General
With its largely flat or at most hilly territory, Belgium has always been a prosperous agricultural land. Cereals, vegetables, fruit, dairy products, beef and pork, not to mention the riches of the North Sea, have forged Belgian gastronomy.
There are many products protected by various European labels, some of which you can take home with you. One example is the tasty Ardennes sausage, which has a PGI. Made from a mixture of pork or pork and beef, it is also called "pipe d'Ardenne" when its shape is straight, "collier d'Ardenne" when it is curved. Produced in the province of Luxembourg, the Ardenne ham is also registered in the list of PGI products. It was exported to France as early as the Middle Ages and appeared on the menus of most Belgian restaurants in the 19th century. It can be smoked or not. Pâté gaumais is a pie stuffed with noble pieces of pork meat, marinated in wine or vinegar, with spices and herbs, originating in the town of Virton. It is very common both in butcher's shops and in bakeries in the Pays gaumais, near the border with Lorraine.
The country also boasts some 300 types of cheese (up to 500, according to some agricultural agencies), which, in relation to the size of the country, is quite impressive. Surprisingly, only Herve cheese has had a protected designation of origin (PDO) since 1996. It has been produced since the 13th century, when the first written records of this product date back to the present. Belgium has a great cheese-making culture, mainly based on monastic tradition. The recipes that used to be developed and produced in the abbeys are still produced in structures that are more adapted to the market, even though many small local productions exist and new ones are being created. With an average consumption of 20 kg of cheese per year per inhabitant, Belgium is the third largest consumer, behind France and Italy. Given the number of cheeses produced in Belgium, it is impossible to list them all. But the diversity should satisfy every palate: hard, soft, baked, with and without rind, strong or mild. Many localities have their own speciality. Amongst some remarkable cheeses: the Trappist cheese from Chimay or from the abbey of Orval, the one from the abbey of Maredsous, the Beauvoorde, the Boû d'Fagne, the Carré de Tourpes, the Bouquet des Moines or the Lathuy. Also not to be missed is the incomparable Remoudou, very similar to Herve, but creamier and more pungent, often considered by connoisseurs as one of the best cheeses in the world. There are also a few cheeses from Flanders, such as the blue-veined Pas de Bleu or the Damse Mokke, with its unique dome shape.
Some fresh products are more difficult to transport but are worth tasting on the spot. One can think of the excellent beef known as Rood West-Vlaams or Rouge de Belgique, bred mainly in Flanders, or the Plate de Florenville potatoes produced in Gaume. A more surprising speciality is the poperingse hopscheuten, or hop shoots, which look like tiny asparagus. They are picked between February and March before they emerge from the ground so that they remain crisp and white. It takes about two hours to harvest 1 kg of hop shoots and they don't keep for more than a day and a half. Hence the price of up to €1,000/kg. They are particularly common in Flanders, but also in Bavaria and Alsace. Unsurprisingly, Belgians are the biggest consumers of chicory in the world, with some 8 kg per person per year. So much so that Brussels grondwitloof or endive has even been awarded a PGI.There are also a few sweet specialities with a European label, such as Liers vlaaike, a small cake made from candy syrup and four spices. More than 300 years old, it is one of the oldest regional products of Lier in Flanders. It is a very popular local speciality in the region. The Geraardsbergse mattentaart or maton pie is a recipe from the Grammont region (Geraardsbergse in Flemish) in Flanders. The maton is a curdled milk obtained by cooking whole milk and beaten milk, to which eggs and sugar are added.
Fries and snacks
Obviously, it is impossible to talk about Belgian cuisine without mentioning the baraque à frites, or fritkot in Flemish. A bit of a cliché, of course, but one that is inseparable from the country. If the idea of eating a cone of fries does not seem to be an initiatory experience for a French person, Belgian fries are unique because they are traditionally cooked in beef fat (called blanc de boeuf) which gives the fries their crispness. They are usually accompanied by long, sausage-like croquettes of meat - pork and veal - called frica(n)delle. They are served with a generous amount of mayonnaise or the classic tartar, andalusian or American sauces. Mayonnaise is indeed an institution in Belgium, although a 2016 reform lowered the fat content of the product from 80% to 70% to adapt to foreign competition. Those feeling peckish can also opt for a pistol or a filled sandwich. Most butcher's shops sell them at all hours of the day, and it is not impossible to eat them in some cafés, if you take a drink, of course. The pistol - a word with Liège origins - is a small crusty bread filled with cheese, ham, sausage or American.
