsukala” - trout that is smoked, salted-spicy sprat, herring “Kalapirukad”, which is baked in the oven in rye dough, the same fish is stewed and fried.

The wide range of second courses includes dishes made from pork, lamb, veal and offal (kidneys, heads, animal blood). The most common meat is pork. The Estonian menu is rich in options for preparing pork ears, shanks with sauerkraut, and ribs, which are served as a side dish with peas mixed with meat.

The favorite food of Estonians is dishes with blood. What are the national blood sausages worth? We can’t help but mention “Vere Pakeogid” - blood pancakes. Regardless of the frightening name of the dish, it has a unique taste that every resident of Estonia enjoys.

Meat, which is intended for preparing second courses, is boiled either in water, or in soups, or porridges. The side dish for these dishes is boiled vegetables (potatoes, rutabaga, carrots). Jellies known as “Sylty” are very popular in Estonia. Their peculiarity is that they are prepared from lamb, pork and veal, namely from heads and tails. Moreover, it is important that different types of meat are not mixed with each other, but are placed separately.

As you can see, you definitely can’t leave the Estonian dinner table hungry. Main courses of meat, fish and vegetables give a feeling of fullness, saturating the body with strength and energy.

Estonian side dishes

Estonian side dishes are somewhat different from those to which most residents of European countries are accustomed: there is a wide selection of cereals and vegetable dishes. The peculiarity of porridges is that they are cooked from several varieties at once - millet, barley, oats, wheat are added at the same time, and also supplemented with other ingredients - often vegetables. That is, there are cereal, cereal-vegetable or vegetable porridges. Combining several products to obtain one side dish is the most common technology in recipes for preparing additional dishes.

For example, buckwheat is supplemented with a vegetable mixture, and a magnificent, very popular dish is obtained, the combination of pearl barley with cabbage is known as “Mulgicapsad”, mixing pearl barley with potatoes is called “Mulgipuder”. But the dish without which it is simply impossible to imagine the Estonian dinner table is “Kama” - porridge made from rye, oats, barley, peas (as well as other legumes), and flour. This dish is truly unique, because the ingredients cannot be cooked, and the entire composition is simply poured with milk or curdled milk and served.

Vegetable dishes are quite common in Estonia; in particular, most of them are prepared with potatoes. Vegetable products are practically not served as an independent dish. They can be such only in one case - if a variety of porridges are prepared from them. They make pea, cabbage, and rutabaga porridge. Estonians also love vegetables in milk sauce. Potatoes, cabbage, rutabaga are the most popular vegetables. They also use carrots, and in rare cases, perhaps only for making salad, beets are used.

It’s difficult to call side dishes ordinary in Estonia, but this distinctive feature is the highlight of the country. Even if it’s unusual, it’s very tasty, truly authentic.

Pastries and desserts

Pastries and desserts occupy a very important place in the lives of Estonians, because Estonians do not consider a meal complete without eating fragrant buns or delicate cookies with jam.

Just as when preparing main courses and side dishes, Estonian chefs, in the process of implementing recipes for preparing desserts, experiment with ingredients, as a result of which the world is enriched with unique delicacies, which are almost impossible to find a replacement for in other countries.

Of course, here you can enjoy shortbread cookies, sweet cinnamon rolls, jam and all kinds of fruit and berry jams, but these delicacies are not much different from those found in other countries. But sweet soups, the preparation of which are countless, are unlikely to be found anywhere else. A great example of such a delicacy is bread soup. It would seem nothing special, but once you soften stale rye bread, add raisins, sugar and whipped cream to this composition, try the resulting mass and you will understand that this food deserves attention.

Equally popular is berry soup, the base of which can be very diverse - strawberries, lingonberries, blueberries, blueberries, strawberries. This soup is topped with nuts and honey for dessert. For dessert, mousse is also served, consisting of various fruit juices and semolina. Every sweet tooth will not leave such a delicacy without attention.

There are also traditional Christmas cookies, without which the holiday table is considered incomplete. In Estonia they call it “Piperkook”, and it differs from others in that they put a lot of cinnamon in it, and also add ground pepper.

