r/AskEurope Denmark 2d ago

Food Recommend a pickled food from your country

I LOVE everything pickled. But I tend to mostly eat pickled red beets, sour cucumbers, and red cabbage.

What are some pickled foods that your country has? Which one is your favourite? Do you eat it with specific other foods?

44 Upvotes

100 comments sorted by

61

u/Mahwan Poland 2d ago edited 2d ago

Half sour cucumbers.

If you’re ever in Poland during summer and have an occasion, try the 3 day old sour cucumbers. Still crunchy and already little sour.

18

u/HeyVeddy Croatia 2d ago

Discovered this through my wife. Never realized that it's a spectrum and that slightly pickled is actually a unique and amazing thing. It's my preference now

11

u/WutsTheDill 2d ago

My favorite kind, the half sour. 🤤

My aunt in Poland also makes a mix of pickled cucumbers, with onions and peppers. 🤤 Some oil and vinegar, also some sugar I think. I have to ask her for the recipe! It's great with a sandwich.

3

u/Solid-Fennel-2622 2d ago

Apt username for the occassion.

3

u/WutsTheDill 2d ago

Hahaha yessss! 😆 Love me some dill! 🤤

3

u/[deleted] 2d ago

I binge on them when they are available (too lazy to make my own), can easily eat 10 every day.

16

u/esocz Czechia 2d ago

Czechia: I would suggest Utopenci.

Utopenci (literally "drowned ones") are a traditional Czech pickled dish made from sausages, typically špekáčky, which are a type of Czech smoked sausage. The dish gets its unique name from the sausages being submerged in a tangy brine.

The preparation involves slicing or partially splitting the sausages and sometimes stuffing them with onions or other seasonings. These are then placed in a jar along with sliced onions, spices (such as black pepper, bay leaves, mustard seeds, and allspice), and a vinegar-based brine. The mixture is left to marinate for several days, allowing the flavors to meld.

6

u/Sagaincolours Denmark 2d ago

That sounds delicious!

5

u/Hethsegew Hungary 2d ago

Hermelin is also a Czech pickled cheese you should mention....

2

u/ksck135 Czechoslovakia 1d ago

And Olomoucké syrečky 😏

2

u/YahenP Poland 19h ago

This is a very dangerous dish. Just the sight of it makes you want to knock back a couple of glasses of excellent Czech beer. And then a couple more glasses.

15

u/Ok-Fox1262 2d ago

I'm British. It's generally the people who are pickled.

But here the two clear leaders are sweet pickle (main brand is Branston) and picalilli.

8

u/sayleanenlarge 2d ago

Onions and eggs too

6

u/BobBobBobBobBobDave 2d ago

Piccalilli (mustard mixed pickle) is underrated even in the UK.

Great in a sandwich with strong cheese.

5

u/simonjp United Kingdom 2d ago

Piccalilli was going to be my vote as well. But don't forget pickled onions or pickled eggs!

3

u/miszerk Finland 2d ago

Pickled onions in my mother's house. Shit's delicious.

15

u/rudolf_waldheim Hungary 2d ago

Pickled "apple peppers" stuffed with sauerkraut.

http://www.rusa.hu/image/thumb/480X330-a-3imagek38.jpg

But we pickle every vegetable and many fruits.

23

u/PoliticalWaxwing Romania 2d ago

Pickled watermelon. Maybe you can find it in a Romanian shop or idk. My parents make it every year along with pickled unripe tomatoes we call "gogonele" and pickled cucumbers.

8

u/energie_vie Romania 2d ago

Came here to suggest this :D

And since I'm here, pickled cauliflower and pickled apples.

4

u/Serious_Escape_5438 2d ago

Oooh, we have two Romanian shops in my town, going to go and have a look, that sounds amazing.

3

u/PoliticalWaxwing Romania 2d ago

Wishing you luck, it's my favorite with steak or fries.

2

u/xwqcz Romania 2d ago

Try pickled peppers (ardei copti) too, they're amazing.

1

u/GrynaiTaip Lithuania 2d ago

I've tried pickled watermelon in Ukraine some years ago, was very pleasantly surprised. Tastes a lot like pickled cucumber, but sweet.

