Plenty To Eat In Switzerland
Traveling in Switzerland is a delicious experience. Traditionally, Swiss food is not very fancy – potatoes, cheese, and wurst. It is, for the most part, hearty peasant food. This does not mean that it is not delicious! Sure, you can go to places where there are much fancier foods, but you will miss the joy of simple and tasty food. Here is a list of a few foods to try when you are visiting Switzerland.
Walliser Dried Meat Plate: The folks in the Walliser region of Switzerland know what they are doing when it comes to dried meat. A sampler platter of Swiss dried meats (Trokenfleish – dried beef; speck – bacon; ham, dried sausage plus a few slices of gruyere cheese and some rustic bread makes for a great snack or light lunch. These meat plates are served all around Switzerland in the many cafes that you come across there.
Schöggi Weggli: Swiss chocolate chunks baked in buttery, rich broche type bread! The best are in Basel! Enough Said!
Birchermuesli: The ultimate Swiss breakfast served at every hotel in Switzerland. Creamy yogurt, oats and fruit! It is the breakfast of champions that is easy to make at home. A simple recipe is right here.
Rösti: This is where the potatoes come in! Shredded potatoes formed into a thick pancake, tender on the inside and crunchy on the outside, then topped with a variety of toppings from the classic cheese and egg to the rich beef tenderloin in cafe de Paris butter. Rösti is a simple and delicious entry point to Swiss foods. It does not get much simpler than this. Need a great recipe and serving suggestions? Click here. Rösti is easy to do at home and makes a great weekday meal.
Fondue: A Swiss food post would not be complete without a discussion of Fondue! But what more can one say? A pot of bubbling cheese into which you dip chunks of bread is simply decadent and delicious. It can come in a few varieties – with herbs or mushrooms, etc, but the Moite Moite (half gruyere cheese – half vacheron Fribourgoise cheese) classic is truly the best. It is so good, they even made a Swiss watch to honor it! The best thing about fondu is that it is just as delicious at home!
Raclette: The only other place in the cuisine of Switzerland where cheese takes a staring role is in Fondue’s cousin Raclette. In fondue, the cheese bubbles, already melted for dipping. In Raclette, the Raclette cheese (the cheese also used to top Rösti) is forcibly melted under a burner at the table and scraped oozingly onto potatoes. Cheese and Potatoes! Yes, Cheese and Potatoes!
Klöpfer: The klöpfer or cervelat, is, in the eyes of the Swiss, the best of the Wurst! It is the home favorite wurst and about 160 million of them are eaten each year across Switzerland. When EU rules about BSE threatened the sausage’s existence (the casing comes from a certain cow from South America with a higher risk of BSE), the country’s resources were rallied to save the beloved sausage and save it they did! The pork and beef sausage has a snap to it and is delicious hot off the grill with a little mustard. It is another example of a peasant delicacy that is enjoyed in Switzerland. It can be found on just about every grill and even on salads served at most restaurants.
Kalb Geschnetzeltes Züricher Art: Veal Slices Zurich Style! Strips of tender veal in a rich and creamy sauce. This is a tasty dish, one of the heights of Swiss dining. It is perfect on noodles so as not to lose an ounce of the delicious sauce. It would also be fine right on top of a nice rösti.
Apfelstrudel: What can you say about delicious apples wrapped in light pastry except delicious! There is ample apfelstrudel in Switzerland. Classically served with a vanilla sauce, apfelstrudel is a sure hit. Try it with some cinnamon ice cream if you can!
Gruyere: The Swiss are masters of cheese and gruyere is some of their best work! All those cows in the mountains eating tasty grass make milk so rich and flavorful that only great cheese can be made. Get yourself a chuck of gruyere, a hot pretzel and a tall beer and you won’t ever leave Switzerland. And, no, you don’t need any mustard for your pretzel! Another cheese to try is Emmentaler. It is Swiss cheese! Full of holes and nutty flavor – Delicious!
Läckerli: If in Basel, swing by the Läckerli Huis for a delicious Basler treat. Leckerli are simple spiced cookies that have been made in Basel for centuries. A perfect snack with coffee or to take with you to nosh on while on the train. Very tasty and worth seeking out.
I hope you enjoy!
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Have you been to Switzerland? What did you eat there? Let us know all about it in the comments or on Facebook.
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