The classics of Belgian gastronomy
Traditionally, there are certain starters in most restaurants that seem almost unavoidable. One thinks of tomato and shrimp stuffed with mayonnaise and grey shrimp. There are also cheese melts, which are actually croquettes with parmesan cheese, and shrimp croquettes, served with fried parsley sprigs. In season, the menus feature the delicious Flemish-style asparagus, topped with a butter sauce and garnished with crushed hard-boiled egg and parsley. Otherwise, you can also enjoy copious slices of bread, often wholemeal, spread with pâté, cheese, sausage, etc. Cold cuts are also popular. It is often smoked, in addition to the ham and the Ardennes sausage, let's mention the hunter's sausage and the pâté, often made of game (like wild boar). Boudin is often eaten with potatoes and applesauce, sometimes eaten cold or on the barbecue. It can be black (made from blood) or white (made from lean pork, veal and milk).
As in France, we love the ineradicable steak-frites accompanied by various sauces (bearnaise, pepper or Roquefort). For those who prefer it raw, the American is the Belgian equivalent of steak tartare, accompanied by the classic capers, gherkins and sliced onions. Many Belgian dishes are served with fries, not surprisingly, and the sauces are often richly flavored beer-based reductions. This is especially true of the very popular Flemish carbonnade. It consists of pieces of beef, simmered in a dark beer sauce, the bitterness of which is reduced by a touch of vergeoise sugar (brown sugar). The rabbit à la bruxelloise is very similar because it is cooked with beer - preferably gueuze - and prunes. Boulets liégeois are large meatballs, half beef, half pork, bound with breadcrumbs, shallots and spices, and served with a Liege syrup sauce. In another style, the headless bird is a rolled meat cutlet stuffed with minced meat, usually pork, simmered in an onion-based sauce.
Waterzooi
is a preparation of chicken or fish cooked in a broth with vegetables and potatoes, served with a creamy sauce made from the cooking broth bound with cream, egg yolks and a dash of lemon.There are also poultry dishes such as vol-au-vent, a kind of puff pastry bite stuffed with chicken, mushrooms, small dumplings, which is served in Belgium with French fries again. More classy, the pheasant à la brabançonne is a seasonal hunting dish where the pheasants are braised with a chicory-based filling (endives).
Vegetables are not necessarily abundant in Belgian cuisine. However, there are a few nutritious specialties. Like the stoemp
, which is made of mashed potatoes with vegetables (usually carrots, leeks or cabbage) and served with sausages, bacon or sometimes fish. But it is impossible to talk about vegetables without mentioning chicory. The most famous dish is chicory au gratin where the endives are covered with a béchamel sauce with cheese. They are wrapped in ham. And for the little anecdote, the Brussels sprout is a plant that was selected in the Brussels region as early as the 17th century, with the aim of increasing yields by producing a plant that grows high and from which the side buds are taken, Brussels being already a very densely populated city at that time. Fish and seafood are of course very popular and there are many recipes for freshwater fish such as Ardennes trout, stuffed with smoked ham or eels in green, prepared in a sauce of mixed herbs and served with bread and French fries. Escavèche is a preparation of eels marinated in vinegar. Rollmops are herring fillets also marinated in vinegar with onion and herbs, which are then rolled on a piece of pickle before being eaten. And of course, the very popular mussels and fries cannot be missed.Chocolates and other delicacies
It's no surprise to anyone that Belgium and chocolate go hand in hand. The country is the4th
largest producer in the world after the United States, Germany and Switzerland, which, considering the small size of the country, is quite spectacular. Belgians are the second largest consumers of chocolate with almost 11 kg per year and per capita, just after their German neighbors. Despite this, a large part of this chocolate is exported and if, of course, we know in France the famous brands Léonidas or Côte d'Or - founded respectively in 1913 and 1883 -, there are many other renowned chocolate makers such as Godiva, Neuhaus, Corné Port-Royal, Marcolini,...In Belgium, a praline is an individual chocolate. There are dozens of different types: dark, white, milk with dried fruit, alcohol and so on. Another confectionery, the cuberdon is a delicacy originating from the region of Bruges, whose recipe would have been developed in 1873. Its conical shape characterizes it, as well as its frosted texture which encloses a heart flowing with syrup. Traditionally flavored with raspberry, it comes in nearly 40 flavors including lemon, apple, pineapple, clementine, etc.