Estonian cuisine surprises with its selection of unusual ingredients for preparing desserts. Only in this country do they make a unique jam, the basis of which is onions. Honey or, alternatively, sugar powder is added to the vegetable.

Fruit and berry casseroles, jelly with whipped cream, traditional sweets with nut, mint, coffee, alcohol (with liqueur, cognac) fillings - and such sweets can be found in Estonia.

Beverages

Drinks are available in a wide range: alcoholic, non-alcoholic – there is something to suit everyone’s taste. It is noteworthy that traditional ones remain in demand no less than foreign ones.

One of the most favorite non-alcoholic drinks is black coffee. They make it moderately strong and, for variety, add lemon, milk and other ingredients to enrich the taste. Since Estonia has a lot of fruits and berries, this country is famous for its juices, compotes and fruit drinks, which residents of the state prefer to drink on the hottest summer days.

Among alcoholic drinks, beer occupies a leading position. Estonia can compete well in brewing with the Czech Republic, which is famous all over the world for its variety of beers. Estonian drinks of this type are also prepared according to numerous old recipes everywhere. Each region has its own traditional recipe. And yet, everywhere two drinks take the lead: among the dark varieties - “Saare”, and among the light varieties - “Saku”. Honey beer is popular. The drink is often made at home. They are especially inclined towards beer brewed from juniper. Its taste is quite unusual.

Stronger drinks are a coffee-colored liqueur, with clearly visible flavor notes of rum, a red hue, smelling of caraway, mulled wine, also known as “Hoegwein,” and much more.

What to try in Estonia?

What to try in Estonia? We bring to your attention the names of the most popular national dishes in the table. We will also give a brief description of them so that you become familiar with the features, and most importantly, the composition of the food. After this, you will be aware of what you can eat in cafes, restaurants, bars in Tallinn and other cities of the country as a tourist. You will also know what dishes you can prepare at home to please your household with an original dish.

Name of the dish	Description
Meat dishes
Ahjuliha	Oven-baked meat (a whole piece of beef or pork).
Vereverst	This is the name of blood sausage, the filling of which is pearl barley porridge and chopped bacon.
Kartulipores	This is a baked dish that consists of meat covered with mashed potatoes.
Killatuhlid	A lean stew consisting of boiled pork and potatoes. There are no spices. Sour cream is used for serving.
Maxcastmes	This is liver stewed in milk, cut into pieces, which is complemented with green onions. Served with sour cream.
Mulgicapsas	A stew consisting of pork meat, sauerkraut and pearl barley.
Mulgicapsid	This is a stew consisting of pork, sauerkraut and barley.
Tuhlinott	A meat dish that is cooked from pork and potatoes with flour, and seasoned with salt, dill and marjoram.
Fish dishes
Kiluworm	Sprat baked with onions and spices (salt, pepper).
Roll pug	Herring marinated in vinegar. The fish is rolled into tubes, aged and served as an appetizer or main dish.
Silguworm	A layered dish of onions, potatoes, fish fillets (fresh and smoked herring, herring), topped with eggs beaten with milk. The food is baked.
Silgud Pekiketmes	Boiled herring in a sauce made from lard, onion, milk or flour.
Suitsukala	Trout, which is smoked and served as a main course or appetizer (cut into small pieces).

	A dish without heat treatment, consisting of flour, peas, rye, oats, barley.
Mulgicapsad	A dish of pearl barley and sauerkraut.
Mulgipuder	A dish containing mashed potatoes and pearl barley.
Tanguzhpuder	Porridge made from buckwheat and various vegetables.

Mulgicorp	Cheesecakes with cottage cheese, served with sour cream, jam or jam from fruits and berries.
Piparkook	Sweet traditional Estonian cookies with spices (including ginger, cinnamon, black pepper), decorated with icing patterns.
Marzipan	A cake in the form of different figures, which contains almonds and powdered sugar. The sweetness is covered with glaze.