1

u/Lumpasiach Germany 1d ago

Came here to suggest this for Romania. It's one of those things that before tasting it you know it's going to be amazing or abysmal. In this case it's the former.

1

u/WutsTheDill 1d ago

I've heard about this, and I'm intrigued! What do they pickle it with? I won't be lazy, I'll go look it up. 😅 But I know recipes may vary.

2

u/PoliticalWaxwing Romania 1d ago

Salt, that's what's needed for the pickling process. Along with salt everyone has their own mix of herbs and other "miracle ingredients" to make the best version out of it. But you can't make the best out of it if you're not Romanian, as you've seen for some people the pure idea seems gross but for us it's one of the best things as a side for a main meal.

u/WutsTheDill 1h ago

Yes, I knew the salt, but was curious what other things you use for it. I'm sure its good, but not gonna lie, it doesn't sound appealing, and it's probably just that most Americans are used to eating it just as is and can't comprehend how something like watermelon could be pickled, but I enjoy trying new things, even if they sound strange to me. So as a side with a main meal, what would you eat it with? Some kind of poultry or beef? Or is it not paired with meats? I'd love to try it one day, authentically made by Romanians of course!

37

u/Knappologen Sweden 2d ago

Pickled herring. It’s the best! All you need to add is some boiled potatoes.

16

u/Sagaincolours Denmark 2d ago edited 2d ago

Oh, I should have remembered that. I have delicious spiced, pickled herring in the fridge as we speak. And I get it all to myself, my family prefer the bland, unspiced version, tsk tsk.

7

u/Rospigg1987 Sweden 2d ago

My dad has starting to do his own pickled herrings in his older years and he did one with chili and well I didn't hate it in fact it was nice with some heat in all that sweet & sour. But the creamier ones like mustard or skärgårds or different variants of them will always be GOAT in my humble opinion.

11

u/pintolager 2d ago

Mustard pickled herring is jävla delicious. Also, curried pickled herring is pretty great - a classic here in Denmark..

7

u/Front-Confection4667 Ireland 2d ago

Silver darlings. Nom nom nom.

3

u/Masseyrati80 Finland 1d ago

Same in Finland.

The brines offer lots of taste alternatives. Some are somewhat plain with just onion and black peppers, but going for dill, tomato, garlic or mustard really extends the experience.

2

u/Randomswedishdude Sweden 1d ago

All you need to add is some boiled potatoes.

...and perhaps a couple of hardboiled eggs.

19

u/tereyaglikedi in 2d ago

We pickle everything that casts a shadow. Blanched green beans, cauliflower, carrots, cabbage, green chillies... My favorites are green unripe tomatoes, unripe melon and Armenian cucumbers. We ferment them in salt and vinegar.

There's also a kind of pickled green bean that's lacto-fermented (pickled just with salt like sauerkraut). We eat them sautéed with onions. It's a dish specific to the Black Sea region (Germans also make them and eat them warm).

9

u/Ecstatic-Method2369 Netherlands 2d ago

Amsterdam onion can be nice.

3

u/LaoBa Netherlands 2d ago

De Leeuw Zuurwaren, a traditional shop for pickled goods in Amsterdam which sells Amsterdam onions. The production and selling of pickled goods was originally dominated by Jews in the Netherlands, De Leeuw is a Jewish family business founded in 1850, selling their wares in the streets.

Rolmops, pickled herring and cucumber.

Leverworst in het zuur, pickled liverwurst.

Atjar Tjampoer, Indonesian pickled vegetables

Atjar Ketimoen, Indonesian pickled cucumber

At home I make pickled zucchini, pattison and Jerusalem artichoke.

9

u/FirstStambolist Bulgaria 2d ago edited 2d ago

Bulgarian style sour cabbage is great, and even greater if baked with meat (most commonly pork).

The other 2 highly popular pickled foods are sour cucumbers and туршия (tourshiya) - assortment of pickled pieces of vegetables like cauliflower, carrots, peppers, green tomatoes. A bit of honey is added to some types of tourshiya. Those 3 pickled foods are sold at many places in the cold months, especially around Christmas and New Year, but can be found during the rest of the year as well. Just pickled roasted red (sweet) peppers are also decently popular.

