Serbian traditional cuisine

Traditional Serbian cuisine, formed under various influences, offers a mix of great flavors and scents that are hard to resist.

The Serbian cuisine has formed under various national, cultural and geografical influences and mixtures. It consists of very diverse, heavy and spicy food that is partially a cobination of Greek, Turkish and Hungarian cuisine. Even though some dishes have the same ingredients as in the above mentioned cuisines, in Serbia they have got a certain touch that made them different and unique. That is why some specialties are hard to describe, and some of them don’t even have a match in other nations’ vocabularies. The best you can do is – come and taste them.


Traditional Serbian cuisine has survived the centuries through the recipes of local specialties

Food preparation is a very special part of Serbian tradition and culture. In Serbian villages, kitchen is sometimes even called "house" and hearth was set in central part of the house and it had an important, even religious place where everyday life took place and all the family gathered around it.

Even though they might not be authentically Serbian, burek (a kind of cheese pie) and ćevapi (made of grilled minced meat) have a completely unique taste here, and on the menus of restaurants with traditional cuisine you will certainly find sarma (minced meat and rice wrapped in sauerkraut), kačamak (made of cornmeal), popara (made usually of milk, cheese and leftovers or fresh bread), proja (made of corn flour), čorbast pasulj (a kind of bean soup), prebranac (made of beans), pljeksavica (grilled minced meat), teleća glava u škembetu (made of veal), jagnjeća sarmica (lamb meat), gulaš (goulash), đuveč (oven-baked beef and vegetable stew), karađorđeva šnicla (Karadjordje's steak, rolled veal or pork steak, stuffed with kajmak, breaded and baked), musaka (mousakka), mućkalica (a stew made of barbecued meat and vegetables), paprikaš (a kind of stew), pihtije (made of pork), čvarci (pork rinds) and a number of other dishes.

Plum is considered Serbian national fruit, and rakija (a kind of brandy) Serbian national drink. Coffee that most of the people prefer drinking is "Serbian" and thus usually called "ordinary".

Be careful if you try drinking "Šumadijski čaj" (the tea of Šumadija) - you could easily get drunk because it is actually boiled rakija that is treated as a kind of a domestic "heater" in Serbia. However, the best way to experience the magic of flavors and scents is to try it yourself.