So, that’s the end of our acquaintance with Estonian cuisine. Now you know about many of the peculiarities and traditions of Estonian cuisine, and what dishes you should definitely try if you decide to visit this northern country. You also know which dishes will suit your taste and which ones should be prepared at home. For help, use the step-by-step recipes with photos offered on our website, cook and enjoy the excellent taste of Estonian traditional dishes.

Estonia is one of the few European countries where the traditions of peasant cuisine are still alive. Estonian cuisine favors simple but satisfying home-cooked dishes, trusted grandmother's recipes, and natural products grown in one's own garden. Traditional Estonian cuisine does not promise gastronomic sensations, but there are definitely no artificial additives among the ingredients of the dishes, and the natural taste of vegetables and fruits is not overshadowed by seasonings and spices.

Lunch in Estonian: tasty, simple and healthy

At one time, the national cuisine of Estonia was strongly influenced by the Scandinavian, German and Russian culinary traditions. The basis of the daily diet of an Estonian family consists of products from the village table: black rye bread, cereals, potatoes, pork, liver and generous gifts of the forest - mushrooms and berries, and in the art of baking and home preservation, Estonian housewives are even more ahead of the rest - they will even make jam from onions, so much so that you will lick your fingers.

Favorite dishes in Estonia are cabbage and milk soups, porridge, jellied meat, cabbage rolls, minced meat with gravy, potato casserole, curdled milk and oatmeal jelly, as well as all kinds of sausages, frankfurters and sausages. Instead of hot dogs, blood sausage stuffed with cereal is sold on the streets of Estonian cities, and those with a sweet tooth can satisfy their souls in pastry shops, enjoying milk chocolate with nuts, marzipan, kohuka curd cheeses and handmade confectionery.

Since Soviet times, chocolates from the Kalev factory have been in demand, and recently edible souvenirs made from marzipan dough, made with your own hands under the guidance of an experienced craftsman from the Tallinn Marzipan Gallery, have come into fashion.

Not long ago, the Balbiino company opened an interactive ice cream museum in the Estonian capital. The exposition is divided into thematic halls dedicated to the history of the origin of the favorite summer dessert and the technological intricacies of making the cold delicacy, and the excursion ends with a free tasting of different varieties of Balbiino ice cream.

Some dishes of Estonian cuisine are borrowed from small nationalities and national minorities. Farmers in the southern counties learned to prepare hard cheeses with honey, poppy seeds and jam from the Seto tribe, and the popular stew mulgikapsad originated from Mulgimaa.

In lakeside villages you will be generously treated to aromatic hot-smoked fish, and at seaside resorts not a single feast is complete without lightly salted herring and herring, trout and shrimp soup. Original coastal delicacies await tasters in the stylish restaurants Noa and Villa Mary in Viismi, Wicca in Laulasmaa, Ruhe in Jõelähtim, MerMer on the Juminda peninsula and OKO in Kaberneeme. At the Kolkya Museum of Russian Old Believers there is an onion and fish restaurant that serves interesting dishes from freshwater fish caught in Lake Peipsi.

The ringing echo of the Middle Ages, wandering among the castles and forts left by the crusaders, also left its mark on other excursion cities in Estonia. As a cold appetizer, you will certainly be offered game - sliced venison or elk, and for the main course they can recommend a stew of bear meat or boar meat, stewed hare, quail with berry sauce or wild goose baked in clay.

Although Estonian restaurants are not yet listed in the Michelin digest, the skill of the chefs and the quality of the products used are no worse than in the star establishments of Italy and France, and prices have not yet managed to rise to European levels. A simple lunch in a street cafe will cost 7–10 EUR, and the average bill for dinner for two in a good restaurant is 30 EUR.

Recently, gourmet tours to Hiiumaa to the city of Kärdla for Cafe Day and Restaurant Week have become widespread, so the development of the restaurant business in Estonia is apparently following the right course.

Estonians themselves don’t really trust restaurateurs and prefer to eat at home, the old fashioned way. Since traditional cuisine, as we already know, is a phenomenon of peasant culture, the merits of national dishes are best revealed in the organic setting of a rural festival or a noisy fair.

