Another popular country for tourists is Bulgaria. And in addition to history, architecture and relaxation on the best beaches or ski resorts, you should definitely get acquainted with the national cuisine of this region.
Bulgarian cuisine is very simple, it mixes Turkish and Greek echoes, since the country was under the Ottoman yoke for a long time. When the enemy was defeated, culinary traditions remained and some dishes of those times became a real hallmark of Bulgaria.
Among the features of the kitchen are an abundance of vegetables, a love of fermented milk products, a cool attitude towards meat dishes, the widespread use of all kinds of aromatic herbs, spices, spices and a preference for prolonged heat treatment over low heat.
Shopska salad
This salad is made with common vegetables such as cucumbers, onions, tomatoes, bell peppers and herbs, and also includes grated cheese, olives and olive oil. Bulgarian cheese is used – shop cheese sirene or feta cheese. The color scheme of the salad is reminiscent of the color of the national flag of Bulgaria.
Chorba
Hot, rich soup chorba is prepared on the basis of kvass and root vegetables. There is no analogue of this dish in any kitchen in the world; it is prepared using a unique technology and with a unique composition. A lot of bell peppers and tomatoes are necessarily added to the chorba.
Tarator
Cold soup based on sour milk or liquid yogurt, which is considered not the first, but the second course. The soup contains fresh cucumbers or green salad, walnuts and garlic, lots of herbs, olive oil and spices.
Gyuvech
Gyuvech is a stew with coarsely chopped vegetables. For the preparation of this dish in Bulgaria there is a special dish with the same name. Gyuvech is baked over a very low heat for a long time, and therefore its taste is very different from similar in other countries.
Lukanka
Each country has sausages prepared according to unique recipes and technologies. Bulgaria is proud of its lukanka – dry-cured sausage with beef and spices, as well as onions – from which the name comes. Onions are used in a cooking technique that dates back to the 7th century.
Kavarma
Kavarma, a traditional Bulgarian dish, is cooked over a fire. This is lamb, in some variants pork, baked in a clay pot. Spices and onions are also added to the dish. The cooked meat is transferred to the sheep’s stomach and placed under a press to make the dish take shape and freeze.
Sarmi
Summer dish sarmis resemble stuffed cabbage rolls. The filling for it is made from meat, rice, onions and spices. Then wrapped in grape leaves. Sarmi is served with yogurt sauce with paprika. Also popular are sarmis stuffed with carrots, cheese, mushrooms and other vegetarian ingredients.
Kapama
Kapama is a southwestern Bulgarian dish. For its preparation, take several types of meat (rabbit, veal, pork), black and red peppers, bay leaves, sauerkraut, rice and sausage “nadenitsa”. Kapama is laid in layers and simmered in the oven for at least 4-5 hours.
pie
Banitsa in Bulgaria is an Easter, Christmas and New Year’s dish. To prepare banitsa, take puff pastry, roll it into flat cakes and stuff it with cottage cheese, cheese, vegetables, meat, fruits, cabbage, pumpkin, spinach, sorrel, young beet tops and other fillings. Dough sheets are rolled up and laid out in a frying pan with a spiral pigtail or horizontal layers.
Yoghurt
Bulgarians are very fond of fermented milk products, and this is what the traditional national yogurt is called. You will never find low-quality yogurt in this country, because the quality of the product is carefully monitored. It is believed that the best jelly milk is obtained from the milk of goats, sheep or black buffaloes.
Stew
Yahnia is a stew with one or different types of vegetables, spices and a thick sauce. The ingredients are fried, then laid in layers in a cauldron or cauldron, stewed in their own juice or with dry grape wine over an open fire.
Rose petal jam
Bulgaria is a country of roses. And from the petals of this flower, they produce not only numerous cosmetics, but also confiture. This delicious jam is very popular in Bulgaria as the end of a meal, and together with traditional yoghurt, it is considered the most common Bulgarian dessert.