But of course, Belgium is not limited to confectionery. The hot Liege waffle with pearl sugar, whose irresistible aroma wafts through all the shopping streets, is a must, as are the Brussels waffles - larger but lighter than the Liege ones - which are a delight at tea time and for snacking while walking around. They are often topped with whipped cream.
In the pastry shops, the displays are full of goodies, but the simplest ones are the best: sugar pie, rice pie (filled with rice pudding), frangipane pie, cramique (brioche filled with raisins), craquelin (sugar brioche), etc. We also owe to Belgium a small cookie that has since spread far beyond its borders: the speculoos. It is traditionally eaten during Advent and especially for St. Nicholas' Day, December 6.
The consumption of coffee in Belgium is comparable to the French consumption, even if the Belgians seem to be a little more addicted to caffeine, since they are the 8th largest consumers of coffee in the world with some 6.8 kg of coffee per year and per inhabitant! Coffee shops can be found all over the country. A love that materializes with one of the most famous Belgian desserts: the Liège coffee, which combines coffee ice cream and cold coffee, all topped with whipped cream.Namur specialities
The snail: the small gray remains the emblem of the city and the ways of preparing it are various. Sterilized in court-bouillon, the jars of petits-gris can be kept for six months in a cool place, but there are also vacuum-packed preparations with different sauces, including the inevitable Burgundy sauce, the green sauce (white wine, cream, fine herbs) or the sauce with small vegetables. The ones from Namur are raised at the Warnant escargotière or at the Ferme du Vieux Tilleul in Bierwart.
Mustard: even if the Bister mustard factory is now expatriated in Ciney, it remains dear to the heart of the Namurians. Sweet, flavored, luxury or organic, Bister mustards are more than thirty, without counting the other products: piccalilli, onions, capers, gherkins, oils, vinegars,...
Biétrumé: a rich and slightly soft caramel, made with hazelnuts and fresh cream. Named after Jean-Biétrumé Picar, an 18th century Namurian character, it is sold in the city center at the Maison des Desserts.
The Baiser: that of Flawinne is a specialty of the Allard family. However, you can find in the bakeries of Namur and its surroundings "Baisers" whose different preparations are more tasty than the others.
The Wépion strawberry: produced from June to September, this juicy and sweet fruit is considered as the queen of strawberries in Wallonia. It is the object of very official negotiations judged at the auction of Wépion. The most cultivated varieties are Darselect, Elsanta and Lambada. The Wépion strawberry does not have a PDO
The Dinant creek: a cookie made of wheat flour, pure honey and sugar. It is hard to the tooth and melts in the mouth, but can also be used as a decorative object. The real couques de Dinant (and their variant, the couque de Rins) can only be found in a few bakeries in Dinant and in a few stores selling local specialties
L'avisance: this is a sausage rolled in dough and cooked in the oven. It is best eaten hot. It can be found in most butcher's shops in the region and in some bakeries. The avisance is also sometimes available in a more gastronomic version in restaurants.
Li crochon: this speciality from Onhaye is made of a hollowed out bread roll into which a preparation based on Maredret cheese, fresh cream and diced ham is poured. It is then put in the oven.
Flamiche: another specialty from Dinant, composed of eggs, farm butter and fatty cheese spread on a thin layer of bread dough, all baked in the oven.
Florange: an aperitif made from a maceration of oranges, spices, vanilla, white wine and alcohol. Created by Dominique Renson (Le Temps des Cerises) in the early 1990s, it has been revived by his daughter Audrey.
Le péket: juniper alcohol put in the spotlight (and of all colors and flavors) during the Fêtes de Wallonie.
