舌尖上的荷蘭

Foods of the Netherlands may not be as well—known as French or Chinese cuisines but there are many Dutch delights which must be tried at least once. Heres a list of Dutch foods you should be sure to sample.

Poffertjes

Poffertjes are small， fluffy pancakes made with yeast1 and buckwheat2 flour. These tasty treats are prepared using a special pan with several shallow indentations3 in the bottom to hold the batter4 and make perfectly puffed small pancakes. Poffertjes are typically served topped with powdered sugar and butter.

Poffertjes are traditionally consumed in fall and winter when stands selling the delicious snack can be found at outdoor markets and on many street corners. They are usually served on a little paper plate with a tiny fork for smearing5 the butter and stabbing the cakes to ferry into your mouth. The wind blowing the powdered sugar around covering your face and clothing in white dust is part of the fun！

Bitterballen

Bitterballen are deep—fried6 snacks that are ubiquitous in cafes and bars all over the Netherlands. These savory orbs are battered in a crunchy7 breadcrumb coating and filled with a gooey8 mixture of chopped beef， beef broth， flour， butter， herbs and spices. They are typically served with mustard9 for dipping.

If youve never tasted bitterballen before， order them at a cafe as the perfect accompaniment to a round of beers. But be careful when you bite through the crunchy crust. The meaty ragout filling is often burning hot！

Stroopwafels

A delicious chewy cookie， the stroopwafel was first made in the town of Gouda in the Netherlands during the 18th century. In fact， until 1870 stroopwafels were made only in Gouda and there were about 100 bakeries selling these treats in that city alone.

This sweet snack is a waffle10 cookie made from two thin layers of batter with a sticky syrup filling in the middle. They can be purchased in packages at nearly every grocery store and bakery in the Netherlands， as well as freshly made at street stands at markets and festivals.

Stroopwafels are particularly good with a cup of coffee or tea. The cookies come in various sizes， but the most common diameter fits perfectly as a lid on a cup of hot liquid. This softens the cookie and melts the sweet syrup， making a delightful dessert or snack.

Koffie Verkeerd

Visit any cafe or restaurant in the Netherlands and you are sure to notice someone ordering a koffie verkeerd. This is the Dutch version of a caffè latte11 or café au lait12. It is traditionally a hot cup of coffee with a lot of warm milk， but is most commonly served as an espresso13 with a lot of steamed milk and some froth.

Koffie verkeerd means “wrong coffee，” because normal coffee would contain a dash of milk instead of the almost 50/50 ratio.

If you like milk in your coffee， order a koffie verkeerd with your breakfast or as an afternoon treat. Many people add a cube of sugar to their koffie verkeerd and stir it up with a little spoon. The Dutch almost always serve a little cookie with your coffee， which is a charming addition to this milky caffeinated delight.

Hollandse Nieuwe Haring

A very traditional food in the Netherlands， Hollandse nieuwe haring should be tried at least once. The raw herring fish is typically served with chopped onions， and can be eaten with or without bread.

Herring should only be called Hollandse nieuwe if caught between May and July. The fish should also be prepared according to the Dutch tradition where the freshly caught fish are gutted onboard the fishing boats， leaving the pancreas14 in the fish. The pancreatic enzymes perform much of the preservation of the haring， so that the brine15 they are kept in needs less salt.

Dutch herring are traditionally eaten by holding the fish by the tail and dunking it into your mouth with your head thrown back. If that doesnt seem appealing， haring can also be eaten in bite size pieces or on a sandwich called broodje haring.

Limburgse Vlaai

A delicious pie with a tasty light crust， Limburgse vlaai is often filled with fruits like cherries or apricots16. This type of pie is originally from the Limburg area in the south of the Netherlands， and is said to have been created in the town of Weert by a woman named Maria Hubertina Hendrix who sold her pies at the train station.

Vlaai differs from other pie recipes in a few ways. The batter is lighter than traditional pie crust， a bit more like a cake than a pie dough. Also， the pie itself is flatter and thinner than many American styles of pie.

Several varieties of vlaai can be found throughout the Netherlands. The most common have fruit fillings like cherries， apricots， plums， and apples. There is also a version called greumellevlaai that is filled with a buttery crumble mix and a rice pudding recipe called rijstevlaai.

Stamppot

Traditionally served during winter， stamppot might just be the epitome of Dutch cuisine. Hearty， nutritious， and tasty but not exactly what one would call haute17 cuisine.

This dish consists of mashed potatoes mixed with vegetables like kale18 or carrots19 and is traditionally served with rookworst （smoked sausage）. Want to eat stamppot like a real Dutchman？ Dig a little “pond” in your stamppot for the gravy！

Stamppot boerenkool （kale） is arguably the most popular version of this filling meal. Other types of stamppot are stamppot rauwe andijvie （raw endive20）， hutspot （onions and carrots） and zuurkool （sauerkraut21）.