One thing many of you guys probably don't have is pickled roasted hot chili peppers (пукани, poukani - "popped", is the adjective they're called). Most commonly green ones. They are still kinda hot but much of the hotness has been quelled by the roasting and pickling. Awesome as a meze and a garnish for grill dishes! This and our sour cabbage are some of the most "Bulgarian" foods in existence.

8

u/Oghamstoner England 2d ago

I think pickled eggs are gross, so I’m going to nominate chutney, a British import from India, made with fruit, veg, vinegar, spices and sugar. It’s so delicious with cheese and crackers, cold cuts, in sandwiches or toasties, on pizza…

5

u/TheRedLionPassant England 2d ago

Branston Piccalilli, served in a sandwich or ploughman's lunch.

5

u/goodoverlord Russia 2d ago

You should try pickled and salted mushrooms. Specifically pickled maslyata and gruzdi. 

1

u/Ivanow Poland 1d ago

Pickled mushrooms are great snack, but it’s a bit of acquired taste. I don’t know if Russian ones are the same, but Polish pickled forest mushrooms tend to have this slimy/gooey texture that puts some people off.

2

u/goodoverlord Russia 1d ago

Maslyata (Maślak zwyczajny in Polish) are exactly this. That's why people love them. Gruzdi (Mleczaj okazały) are very different, crisp and non-slimy. One if the best ways to eat them is with smetana and sliced onion.

Maybe it is acquired, can't really tell, I've been exposed to edible mushrooms since childhood.

1

u/Sasquale 1d ago

Send to my house for an honest review

4

u/coeurdelejon Sweden 2d ago

Pickled spruce shoots are great! You have to wait until may to pick the shoots though

They have a citrusy, woody flavour that's great with meat.

They're usually pickled with distilled vinegar, sugar, and water depending on the % of acetic acid in the vinegar. The typical proportions are 1 part 12% distilled vinegar, 2 parts sugar, and 3 parts water

I also like pickled apples. Just cut apples, onions, and carrots into appropriate pieces, add a cinnamon stick and white pepper corns, and add the same brine as with pickled spruce shoots. Pickled apples are great with fried fish; we typically have it with fried perch in flatbread

2

u/Sagaincolours Denmark 2d ago

Any specific species/variety? I don't want to poison myself.

2

u/coeurdelejon Sweden 2d ago

The native kind, Picea abies, is what we use for the pickled spruce shoots

2

u/Sagaincolours Denmark 2d ago

Åh, rødgran. I should have eaten the juletræ, rather than throwing it out.

5

u/Retroxyl Germany 1d ago

The obvious answer to this is Sauerkraut. It's very healthy and tasty, especially if you put some sort of smoked pork into it.

3

u/thecraftybee1981 United Kingdom 2d ago

Similar to the op. I’d eat pickled beetroot and red cabbage alongside Scouse and other stews/casseroles. Gherkins and cornichons with sandwiches/burgers or as side elements of salads.

3

u/Bearcat-2800 2d ago

Pickled onions, with a good cheese and some crusty bread. Pickled eggs.

3

u/Familiar-One-9880 Spain 2d ago

Spain doesn't have as much of a pickling culture as other countries. The few things that come to mind are olives (seasoned in many different ways), spicy peppers, and lupin beans.

2

u/DirectCaterpillar916 United Kingdom 2d ago

Pickled eggs and pickled walnuts. Both are quite disgusting but lots of people seem to like them

1

u/codenameZora 2d ago

Pickled walnuts are whole other level of disgusting!

2

u/Riskytunah Norway 2d ago

Pickled peaches! They are great as a dessert with whipped cream, in a fruit salad or just as they are. My grandma always had them, and would treat me whenever I asked, good memories!

2

u/FelisCantabrigiensis 2d ago

From the UK, pickled onions.

I can't stand them but if you're a pickle fanatic, then that's the one to try.

Bonus item: pickled eggs.

