Cuisine of Latvia

Latvian cuisine typically consists of agricultural products, and meat features in most of the dishes. Since Latvia is situated on the east coast of the Baltic Sea, fish dishes are also often served.

Latvian cuisine has been influenced by the neighboring countries. Common ingredients in Latvian recipes are found locally, such as potatoes, wheat, barley, cabbage, onions, eggs, and pork. Latvian food is generally quite fatty, and uses few spices. A typical example would be boiled grey peas with pieces of bacon. In fact, grey peas and ham are generally considered the stereotypical staple foods of Latvians.

A traditional Latvian cheese is Ķimeņu siers (caraway cheese); this is traditionally served during the celebration of Jāņi or midsummer. Other dishes are borshch (beet soup), rasols (potato salad), and sauerkraut. There is also a Latvian version of the smorgasbord, "Aukstais galds". Like many East European countries Latvia has its own version of pīrāgi. Latvian pīrāgi are usually the baked variety. Popular drinks are beer, vodka, and balzam.

Pickled mushrooms are also a Latvian speciality.

External links

* [http://www.li.lv/old/lat/lat_li.htm Factsheet on Latvian traditional food]
* [http://www.li.lv/en/?id=30 Latvian Food Specialities]
* [http://www.latvianstuff.com/Cuisine.html Latvian Cuisine (en)]
* [http://www.bol.ucla.edu/~elviss/piragi/ Piragi]
* [http://latvians.com/en/Reading/LatviskaVirtuve/virtuve-01-piragi.php Piragi, Traditional and Low-Fat Recipes]