Patat

A tasty but questionable Dutch culinary contribution is patat （frites）. These thick and crispy fries are said to have been invented in the northern part of Belgium， and are thus often called Vlaamse22 friet. Dutchies love their patat with copious amounts of mayonnaise23 and often supplement this popular treat with another fried snack on the side if you can believe it. This side dish may be frikandel or kroket， both deep—fried meaty snacks.

The Dutch enjoy their patat with mayonnaise and also with a combination of unique toppings. Try patatje oorlog， a conglomeration of peanut saté sauce， mayo and onions that might give your stomach a lesson about the meaning of the name （oorlog means war）. Or try the patat speciaal which includes curry ketchup， mayonnaise and onion. For the ultimate healthy meal， try the frikandel speciaal with curry ketchup， mayo and onions slathered24 on a frikandel sausage， and order a side25 of patat to dip in the leftover sauce.

荷蘭的食物可能不像法國或中國菜那樣聞名于世，但有許多獨富荷蘭風味的美食絕對值得一試。下面我們就來歷數一些荷蘭不可不嘗的美味。

荷式烤餅

荷式烤餅是一種小而松軟的煎餅，用蕎麥面和酵母制作而成。烙制這些可口的小甜點需要使用底部有若干淺凹槽的專用平底鍋來盛面糊，這可以使做成的小餅蓬松得恰到好處。吃烤餅的時候，上面通常會撒些糖粉，抹上黃油。

秋冬季節是荷式烤餅的傳統消費旺季，街頭巷尾和露天市場隨處可見賣這種美味小吃的攤點。人們常把烤餅放到一個小紙盤上，吃的時候用小叉子輕抹黃油，然后叉起小餅送入口中。風吹起糖粉，雪白的粉末落在臉頰和衣服上，這也是吃小餅的樂趣之一哦！

奶油肉丸

奶油肉丸是種油炸小吃，在荷蘭的小餐館和酒吧里隨處可見。這些美味肉丸的外皮有一層酥脆的面包屑，內里填充的則是由牛肉末、牛肉湯、面粉、黃油、香草和調味料混合而成的軟而黏的餡兒。奶油肉丸上桌時，通常還會配上芥末來供人們蘸食。

如果你從未品嘗過奶油肉丸，不妨在小餐館喝啤酒時點上一份，兩者堪稱絕配。不過，咬下肉丸那酥脆的外皮時要小心，因為里面的肉餡通常會非常燙！

蜜糖華夫餅干

蜜糖華夫餅干是一種味美而有嚼勁的甜點，最早出現于18世紀的荷蘭小城豪達。事實上，直到1870年，蜜糖華夫餅干也只有在豪達才有，當時僅在這一座城市就有約一百家烘焙屋出售這一甜點。

這款甜點是一種華夫餅狀的餅干，是由兩層薄薄的面糊烤制而成，中間夾一層粘稠的糖漿。在荷蘭，幾乎能在任何一家食品店和烘焙屋購買到帶包裝的蜜糖華夫餅干，此外，市場和節日活動場所的街頭小攤上還有現烤現賣的蜜糖華夫餅干。

蜜糖華夫餅干與咖啡或茶都是極好的搭配。蜜糖華夫餅干大小不一，但最常見的一種其大小恰好能放在一杯熱飲上當杯蓋用。杯中的熱氣可將餅干熏得松軟，同時也融化了甜美的糖漿，使其成為美妙的餐后甜點。

咖啡拉提

探訪荷蘭任何一家咖啡館或餐館，你都一定會發現有人點咖啡拉提。這其實是荷蘭版的拿鐵咖啡或歐蕾咖啡。傳統的咖啡拉提就是一杯含有大量溫牛奶的熱咖啡，但現在最常見的做法是在意式濃咖啡里加入大量蒸牛奶和一些奶泡。

其實“koffie verkeerd”的本意是“假咖啡”，因為正常的咖啡只含有少量的牛奶，而不是幾乎一半的咖啡沖上一半的牛奶。

如果你喜歡加牛奶的咖啡，不妨在早餐或下午茶時點上一杯咖啡拉提。許多人都會在咖啡拉提里加一塊方糖，用小勺慢慢攪。荷蘭人幾乎每次都會為你的咖啡拉提配上一塊小點心，為這美妙的牛奶咖啡又平添了幾分魅力。

荷蘭鮮鯡魚

荷蘭鮮鯡魚是一種非常傳統的荷蘭食品，無論如何都應該至少嘗試一次。人們通常將生鯡魚伴著洋蔥碎吃，搭不搭配面包均可。

只有在每年5月到7月間捕獲的鯡魚才能被稱為“荷蘭鮮魚”，這種魚還應遵循荷蘭傳統的做法來做：將剛捕獲的鮮魚在漁船上去內臟，但留下魚的胰腺。胰腺中的胰酶對鯡魚的保鮮起著很大作用，所以腌鯡魚時用的鹽水不需要太多鹽。