Gourmets from around the world have already trodden a wide path to Setomaa, where guests are treated to farmer's cheeses and ancient dishes made from forest products. In the summer, festivals are held in honor of the favorite products of the village menu - herring, pickled cucumber, mushrooms and home-made preserves.

Culinary festivals allow us to form the most adequate idea of the gastronomic preferences of the Estonian people. To the accompaniment of live music, Estonian national dishes go great, and dancing, folk entertainment and comic competitions whet the appetite and deepen the sense of taste.

You can't stop drinking beautifully

Alcoholic drinks in Estonia are worthy of a poem. For many Soviet citizens, a selfless love for the Baltic states began with a sip of Old Tallinn rum liqueur (Vana Tallinn) or a strong Kännu Kukk liqueur with caraway seeds and juniper berries. In winter, it's nice to relax after a ski run, enjoying the spicy spirit of hot mulled wine or the subtle fruity aroma of glögg.

In the summer, the baton is picked up by local beers - “Saku”, “Pulse”, “Saare” and “Viru” with juniper extract. Collection varieties of the foamy drink are collected in the A le Coq Beer Museum in Tartu, and in some farms original honey beer is brewed according to medieval recipes. Pubs usually serve their own signature ale with a signature appetizer - smoked pig ears in garlic sauce.

The most praised ales are Virmalised from Põhjala, Eesti Rukki Eil from Õllenaut and Vormsi Hele Eil from Vormsi Brewery. Fans of gastronomic experiments should definitely try red beer with berry juice, and adherents of a healthy lifestyle can expect tasty and healthy non-alcoholic drinks - fruit drinks, compotes and Estonian kali kvass.

The best Estonian wines are collected in the collections of the Põltsamaa Castle Wine Cellar and the Museum of Drinking Culture, located on the site of the pre-war Luscher&Martin distillery in Tallinn. The tasting of noble drinks takes place in the solemn atmosphere of an old-world estate, resurrecting the novels of Turgenev and Tolstoy.

Top 10 Estonian dishes you need to try

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.

Vereverst - blood sausage with barley and chopped bacon.

Creamy Dunkles Soup is a first course with beans and smoked pork ribs in a toasted bread pot, topped with a thick creamy sauce.

Pirukad are small pies made from yeast dough, filled with rice, stewed vegetables or minced meat.

Mulgicapsid is sauerkraut stewed in a cast iron with pork and barley, served with a side dish of boiled or baked potatoes.

Vere pakeogid - pancakes made from barley flour stuffed with peas, buckwheat and blood.

Mulgikorp - sweet cheesecakes served with sour cream or jam.

Kama is a mixture of dried or fried grains of rye, peas and oats, filled with sour milk, jam or honey.

Piparkook - crispy cookies with black pepper, ginger and cinnamon, painted with glazed patterns.

Marzipan is a shaped cake made from grated almonds and powdered sugar, covered with icing.

Any traditional national cuisine can serve as a reflection of the character of the people who created it and the history of the country. There will be no exception Estonian cuisine. Its basic principles are simplicity, satiety and availability of ingredients. The fact that everything is prepared from natural products need not be mentioned. This is typical for the national dishes of northern countries with their climate and not a very diverse range of products.
At the same time, the traditional menu of Estonian residents cannot be called poor - it has everything necessary to maintain strength, and it complies with the strictest standards of healthy nutrition.
Historically, the basis of the diet of most Estonians was: fish, meat, cereals, dairy products, and vegetables. The lifestyle of fishermen and peasants did not indulge in excess free time for preparing complex, gourmet dishes; preference was given to simplicity. And the influence of neighbors - German and Swedish cuisine, supported these traditions.
During the Soviet era, the influence of Russian cuisine, as well as the traditions of the peoples of the Caucasus and the Central Asian republics, became noticeable. But even the emergence of new recipes could not change attitudes towards spices - they are almost never used. In addition to salt and a small amount of pepper, dill (for herring dishes), marjoram (for blood sausages), and caraway seeds (just a little for cottage cheese and cookies) are added to some dishes. For soups with meat, celery and parsley are used. Even onions are hardly used.

