De Rooi, M., & Drenth, J. (2012). The Dutch, I presume? Icons of the Netherlands. Alphen aan den Rijn: Dutch. Dutch delight The Netherlands is seen as a culinary desert by many captured this position there was no going back. Many foreigners; a country full of people who mash all Dutch people swear by a classic meal of meat, vegeta their food and eat raw fish. Even so, 73 Dutch restau bles and a generous helping of potatoes with gravy. rants are listed in the Michelin 'food bible', and in the Even so, this is only one part of Dutch cuisine. Of better establishments typical Dutch specialities like course, there are still Dutch people who almost have sprouts mashed with potatoes are the latest trend. a heart attack when they hear a vegetarian is coming to dinner, and the average annual consumption of the All the criticism aimed at Dutch cuisine suggests that traditional potato is 85 kilos per capita. However, potato the Netherlands is not the place to go for a culinary variations like chips and rosti are becoming increasingly holiday. Dutch cuisine is said to be one big hotchpotch. common, and rice and pasta have slowly been gaining The Dutch like to eat potatoes mashed with vegetables, ground for decades. In addition, different eating habits and soup that is so filling it is a meal in itself. The Dutch such as vegetarianism are more common and more ac mash their food together and are no connoisseurs, as cepted in the Netherlands than in neighbouring countries. is evident from their love of raw herring and balkenbrij. In fact many Dutch people like experimenting in the all What on earth is balkenbrij? Most Dutch people may kitchen. They devote considerable time and attention have heard of this old-fashioned dish made with offal, blood and fat, but they have never seen it, let alone tasted it.
The Dutch like variation, sometimes eating traditional food and sometimes opting for exotic.
Fables like this are not uncommon in articles on Dutch cooking. To put the record straight, offal, cur ried rabbit and fish pudding do not appear on the day to-day menu of a typical Dutch family. It is interest ing to see that the names of these dishes are often spelled incorrectly. Perhaps this is a reflection of the accuracy of the culinary research. However, this does not mean that all the information is incorrect. Dutch people do eat hotchpotch, potatoes mashed with kale, and filling soups. These are popu lar traditional winter dishes. Raw herring, preferably consumed fresh from the fish van, is another favourite, and is considered a delicacy by many Dutch people. Contrary to what many people think, the potato does not originate from the Netherlands. This misconcep tion may be due to the famous Van Gogh painting The Potato Eaters. The Spanish brought the potato to Europe from South America in the 16th century. It took a long time for this tuber to become the mainstay of 01 Successful integration: tourist consuming a raw herring the classical way 02 Traditional winter dish: hotchpotch with smoked the evening meal in the Netherlands, but once it had sausage 04 To be found in every Dutch kitchen: the masher
Dutch cuisine 79 De Rooi, M., & Drenth, J. (2012). The Dutch, I presume? Icons of the Netherlands. Alphen aan den Rijn: Dutch. De Rooi, M., & Drenth, J. (2012). The Dutch, I presume? Icons of the Netherlands. Alphen aan den Rijn: Dutch. De Rooi, M., & Drenth, J. (2012). The Dutch, I presume? Icons of the Netherlands. Alphen aan den Rijn: Dutch.