荷蘭鯡魚的傳統吃法是提著魚尾巴，仰頭一口將整條魚滑入口中。如果你不喜歡這種吃法，還可以將鯡魚斬成方便入口的小塊兒來吃，或者做成鯡魚三明治吃。

林堡水果派

美味可口的林堡水果派具有香甜而松脆的外皮，內里填充的餡兒通常是像車厘子或杏子這樣的水果。這種水果派起源于荷蘭南部的林堡地區，據說是由威爾特鎮的一位女士發明的。這位女士名叫瑪麗亞·胡伯蒂娜·漢德里克斯，她當時在火車站賣自己做的水果派。

林堡水果派的配方與其他派的配方有些許不同。與傳統派的派皮相比，做林堡蘋果派派皮的面糊更稀薄，這與做派的面團截然不同，倒有點像是用來做蛋糕的。另外，與許多美式派相比，這種派整體上更扁、更薄。

在荷蘭，你會發現各種不同風味的林堡水果派，最常見的是用車厘子、杏、李子和蘋果等水果制成的水果派。此外，還有兩種水果派的衍生品：一種叫greumellevlaai，是用黃油和面包屑做餡兒制成的派；另一種叫rijstevlaai，是粳米布丁派。

土豆菜泥

作為一款傳統冬季菜肴，土豆菜泥可以說是荷蘭的代表性美食。它非常豐盛、富含營養、美味可口，但確切地說并不是人們口稱之為的高級菜品。

這款菜肴是由土豆泥與諸如羽衣甘藍、胡蘿卜這樣的蔬菜混合而成，通常會搭配煙熏腸一起吃。你想像真正的荷蘭人那樣吃土豆菜泥嗎？那就在土豆泥里挖個“小洞”，澆上肉汁吃。

在各種令人飽腹的土豆菜泥中，最受歡迎的大概莫過于羽衣甘藍土豆泥。其他類型的土豆泥還包括生菊苣土豆泥、洋蔥胡蘿卜爛燉和泡菜土豆泥。

荷式炸薯條

荷蘭有一種好吃的炸薯條，但它究竟是否屬于荷蘭特有的美食尚存爭議。據說這種粗且脆的薯條是在比利時北部地區研制出來的，因此常被稱作佛拉芒薯條。荷蘭人喜歡在薯條上澆上大量的蛋黃醬，而且令人難以置信的是，他們在享用這一流行美食時，還經常搭配另一個油炸點心一起吃。這個作為配餐的點心可以是熱狗腸或者雞肉土豆棒——都是肉類油炸食品。

除了蛋黃醬外，荷蘭人還喜歡在薯條上搭配一些獨特的澆汁。你可以品嘗一下“薯條之戰”，其澆汁混合了花生沙嗲醬、蛋黃醬和洋蔥，能夠讓你的胃充分領略其名稱的含義（oorlog意為“戰爭”）?；蛘吣憧梢試L嘗“特色薯條”，其澆汁混合了咖喱番茄醬、蛋黃醬和洋蔥。如果想要最健康的吃法，可以嘗嘗特色熱狗，熱狗的香腸上澆滿咖喱番茄醬、蛋黃醬和洋蔥，然后再配上一份薯條，用薯條蘸著熱狗上多余的醬汁吃。

注釋

1. yeast n. 酵母，酵母粉

2. buckwheat n. 蕎麥，蕎麥粉

3. indentation n. 凹口，缺口

4. batter n. 糊，面糊

5. smear vt. 涂，抹

6. deep—fry：油炸，油煎

7. crunchy adj. （食物）硬脆的，松脆的

8. gooey adj. 軟而黏的，黏糊糊的

9. mustard n. 芥末，芥菜

10. waffle n. 華夫餅

11. caffè latte：拿鐵咖啡，意大利濃縮咖啡加牛奶（咖啡少，牛奶多）

12. café au lait：歐蕾咖啡，法式牛奶咖啡

13. espresso n. （蒸汽加壓煮出的）濃咖啡，由意大利人發明，并長期在意大利、西班牙和葡萄牙等南歐各國飲用。

14. pancreas n.〈解剖〉胰，胰腺

15. brine n. （腌制食品的）鹽水，鹵水

16. apricot n. 杏，杏樹

17. haute adj.〈法〉高級的，頂級的

18. kale n. 羽衣甘藍

19. carrot n. 胡蘿卜

20. endive n. 菊苣

21. sauerkraut n.〈美〉德國泡菜的一種；酸泡菜

22. Vlaamse：佛拉芒，說荷語的比利時人

23. mayonnaise n. 蛋黃醬

24. slather vt. 厚厚地涂

25. side n. 主菜以外的配菜