Traditional dishes of Estonian national cuisine

In traditional Estonian cuisine, practically nothing is fried. The ingredients are boiled in water, broth or milk. At the same time, all dishes have a unique taste, it is given by a combination of products unusual for residents of other countries and the addition of milk or sour cream.
Since ancient times, herring has been a significant part of the daily menu. Here it is prepared in different ways, but it is always delicious. You should definitely try the smoked herring, so tender and fatty. Second place is firmly occupied by the humble sprat.
Estonia bakes dozens of varieties of delicious bread. Among the most popular will be: gray “seppik”, traditional rye and barley bread, sweet and sour bread made from barley flour, honey, potato and potato-rye rolls. Bread is served with cold or hot dishes and is used as one of the ingredients in traditional recipes.
There is no need to be scared by the combination of peas and... milk in one dish. There are many such recipes in the Estonian traditional menu. “Kama” is very popular and loved. This is the name for oatmeal made from various cereals (rye, oats, barley, wheat) or mixtures thereof served with milk or curdled milk. Its history goes back hundreds of years and will continue as long as there is interest in proper healthy eating. Now there is no need to work hard grinding cereals into oatmeal in a large mortar - ready-made mixtures can be purchased at the store.
On weekdays, and more often on holidays, blood and liver sausages, pork liver pates, and meatballs appeared on the table. A hearty potato salad was served, accompanied by herring in sour cream and stuffed eggs. Estonians loved oatmeal jelly - kaerakile, cooked with the addition of milk. All this is prepared in modern Estonia.
A large place in nutrition is given to dairy products. In addition to milk, yogurt, and curdled milk, people here love milk porridges and milk soups. There are more than twenty recipes for such soups. Among them are milk-mushroom, milk-fish, milk-egg and milk-vegetable. Interestingly, the ingredients are first boiled almost until cooked in water and milk is added shortly before the end of cooking. Then quickly bring to a boil and turn off.
Estonians are especially partial to soups and know how to prepare delicious soups from herring, pearl barley and peas. Often cereals and vegetables are combined in one recipe. But almost no meat soups are prepared here, except perhaps from offal. The reason is simple - in the past, meat was not cheap, and they tried to save it for main courses. You should definitely try blueberry, bread and beer sweet soups - their names sound exotic, but the taste is pleasant and memorable for a long time.
The traditional methods of cooking meat, usually pork, are interesting. For boiling and baking meat, thick-walled dishes are used, in which the meat should simmer, becoming especially tender and retaining its taste and nutrients. There are recipes with meat baked in the oven. They use both fresh meat and smoked or corned beef.
Sült - jellied meat in Estonia is prepared without mixing pork heads with veal heads. But the result is definitely worth trying. The most popular side dish is potatoes. It is served with fish and any meat. There are many independent dishes where the main ingredient is potatoes.
Here they traditionally serve gravy with hot dishes, it is called “kastmed”. The basis for most gravies is sour cream and milk. They are not hot or spicy and are suitable even for children.
Estonian desserts seem unusual - they are made from rye bread, semolina, milk and honey. If you want to try to stick to the traditional menu, then for breakfast you will be served some kind of non-sweet milk porridge, sandwiches (rye bread, butter, salted or smoked herring). Croutons are prepared by frying bread in butter. Tomato sauce, eggs, cheese or jam are usually added to them.
For lunch you can order one of the many types of soup and a second one. Among the second courses, you can try several of the most common ones: “Mulgikapsas” - a stew combining sauerkraut, pearl barley and pork. Porridge made from mashed potatoes mixed with pearl barley - “mulgipuder”, served as a side dish, sometimes as an independent dish. If you want something exotic, then opt for Kaalikakruubipuder porridge made from boiled rutabaga or Kapsapunder cabbage porridge. The combination of buckwheat and peas is called "Hernetatrapuder".
Many people like kartulipõrsad, where juicy baked pork is hidden under a layer of mashed potatoes. This dish is shaped like a pig. And how amazingly local chefs cook pork knuckle with sauerkraut! But pork ribs and ears should not be ignored. You can take peas with smoked pork with them.
“Vere pakeogid”, aka pancakes with blood, despite their scary name, turn out to be very tasty. Dumplings made from barley are accompanied by a generous portion of sour cream sauce or, more often, milk sauce.
You can’t help but try smoked trout - “Suitsukala” or spicy-salted sprat and, of course, herring - fried, stewed, baked in rye dough - kalapirukad, smoked or salted. There is always a choice of fish dishes on the menu.
Homemade cheeses, fatty, hard, soft, are another source of pride for Estonians. Tourists are happy to take home neat wheels of cheese.

