If you are planning on going on a little trip to Budapest or to anywhere else in Hungary, here are 5 dishes you cannot miss out on.
Goulash (Gulyás)
Goulash is one of the most famous Hungarian dishes. Goulash is a rich stew made of meat and vegetables, and with lots of paprika. Traditionally, it is made from beef, but you can also find goulash made from pork or chicken. You can try the goulash in almost every restaurant in Budapest, but for a unique dining experience, you can go to Vagon restaurant or Gettó Gulyás.
Lángos
Lángos is a deep-fried dough served with a variety of toppings. However, the traditional Hungarian Lángos is served with garlic oil, sour cream and grated cheese on top. You can find the best lángos at the different food markets of Budapest, such as the Great Market Hall, or you can visit the restaurant Lángos Papa. Some street food vans even offer the possibility of trying langos filled with melting cheese as the buns of a burger, Caravan in Budapest is a great street food market to try this.
Chimney Cake (Kürtös Kalács)
A special sweet spiral cylindered bread made from sweet yeast dough baked over charcoal and coated in plenty of sugar. This is the secret of kürtös kalács,one of Hungary’s most beloved street pastries. ‘Chimney cake’, as it is usually referred to, has a sweet, caramelized coating, onto which cinnamon, cocoa, coconut, or chopped walnuts are added. The original kürtös kalács is from the Székely area of Transylvania and from there it dispersed along Hungary, becoming a vital part of Hungarian food identity. The once must-have dish for the nobility, and the essential component of any wedding and baptism, over the years kürtös kalács has turned into a cherished everyday food, a demanded pastry during Christmas markets and an indispensable element of every festival. During market times kürtös kalács is easy to find and, unless you’re served a cold one, you can’t go wrong. Budapest’s most renowned spot, which serves kürtösin eight different flavors, is Molnár’s Kürtöskalács Kávézó. This restaurant also participates in special European road shows ensuring that no country misses out on kürtös.
Túrós Csusza
Túrós Csuska is a traditional Hungarian dish made from a special pasta (csusza) with cottage cheese (very different from its European counterparts) and crispy bacon. All of this is mixed in a pre-heated bowl. It is a perfect one-course main dish that is easy to cook, cheap and filling. If craving something sweeter there’s a version for that, too: túrós tészta leaves out the bacon and instead adds plenty of powdered sugar to the mixed cottage and tejföl cream. This version is also common and opens the door to all the further Hungarian pasta specialties, such as poppy seed, walnut or cabbage pastas, so loved by locals and so unfamiliar for visitors.
Pálinka
Pálinka is not a disk, however it’s on this list as it is probably the most well-known Hungarian alcoholic beverage. It is a strong shot, traditionally distilled from different kinds of fruits: plums, pears, peaches, cherries, grapes etc. Pálinka is typically enjoyed both before eating (to help appetite) and at the end of a meal (to aid digestion). Quality and home-made pálinka is great, but stay away from the suspiciously cheap ones. You can try 250 premium pálinkas of differing flavours at Abszolut Palinka.
Travelling Blonde 