Luxembourgian cuisine
Encyclopedia
Luxembourg
Luxembourg , officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg , is a landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany. It has two principal regions: the Oesling in the North as part of the Ardennes massif, and the Gutland in the south...
's position between the Latin and Germanic
Germanic peoples
The Germanic peoples are an Indo-European ethno-linguistic group of Northern European origin, identified by their use of the Indo-European Germanic languages which diversified out of Proto-Germanic during the Pre-Roman Iron Age.Originating about 1800 BCE from the Corded Ware Culture on the North...
worlds, drawing on the cuisines of neighbouring France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
and Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. More recently, it has been influenced by the country's many Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
and Portuguese
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
immigrants. As in Germany, most traditional everyday Luxembourg dishes are of peasant origin, in marked contrast to the more sophisticated French
French cuisine
French cuisine is a style of food preparation originating from France that has developed from centuries of social change. In the Middle Ages, Guillaume Tirel , a court chef, authored Le Viandier, one of the earliest recipe collections of Medieval France...
fare.
Food
Luxembourg has many delicacies. In addition to French pâtisseries, cakes and fruit pies, local pastries include the bretzel, a Lent speciality; quetscheflued, damson plum tart; verwurelt gedanken, small sugar-coated doughnuts; and äppelklatzen, apples en croûte. Luxembourg's cheese speciality is kachkeis or cancoillotteCancoillotte
Cancoillotte or Cancoyotte is a runny French cheese made principally in Franche-Comté, but also Lorraine and Luxembourg, where it is also called Kachkéis . It is a typical cheese in Franc-Comtois gastronomy. It is eaten all year around, served cold or hot.-Presentation:Made from metton,...
, a soft cheese spread.
Fish from the local rivers such as trout
Brown trout
The brown trout and the sea trout are fish of the same species....
, pike
Northern Pike
The northern pike , is a species of carnivorous fish of the genus Esox...
, and crayfish
Crayfish
Crayfish, crawfish, or crawdads – members of the superfamilies Astacoidea and Parastacoidea – are freshwater crustaceans resembling small lobsters, to which they are related...
are the basis for dishes such as F'rell am Rèisleck (trout in Riesling sauce), Hiecht mat Kraïderzooss (pike in green sauce) and Kriibsen (crayfish), usually prepared in a Riesling sauce. Another favourite is Friture de la Moselle, small fried fish from the River Moselle.
Meat dishes include cold Éisleker Ham, literally Oesling
Oesling
The Oesling or Ösling is a region covering the northern part of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, within the greater Ardennes area that also covers parts of Belgium and France...
ham, from the mountainous north of the country, first marinated for a couple of weeks and then smoked for several days. It is usually served thinly sliced with chipped potatoes and salad. Perhaps the most traditional of all Luxembourg meat dishes is Judd mat Gaardebounen, smoked neck of pork with broad bean
Vicia faba
This article refers to the Broad Bean plant. For Broadbean the company, see Broadbean, Inc.Vicia faba, the Broad Bean, Fava Bean, Field Bean, Bell Bean or Tic Bean, is a species of bean native to north Africa and southwest Asia, and extensively cultivated elsewhere. A variety is provisionally...
s. The pork is soaked overnight, then boiled with vegetables and spices. It is served in thick slices together with the beans and boiled potatoes. Hong am Rèisleck, similar to the French Coq au Riesling
Coq au vin
Coq au vin is a French braise of chicken cooked with wine, lardons, mushrooms, and optionally garlic.While the wine is typically Burgundy, many regions of France have variants of coq au vin using the local wine, such as coq au vin jaune , coq au Riesling , coq au pourpre , coq au Champagne, and so...
, consists of browned chicken pieces simmered in white wine with vegetables, spices and mushrooms. Huesenziwwi or Civet de lièvre is a jugged hare dish served during the hunting season.
Other dishes include liver
Liver
The liver is a vital organ present in vertebrates and some other animals. It has a wide range of functions, including detoxification, protein synthesis, and production of biochemicals necessary for digestion...
dumplings (quenelle
Quenelle
A quenelle is mixture of creamed fish, chicken, or meat, sometimes combined with breadcrumbs, with a light egg binding. It can also be served vegetarian, or "nature". It is usually poached. Formerly, quenelles were often used as a garnish in haute cuisine; today, they are usually served on their own...
s) with sauerkraut
Sauerkraut
Sauerkraut , directly translated from German: "sour cabbage", is finely shredded cabbage that has been fermented by various lactic acid bacteria, including Leuconostoc, Lactobacillus, and Pediococcus. It has a long shelf-life and a distinctive sour flavor, both of which result from the lactic acid...
and boiled potatoes, träipen
Träipen
Träipen, sometimes treipen, is the Luxembourg variant of black pudding. The sausages are traditionally prepared from a hog's head , fat, rind and blood...
(black pudding) with apple sauce, sausages with mashed potatoes and horseradish
Horseradish
Horseradish is a perennial plant of the Brassicaceae family, which also includes mustard, wasabi, broccoli, and cabbages. The plant is probably native to south eastern Europe and the Arab World , but is popular around the world today...
