HungaryWhat to eat in Hungary: top 10 dishes
Traveling to Hungary? These are the ten dishes it is best known for, from everyday staples to festive classics, with a short background and a tip on where and when to eat each one. Ranked by how widely they are known around the world.
01Lángos
Lángos is a Hungarian flatbread. The dish was historically made of the last bits of the bread dough and baked at the front of a brick or clay oven, to be served hot as the breakfast of the bread-baking day.
Travel tip Fried dough sold at markets, festivals and street stands, traditionally topped with sour cream and grated cheese, and sometimes garlic. It is best eaten hot and by hand.
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02Dobos torte
Dobos torte, also known as Dobosh, is a Hungarian sponge cake layered with chocolate buttercream and topped with caramel. The layered pastry is named after its inventor, Hungarian chef József C. Dobos, a delicatessen owner in Budapest.
Travel tip A classic of Hungarian cafés and pastry shops, with thin sponge layers and a hard caramel top. Order a slice with coffee in the afternoon.
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03Lecsó
Lecsó, also anglicized as lecho, is a Hungarian thick vegetable ragout or stew which traditionally contains yellow pointed peppers, tomato, onion, salt, and ground sweet and/or hot paprika as a base recipe.
Travel tip A summer vegetable stew made with peppers, tomatoes and onions, eaten as a side dish or main with sausage or eggs. It is mostly home cooking, but traditional restaurants may offer it.
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04Fisherman's soup
Fisherman's soup or halászlé is a hot, spicy paprika-based fish soup. A folk item of Hungarian cuisine, it is a bright-red hot dish prepared with generous amounts of hot paprika and carp or mixed river fish.
Travel tip A spicy paprika fish soup, most closely linked with riverside towns on the Danube and Tisza. Look for it in riverside restaurants, often served in a small pot with bread.
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05Egg barley
Tarhonya or tarhoňa is a dried egg- and wheat-based ingredient found in Hungarian and Slovak cuisine. The ingredient was adapted from tarhana, which was introduced to Hungarians by the Ottoman Turks in the 16th century.
Travel tip Small pasta-like pellets used as a side dish, often toasted and then cooked, like rice or pasta. You will find it in home-style restaurants served beside stews and meats.
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06Esterházy torte
Esterházy torta is a Hungarian cake (torte) named after Prince Paul III Anton Esterházy de Galántha (1786–1866), a member of the Esterházy dynasty and diplomat of the Austrian Empire.
Travel tip A nutty cream cake with a distinctive fondant pattern on top. Look for it in traditional pastry shops and cafés alongside coffee.
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07Chicken paprikash
Chicken paprikash (Hungarian: paprikás csirke or csirkepaprikás) or paprika chicken is a popular Hungarian cuisine dish and one of the most famous variations of the paprikás preparations common to Hungarian tables.
Travel tip Chicken in a creamy paprika sauce, typically served with small dumplings called nokedli. It is a staple of home cooking and traditional restaurants.
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08Kalach
A kolach or kalach is a traditional bread found in Central and Eastern European cuisines, commonly served during various special occasions – particularly wedding celebrations, Christmas, Easter, and Dożynki.
Travel tip A festive braided bread known across Central and Eastern Europe, often baked for holidays and weddings. Look for it in bakeries or at festivals.
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09Szaloncukor
Szaloncukor is a type of sweet traditionally associated with Christmas in Hungary, Romania and Slovakia. It is a typical imported and adapted Hungarikum.
Travel tip A wrapped sweet hung on Christmas trees as a decoration and eaten at Christmas time. Seasonal shops and markets sell them in December.
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10Túró Rudi
Túró Rudi is the name of a curd snack which has been popular in Hungary since 1968. The bar is composed of a thin chocolate-flavored outer coating and an inner filling of túró (curd).
Travel tip A chocolate-covered curd snack sold in supermarkets and kiosks, popular with children and adults alike. Buy it cold from the refrigerated section.
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