Hello food lovers! 

I hope that you already ate breakfast because today’s blog might make you hungry 🙂 

Today we are going to travel to the place where “Sound of Music” was filmed, the world’s biggest ice cave exists, and lots of mouthwatering food is eaten. You guessed it- Austria! Let’s get right into it!

     1. Wiener Schnitzel

The word ‘Wiener’ comes from the word ‘Wien’, which is the local word for Vienna (Austria’s capital city). Although the Wiener Schnitzel wasn’t actually invented in Vienna, it has become one of its most famous dishes. In my opinion, it is most delicious when it is made very thin and very crispy from the frying (some people prefer them baked since that’s healthier, but I just can’t not love the crispy-ness). For those of you thinking that this is basically a big chicken nugget, I’m sorry to break it to you, but it is just SO much better than the American chicken nuggets we all know. If you ever go to Austria, please try it out! You’ll see that I’m right 😉 

     2. Kaspressknödeln 

Kaspressknödeln are basically patty-shaped cheese dumplings that originated in Tirol, a state in Western Austria. Although they are referred to as dumplings, they are actually fried, not cooked in water like one would assume, and they are also the shape of patties instead of balls. They are made from cheese, butter, milk, eggs, bread cubes, and lots of good herbs like parsley and chives. After all the ingredients are mixed together, the kaspressknödelns are fried in butter until they turn golden brown and are ready to be eaten. 

     3. Krautfleckerl

Another hard-to-pronounce yet delicious dish, krautfleckerl is a very traditional dish originating from Vienna. It is essentially like any pasta dish we know and love, but is filled with goods such as onions, cabbage, butter, bacon, garlic, butter, and seasonings. First, the onions and garlic are chopped into small pieces and sautéed in a mixture consisting of sugar, butter, and caraway seeds. The cabbage is then cut into small square pieces, seasoned, and added. This mixture is steamed for approximately 30 minutes and then mixed with the cooked pasta. Am I the only one that is thinking that it is time to add krautfleckerl to our dining halls’ pasta area??

     4. Millirahmstrudel 

And now for desserts… the famous strudel we all love and adore! This mouthwatering dessert is thought to have been first made in the 1600s, but many consider it to be a creation of a 19th century restaurant located right outside of Vienna. There are a lot of versions of strudels, the best-known being apple and milk-cream strudels. Millirahmstrudelm, or milk-cream strudel, is made from raisins, cream filling, and phyllo dough (which is a very thin and made-without-yeast dough used for making pastries especially in Middle Eastern and European cuisines). It is then baked in the oven and served hot. If you have ever wondered why strudels are called strudels, it’s because ‘strudel’ is a word derived from German, literally meaning ‘whirlpool’, which refers to how strudels look on the inside.

Thank you for reading today’s blog, and I hope you learned a bit about Austrian cuisine. Let me know if you ever try to make one of these tasty dishes yourself! 

Bis zum nächsten Mal! (“See you next time!” in German (Austria’s official language))

Oren 🙂