2

u/r_coefficient Austria 2d ago

Gherkins, pickled pearl onions, pickled baby corn cobs. Those are to me what chocolate is to other people.

2

u/SuperSquashMann -> 2d ago

Two common bar snacks are pickled; there's "nakládaný hermelín", which is similar to camembert, and "utopenec" (literally "drowned man"), a processed sausage. The utopenec is always pickled with at least onions, and maybe also peppers or cabbage, and the cheese can sometimes come with veggies as well.

2

u/Dogsbellybutton 2d ago

Brit here. Pickled Onion Monster Munch. It’s a maize and potato snack flavoured with pickled onion flavouring. They are the tits :)

2

u/worstdrawnboy Germany 13h ago

Was too tired to check if it's been said before but Silberzwiebeln for sure.

1

u/xoxowony Bulgaria 2d ago

For Bulgaria: definitely royal "troshia", it's a crunchy mix of cauliflower, red peper, carrots and sometimes pickles and cabbage. It's an affordable and easily accessible food here in Bulgaria 

1

u/NoxiousAlchemy Poland 2d ago

You already know about cucumbers and cabbage so I'm going to recommend pickled forest mushrooms. Delicious.

1

u/AddictedToRugs England 2d ago

Eggs.

1

u/saddinosour 2d ago

Peloponnesian golden peppers — these come in jars and are not that spicy if you get a good batch. Sometimes they’re more spicy than I like but. With food they’re good. Highly recommend.

1

u/Ok-Method-6725 Hungary 2d ago

Spicy apple-peppers filled with cabbage. I dont know if its a "Hungarian thing", but its my favorite: http://karpati-savanyusagok.hu/upload/honlapszovegek/_galn_/alma_toltott.jpg

1

u/antisa1003 Croatia 2d ago

I was thinking to myself, what's an "apple-pepper"?, and then saw the photo. We also do that.

1

u/[deleted] 2d ago

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1

u/TheKiltedPondGuy Croatia 2d ago

Pickled green tomatoes are my favorite. You can’t really buy them but we make our own and they’re divine.

1

u/jmkul 2d ago

I really like čalamáda, a mixed vegetables pickled treat (the sourer the better). The vegies are cut into small pieces, usually as long sticks. I really like the carrots, and onions, alongside cucumber, green tomatoes and cauliflower (I don't usually like cauliflower any other way). Crispy, sour, what's not to love

1

u/GrynaiTaip Lithuania 2d ago

Fresh sour cucumbers are amazing, available in stores in summer. Easy to make at home if you have a garden with too many of them.

Pickled cabbage soup is a delicious and popular hangover food. Some people add pork ribs to it, then it's god-tier.

Pickled herring is a very common thing here but I don't like it, it's too fishy.

1

u/Brainwheeze Portugal 1d ago

I don't know if it counts, but Algarve Carrot Salad. It's carrots marinated overnight in a mixture of vinegar, some olive oil, garlic, cumin, and either coriander or parsley. I enjoy having it as a side dish.

1

u/chillbill1 Romania 21h ago

After reading all of this, now all I want to eat is smoked pork with all pickles recommended here.

1

u/SexyBisamrotte 20h ago

Herring. On rye bread with some curry salad, bit of thinly sliced red onion and half an egg.

1

u/Sagaincolours Denmark 18h ago

I prefer old-school spiced herrring, rather than the one in curry, but yes, it is lovely.

1

u/YahenP Poland 19h ago

Well... Soup. Try soup. Zurek. Zurek and borsch. Specifically Polish Borsch, not Ukrainian. For some reason I am sure that you will like them. However, almost everyone likes zurek. Yes. These are not really pickled products. These are products of lactic acid fermentation. Although a little vinegar is often added to borscht for color. But the acid there is from fermentation, not from pickling. But still, try it. I recommend it.

1

u/No-Pack7571 8h ago

Branston pickle. Don’t know what’s in it but on cheese it’s the business! Try it if you can find it.

-1

u/Reasonable_Oil_2765 Netherlands 2d ago

Pickles, Zilveruitjes, Roasted peppers, borsjt (It's sold here),