Desserts and baked goods

No meal is complete without a good dessert, and Estonians agree with this. Cinnamon rolls and various shortbread cookies can be eaten in any country, but berry soup from many varieties of berries is prepared this way only in Estonia. Just like a dessert made from stale rye bread, pre-soaked, with whipped cream, sugar and raisins. It is served in small bowls, garnished with berries or chocolate. For the Christmas holidays, they always bake "piparkook" - special cookies with cinnamon and pepper. Mousse made from semolina and fruit juices will appeal to those who have a sweet tooth.
Only in Estonia do they make onion jam with honey. Although in modern cooking honey is often replaced with sugar.
Locally produced sweets are no less original; in addition to the usual nut fillings, you can buy varieties with liqueurs, coffee and even mint. And, of course, marzipan. It is sold in the form of bars, candies or cute figures.

Beverages

Traditional jelly has still not been able to supplant drinks brought from outside. They love good coffee, kvass and fruit drinks here.
Estonian brewers have a good reputation and beer can be tasted in any of the regions - each brews its own variety according to ancient recipes. For lovers of dark varieties, we can recommend “Saare”. Those who prefer light ones - “Saku”.
Honey beer stands apart; it is brewed in the same way as hundreds of years ago, adding natural honey. Homemade beer with juniper is no less old; its taste may seem too unusual.
But almost everyone likes mulled wine “hoegwein”. They even take it with them as a tasty and healthy souvenir.
In addition to the famous Vana Tallinn liqueur, strong with a distinct taste of rum and the color of good coffee, they also produce equally strong Kannu Kukk (raspberry with the addition of caraway).

Where to try Estonian cuisine in Tallinn

Those who come to Estonia at the invitation of friends will definitely be offered to try traditional food. But what about other lovers of national cuisine? They, too, will not be disappointed if they go to Tallinn to any of the restaurants and cafes listed below, whose specialization is national Estonian cuisine.
MEKK No wonder it is recognized as one of the best restaurants in the country. Only environmentally friendly products come into his kitchen, and the chefs follow all national traditions. Bread and pastries are baked on site. There are seasonal changes in the menu - in the summer and autumn months there are more vegetables and fruits, in the winter - meat and fish. Chefs are especially successful with pork in lingonberry sauce.
You can visit it at: Suur-Karja, 17/19.
Olematu Rüütel (or "Nonexistent Knight") can be recommended to connoisseurs of national color. Here visitors will be offered a variety of national Estonian dishes, from pearl barley soup and smoked sausages to real fresh liver pate with cognac. The signature dish is "The Weakness of Mrs. Margaretha."
The establishment is located at: Kiriku põik, 4A.
If you find yourself in Tallinn near the Town Hall Square, then in search of unusual experiences you can look at Viru 2, in Peppersack. The establishment specializes in Estonian cuisine from the Middle Ages. You won't be able to taste blood sausages like this anywhere else.
For sweets you can go to Maiasmokk. This cafe is located at: Pikk 16 has existed since 1864, and all this time it has been famous for its delicious desserts and various pastries. In addition, the assortment includes raspberry liqueur Kannu Kukk and “Old Tallinn” - Vana Tallinn Cream, as well as several varieties of high-quality Estonian chocolate.

We can only hope that in addition to the pleasant impressions of staying in this small but amazingly beautiful country with the unique atmosphere of good old Europe, memories of delicious and unusual dishes of Estonian cuisine will be added.

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