, and green bean
Green bean
Green beans , also known as French beans , are the unripe fruit of any kind of bean, including the yardlong bean, the hyacinth bean, the winged bean, and especially the common bean , whose pods are also usually called string beans in the northeastern and western United States, but can also be...
soup (bouneschlupp
Bouneschlupp
Bouneschlupp is a traditional Luxemburgish green bean soup with potatoes, bacon, and onions.Although Bouneschlupp is considered to be a Luxemburgish national dish, it can also be found in Saarland , Gaume and Lorraine...
). French cuisine is featured prominently on many menus, as well as certain dishes from Germany and Belgium.
Other Luxembourg specialties include:
- Thüringer - Sausages that taste like a spicy version of the German bratwurstBratwurstA bratwurst is a sausage usually composed of veal, pork or beef. The plural in German is Bratwürste....
. The use of the word "Thüringer" is now reserved for sausages produced in German ThuringiaThuringiaThe Free State of Thuringia is a state of Germany, located in the central part of the country.It has an area of and 2.29 million inhabitants, making it the sixth smallest by area and the fifth smallest by population of Germany's sixteen states....
. Officially they are now Lëtzebuerger Grillwurscht or Luxembourg grill sausages. - Gromperekichelcher - Carefully spiced potato pancake with chopped onions and parsley, then deep-fried.
- Tiirteg - Another kind of potato pancake made with sauerkraut.
- PâtéPâtéPâté is a mixture of ground meat and fat minced into a spreadable paste. Common additions include vegetables, herbs, spices, and either wine or cognac, armagnac or brandy...
- A spreadable paste, usually made of meat but vegetarian versions exist. - Quetschentaart - A plum tart; it, along with peach, cherry, and pear tarts are a typical dessert and can be found in any pastry shop.
- Miel luxembourgeois de marque nationaleMiel luxembourgeois de marque nationaleMiel luxembourgeois de marque nationale is a honey from Luxembourg that is protected under EU law with PDO status.Some of the criteria for the production of this honey include that it:*must be of high quality...
is a honey from Luxembourg that is protected under EU law.
Alcohol
In 1993 it was reported that Luxembourg had the highest worldwide per capita consumption of alcoholAlcohol
In chemistry, an alcohol is an organic compound in which the hydroxy functional group is bound to a carbon atom. In particular, this carbon center should be saturated, having single bonds to three other atoms....
; an average of three beers a day for every man, woman, and child. French wine is the most commonly drunk alcohol, and fine beers from Germany and Belgium are widely available. Alcohol is available cheaper in Luxembourg than anywhere else in Europe. It's also common to come across home-produced alcohol, called eau de vie, distilled from various fruits and usually fifty percent alcohol by volume.
Some white and sparkling wines are even produced in Luxembourg, alongside the north bank of the Moselle
Moselle
Moselle is a department in the east of France named after the river Moselle.- History :Moselle is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790...
, which has a winemaking history dating back to the Romans. The names of some wines made in Luxembourg: Riesling
Riesling
Riesling is a white grape variety which originated in the Rhine region of Germany. Riesling is an aromatic grape variety displaying flowery, almost perfumed, aromas as well as high acidity. It is used to make dry, semi-sweet, sweet and sparkling white wines. Riesling wines are usually varietally...
, Pinot Gris
Pinot Gris
Pinot gris is a white wine grape variety of the species Vitis vinifera. Thought to be a mutant clone of the Pinot noir grape, it normally has a grayish-blue fruit, accounting for its name but the grape can have a brownish pink to black and even white appearance...
, Pinot Noir
Pinot Noir
Pinot noir is a black wine grape variety of the species Vitis vinifera. The name may also refer to wines created predominantly from Pinot noir grapes...
, Pinot Blanc
Pinot Blanc
Pinot blanc is a white wine grape. It is a point genetic mutation of Pinot noir. Pinot noir is genetically unstable and will occasionally experience a point mutation in which a vine bears all black fruit except for one cane which produced white fruit....
, Auxerrois
Auxerrois
Auxerrois is a historical province of France. Named after the city of Auxerre in Burgundy, it gives its name to several grape varieties:* Auxerrois Blanc is a white wine grape that is widely grown in Alsace, and also in Lorraine, Germany and Luxembourg...
, Rivaner, Elbling
Elbling
Elbling is a variety of white grape which today is primarily grown in the upstream parts of the Mosel region in Germany and in Luxembourg, the vineyards of which are also located along Moselle River...
, Gewürztraminer
Gewürztraminer
Gewürztraminer is an aromatic wine grape variety that performs best in cooler climates. It is sometimes referred to colloquially as Gewürz, and in French it is written '...
, and Crémant de Luxembourg. Look for the National Mark, which identifies authentic Luxembourg wine.
Luxembourg has a fair number of breweries, given its tiny size. Imported beers, however, have control of the beer market in Luxembourg. During the 1970s and 1980s, over 600,000 hectoliters of beer were brewed each year. The peak was reached in 1976 when over 800,000 hectoliters of beer were brewed, and since then the amount has been decreasing. In 2001, production dropped below 400,000 hectoliters for the first time since 1950. Some beers currently made in Luxembourg: Battin Edelpils and other beers at the Brasserie Battin, Bière Blonde and others at the Restaurant Beierhaascht, Bofferding Lager and others at the Brasserie Bofferding, Héngeschter and others at the Cornelyshaff, Diekirch Premium and others at the Brasserie de Luxembourg Mousel-Diekirch SA, Simon Dinkel and others at the Brasserie Simon. The Brasserie de Redange also brewed beer for five years, but closed in 2005.