It would be very fair to state that Viennese cuisine does not get the attention of food critics as much as it should.
Austrian food, generally, is extremely wholesome and always include a combination of top ingredients to create some truly scrumptious dishes.
Most people would probably have already heard of apple strudel and possibly even wiener schnitzel, but they would not tend to be that familiar with Viennese cuisine as a whole.
Everything is mentioned about Italian and French cuisine, but poor Austria seems to take a bit of a back seat.
Is this fair, when they have such gorgeously unique food to offer?
Viennese cuisine has seen most of its influence come from the old Austro-Hungarian Empire.
Modern day Hungarian and Austrian dishes are not too dissimilar, with the well known goulash hotpots featuring as one of each country’s national dishes.
Influences have also come from other neighboring countries, and it is believed that wiener schnitzel itself, may have originated from Milan in Italy, during the 15th or 16th centuries.
As Austria can have a notoriously cold alpine climate, it is common for a main meal to start off with a steaming bowl of hot soup.
A very popular soup in Austria will seem, at first glance, to be an ordinary hearty chicken noodle soup.
However, closer inspection of the noodles would reveal that they are actually strips of pancakes. Sounds strange, but this really does work.
Wiener schnitzel does remain as a popular dish in Austria, although it would tend to be made of either pork or turkey now, rather than the more traditional veal. The dish is flattened and seasoned meat, wrapped in breadcrumbs and is ideal when served with a squirt of fresh lemon juice.
Austrian Gulasch is very similar to the paprika seasoned Hungarian goulash and other popular savory dishes include tafelspitz, which is boiled beef served with apple and horseradish sauces.
For the more adventurous, and you would need to be exceptionally brave for this one, you may like to sample beuschel, which is a ragout made of calf lungs and heart.
Viennese cuisine is probably best known internationally for their excellent desserts.
Apple strudel is a popular choice in many countries, as the apple, cinnamon and raisins, wrapped in
thin pastry is such a simple, but delicious idea for a sweet.
Sachertorte is equally popular in Austria and is an apricot filled chocolate cake that is far more complicated to make than the strudel.
People generally tend to enjoy this in cafés or purchase it from a shop now, as they have less time in their more hectic lives.
This chocolate cake is often served with whipped cream and this is perfect to accompany the richness of the cake.
So, here’s to good old fashioned Austrian cuisine.
