WCC Day 20: Serbia

Serbia has a unique mix of various traditions; Serbian confectioneries are places where koljivo, baklava, nut roll and sachertorte  live in perfect harmony.

Serbians often make their food in the home; this include rakija (fruit brandy), jam, jelly, various pickled foods, notably kiseli kupus (sauerkraut), ajvar and even sausages. The reasons for this range from economical to cultural.  Food preparation is a strong part of the Serbian family tradition.

Serbian cuisine is generally lacking in spices and herbs: practically only black pepper and ground paprika are in widespread use, along with parsley used for soups. Other spices sometimes used include white pepper, allspice, Coriandrum, laurel celery and clove.

Most people in Serbia will have three meals daily, breakfast, lunch and dinner, with lunch being the largest in the Mediterranean fashion. However, traditionally, only lunch and dinner existed, with breakfast being introduced in the second half of the 19th century.

Breakfast in Serbia is an early but hearty meal, although before breakfest most people usually take a cup of coffee, now a day maybe an espresso. With the breakfest itself either a tea, milk, milk coffee or cocoa milk is served, pastries or bread are served with butter, jam, yoghurt, sour cream and cheese, accompanied by bacon, sausages, salami, scrambled eggs and kajmak.

For lunch, there are two types of soups in Serbian cuisine: standard soups called supa, and soups with roux (browned flour) – called ?orba. The most common are simple pottages made of beef or poultry with added noodles.  Fish soup (riblja ?orba) and lamb soup (jagnjeca ?orba) are considered to be delicacies.

The main course is always served without meat.  Some of the main courses that are not barbecued include: Pecenje, roasted meat (whole roasted pork, lamb and goat); Podvarak (stewed sauerkraut usually with meat and bacon pieces); and, Punjena paprika, peppered meat and rice in tomato sauce filled in peppers.  Barbecue is very popular in Serbia, and makes the primary offer of main courses in most restaurants.  It is often eaten as fast food.

Bread is the basis of Serbian meals and it is often treated almost ritually. A traditional Serbian welcome is to offer the guest with just bread and salt; bread also plays an important role in religious rituals. Some people believe that it is sinful to throw away bread regardless of how old it is. Although pasta, rice, potato and similar side dishes did enter the everyday cuisine, many Serbs still eat bread with these meals.

A Serbian pie could, in general, be called in two ways: according to its mode of preparation, and according to its filling (although not every pie is prepared with every filling). For example, a “bundevara” is a pie filled with pumpkin and could refer to either a savijaca (made of rolled phyllo) or a strudla (made of rolled dough). Both sweet and salty pies are made, and some pies could be prepared in the same way with either sweet or salty filling.

For the world cup cuisine dish, I decided to make Gibanica, which is a traditional dish in parts of the Balkan region.   This is one of the most popular and recognizable pastry dishes in Balkans and it is made most often for festive occasions, or simply as a comforting family snack. Although gibanica is most commonly made with white cheese, other varieties are made with spinach, meat or potatoes and onions.

Full Gibanica Recipe

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serbian_cuisine