Croatian cuisine is heterogeneous and is known as a cuisine of the regions since every region has its own distinct culinary traditions. Its roots date back to ancient times and the differences in the selection of foodstuffs and forms of cooking are most notable between those on the mainland and those in coastal regions. Mainland cuisine is more characterized by the earlier Slavic and the more recent contacts with neighboring cultures - Hungarian, Austrian and Turkish, using lard for cooking, and spices such as black pepper, paprika, and garlic. The coastal region bears the influences of the Greek, Roman and Illyrian, as well as of the later Mediterranean cuisine - Italian (especially Venetian) and French, using olive oil, and herbs and spices such as rosemary, sage, bayleaf, origano, marjoram, cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, lemon and orange rind. Peasant cooking traditions are based on imaginative variations of several basic ingredients (cereals, dairy products, meat, fish, vegetables) and cooking procedures (stewing, grilling, roasting, baking), while bourgeois cuisine involves more complicated procedures and use of selected herbs and spices. Charcuterie is part of Croatian tradition in all regions. Food and recipes from former Yugoslav countries are also popular in Croatia.
Croatian cuisine can be divided into a few regional cuisines (Istria, Dalmatia, Dubrovnik, Lika, Gorski Kotar, Zagorje, Međimurje, Podravina, Slavonija) which all have their specific cooking traditions, characteristic for the area and not necessarily well known in other parts of Croatia. Most dishes, however, can be found all across the country, with local variants. This is also why the varied cuisine of Croatia is called "cuisine of the regions".
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| Purica sa mlincima - Turkey with mlinci (flat, sour dumplings) |
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Vinski gulaš - Wine goulash |
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| Bijeli tartufi – White tartufi |
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| Krpice sa zeljem - Pasta with stewed cabbage |
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| Sarma - Sauerkraut rolls filed with minced pork meat and rice |
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| Punjena paprika - peppers filled with minced meat |
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| Međimurska gibanica - cake with apple, poppyseed, walnut and cottage cheese fillings |
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| Orahnjača - sweet bread with walnuts and Makovnjača - sweet bread with poppy seeds |
Gastronomy - Central Croatia
Start with cow’s cheese and cream, then have some traditional Podravina cheese called Prge together with a slice of Samobor salami and spicy Samobor mustard. Then for your main dish eat a plate of turkey and pasta tatters. In Zagorje, try “hajdina kaša” [buckwheat mash], “kukurznu zlevku” [corn cake], “vrbovečka pera” [cheese pastry] and “Varaždinske klipići” [Varaždin rolls]. The most famous sweet of this region is without a doubt the Samobor kremšnita [custard cake] that goes very well with the Samobor bermet liqueur whilst the Graševina and white Pinot wines are very good.
Gastronomy- City Of Zagreb
With its roots in the Austro Hungarian tradition, Zagreb’s gastronomic offer consists of so-called “purgerski” cooking with dishes such as “Grenadir marša”, pasta with onion and cheese or the “Kajzeršmarn” desert that is very much like a pancake. All the same, in Zagreb for “gablec”, or elevenses, you should not miss out on the fresh cream and cheese, turkey with pasta tatters, cheese puff pastries, cabbage and pasta and for something sweet try the doughnuts and honey and pepper biscuits which can all be washed down with a glass of any famous Croatian wine.
Gastronomy - Dalmatia - Dubrovnik
Try the Ston oysters and mussels here, which are considered to be some of the tastiest and finest shell fish in the Adriatic. Asides from lamb and veal cooked in embers under an iron bell, this region’s gastronomic chapter consists of eel and frog stew from the Neretva valley. Maybe more than anywhere else on the coast, the Dubrovnik region offers special sweet pastries where the most famous are Rožata and Kotonjata as well as the Mantalata and Arancina cakes. All this should be accompanied with top quality wines such as Dingač and Postup from Pelješac, Pošip and Grk from Korčula, as well as Dubrovnik’s malvasia from Konavle.
Gastronomy - Istria
In Istrian inns the order of things is as follows: first an aperitif of mistletoe, rue or honey schnapps, followed by cheese and prosciutto accompanied with Istrian soup, and during the spring scrambled egg made from asparagus. In terms of the main dish, you can choose from either continental or seafood dishes. If you are tempted for a taste of the Mediterranean then you can eat fish, crabs and shellfish cooked in a thousand different ways. If you prefer continental food then start with a spoon of minestrone with broad beans, then eat some pasta with truffles, sauce of game or even ordinary goulash all the way to pork loin and sausages. For desert, try the kroštule, krafi or fritule pastries.
Gastronomy - Lika - Karlovac
The most famous gastro item of this region is the Lika potato, which has a Protected Geographical Indication (PDI). If you want to try a proper Lika menu start with an aperitif of plum or pear schnapps or perhaps a berry liqueur, then have some škripavac cheese and slices of dried game and then go for the main dish – traditional Lika baked potatoes with lamb cooked under the embers in an iron bell. There is also the highly valued Velebit honey, and for pudding you should simply eat some of the tasty fruits of the forest of blueberries and raspberries.
Gastronomy - Slavonia
The Slavonian dining table groans most of all with tasty ham, Kulen sausage and Kulen's sis sausage whilst in the typical Slavonian pot there is “grah čobanac [shepherd’s bean stew] and “fiš paprikas” [fish stew with hot red pepper] that is washed down with the not to be missed glass of plum schnapps. There are many good quality wines on offer here such as Ilok’s Traminac, Kutjevo’s Riesling as well as Graševina. In terms of sweets, there are “saljenaci” made in a traditional way from pork fat, different types of pastries filled with apples or walnuts or one cake with a very unique name “Poderane gaće“ [ripped underpants], whose funny name is in total contrast with its fine taste.
