Cuisine? International. A country with an incredible culinary tradition
In Luxembourg, the cultural diversity of the population, the country's central geographical position in Europe and the history of local cuisine all come together to create an environment conducive to culinary creation. From simple hearty cooking to haute cuisine, from traditional Luxembourgish dishes to Asian fusion, here you can indulge your taste buds with top-quality local produce, excellent beers and wines that you won't find anywhere else, and the latest creations of innovative chefs.
Traditional Luxembourgish cuisine
Luxembourgish cuisine stands out as a result of its strong relationship with home produce. It is basically simple cuisine marked by regional produce. It consists of potatoes, fruit and vegetables, meat and fish from the country's fields, forests and rivers, which fed the population – especially the rural population – for centuries.
As a result, traditional Luxembourgish cuisine is mainly made up of rich and tasty dishes. Potatoes are often one of their main ingredients. Sautéed, salted, fried or mashed, they are part of Luxembourgish dishes as a side dish, as a main dish or as a snack.
New interpretations of old-time recipes are gaining in popularity both in the sphere of home cooking and gastronomic excellence.
Luxembourgish wines and beer are also part of the equation and are experiencing a real revival. Microbreweries deliver a huge variety of beers and Luxembourgish winemakers produce wines and sparkling wines that can compete with the best in the world.
Traditional Luxembourgish cuisine is indisputably still very much alive.
Here is a (non-exhaustive) list of a few typical dishes, along with their Luxembourgish names, that you probably came across on menus here:
- 'Bouneschlupp': green bean soup, to which carrots, onions, leek, celery, potatoes, milk or cream and smoked bacon can be added;
- 'Judd mat Gaardebounen': smoked pork neck with broad beans, often served with potatoes;
- 'Kuddelfleck': tripe served breaded or with a spicy tomato sauce;
- Träipen: blood sausages served with apple sauce or potato purée;
- Stäerzelen: a dish made of buckwheat flour with smoked bacon and sometimes cream;
- 'Friture': small fried fish from Luxembourg's part of the Moselle river - finger food;
International cuisine
But Luxembourgish cuisine does not only consist of age old recipes. Many foreign influences have left a trace in the Luxembourgers' cooking pots: the centuries of foreign dominion (15th to 19th century), followed by waves of European migration into the country (from the 19th century onwards) have each left their mark on the country. Far from blocking foreign influences, Luxembourgers adopted them, which is why traces of all European countries can be found in Luxembourgish cuisine.
In particular, Italian cuisine has spiced up Luxembourg's plates. Italian immigrants of the 19th and 20th centuries – the labour force for the country's steelworks – brought with them their regions' typical dishes,
the most famous example of which is pasta asciutta, which was simply renamed Pastaschutta in Luxembourg. This dish is based on dry ingredients and was adopted by Luxembourgers who added minced meat, tomato sauce, garlic, etc.
Michelin stars
The diversity of Luxembourgish cuisine is reflected in quality restaurants. Each year, food lovers wait impatiently for the new editions of the greatest culinary reference books to be published: the Michelin Guide and the Gault & Millau.
Through them, you will discover dozens restaurants who have been awarded stars of toques to flatter your taste buds, not to mention the many 'Bibs Gourmands' (a feature meaning restaurants with exceptionally good food at a moderate price) of the Michelin Guide. They will take you on a journey of discovery to a land where culinary art goes hand in hand with the art of good living.
There's just one thing left for us to say - Gudden Appetit
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