European cuisine

European cuisine comprises the cuisines that originate from the various countries of Europe.
The cuisines of European countries are diverse, although there are some common characteristics that distinguish them from those of other regions. Compared with traditional cooking of East Asia, meat is more prominent and substantial in serving size. Many dairy products are utilised in cooking. There are hundreds of varieties of cheese and other fermented milk products. White wheat-flour bread has long been the prestige starch, but historically, most people ate bread, flatcakes, or porridge made from rye, spelt, barley, and oats. Those better-off would also make pasta, dumplings and pastries. The potato has become a major starch plant in the diet of Europeans and their diaspora since the European colonisation of the Americas. Maize is much less common in most European diets than it is in the Americas; however, corn meal (polenta or mămăligă) is a major part of the cuisine of Italy and the Balkans. Although flatbreads (especially with toppings such as pizza or tarte flambée) and rice are eaten in Europe, they are only staple foods in limited areas, particularly in Southern Europe. Salads (cold dishes with uncooked or cooked vegetables, sometimes with a dressing) are an integral part of European cuisine.
Formal European dinners are served in distinct courses. European presentation evolved from service à la française, or bringing multiple dishes to the table at once, into service à la russe, where dishes are presented sequentially. Usually, cold, hot and savoury, and sweet dishes are served strictly separately in this order, as hors d'oeuvre (appetizer) or soup, as entrée and main course, and as dessert. Dishes that are both sweet and savoury were common earlier in Ancient Roman cuisine, but are today uncommon, with sweet dishes being served only as dessert. A service where the guests are free to take food by themselves is termed a buffet, and is usually restricted to parties or holidays. Nevertheless, guests are expected to follow the same pattern.
Historically, European cuisine has been developed in the European royal and noble courts. European nobility was usually arms-bearing and lived in separate manors in the countryside. The knife was the primary eating implement (cutlery), and eating steaks and other foods that require cutting followed. This contrasted with East Asian cuisine, where the ruling class were the court officials, who had their food prepared ready to eat in the kitchen, to be eaten with chopsticks. The knife was supplanted by the spoon for soups, while the fork was introduced later in the early modern period, ca. 16th century. Today, most dishes are intended to be eaten with cutlery and only a few finger foods can be eaten with the hands in polite company.
History
Medieval
In medieval times, a person's diet varied depending on their social class. However cereal grains made up a lot of a medieval person's diet, regardless of social class. Bread was common to both classes; it was taken as a lunch for the working man, and thick slices of it were used as plates called trenchers. People of the noble class had access to finely ground flours for their breads and other baked goods. Noblemen were allowed to hunt for deer, boar, rabbits, birds, and other animals, giving them access to fresh meat and fish for their meals. Dishes for people of these classes were often heavily spiced. Spices at that time were very expensive, and the more spices used in dishes, the more wealth the person needed to purchase such ingredients. Common spices used were cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, pepper, cumin, cloves, turmeric, anise, and saffron. Other ingredients used in dishes for the nobility and clergy included sugar, almonds and dried fruits like raisins. These imported ingredients would have been very expensive and nearly impossible for commoners to obtain. When banquets were held, the dishes served would be very spectacular: another way for the noblemen to show how rich they were. Sugar sculptures would be placed on the tables as decoration and to eat, and foods would be dyed vibrant colors with imported spices.
The diet of a commoner would have been much simpler. Strict poaching laws prevented them from hunting, and if they did hunt and were caught, they could have parts of their limbs cut off or they could be killed. Much of the commoners' food would have been preserved in some way, such as through pickling or by being salted. Breads would have been made using rye or barley, and any vegetables would likely have been grown by the commoners themselves. Peasants would have likely been able to keep cows, and so would have access to milk, which then allowed them to make butter or cheese. When meat was eaten, it would have been beef, pork, or lamb. Commoners also ate a dish called pottage, a thick stew of vegetables, grains, and meat.
Early modern era
In the early modern era, European cuisine saw an influx of new ingredients due to the Columbian Exchange, such as the potato, tomato, eggplant, chocolate, bell pepper, pumpkins, and other squash. Distilled spirits, along with tea, coffee, and chocolate were all popularized during this time. In the 1780s, the idea of the modern restaurant was introduced in Paris; the French Revolution accelerated its development, quickly spreading around Europe.
Central European cuisines
All of these countries have their specialities. Among many such specialities, Austria is famous for Wiener schnitzel, a breaded veal cutlet served with a slice of lemon; the Czech Republic for world-renowned beers; Germany for world-famous wursts, Hungary for goulash. Slovakia is famous for gnocchi-like halušky pasta. Slovenia is known for German- and Italian-influenced cuisine, Poland for pierogis which are a cross between ravioli and empanada. Liechtenstein and German-speaking Switzerland are famous for Rösti and French-speaking Switzerland for fondue and raclettes.
Ashkenazi Jewish cuisine
Austrian cuisine
Viennese cuisine
Czech cuisine
Moravian cuisine
German cuisine
Baden cuisine
Bavarian cuisine
Brandenburg cuisine
Franconian cuisine
Hamburg cuisine
Hessian cuisine
Lower Saxon cuisine
Mecklenburg cuisine
Palatine cuisine
Pomeranian cuisine
Saxon cuisine
Ore Mountain cuisine
Schleswig-Holstein cuisine
Swabian cuisine
Hungarian cuisine
Polish cuisine
Lublin cuisine
Podlaskie cuisine
Świętokrzyskie cuisine
Liechtensteiner cuisine
Silesian cuisine
Slovak cuisine
Slovenian cuisine
Swiss cuisine
Eastern European cuisines
Armenian cuisine
Azerbaijani cuisine
Belarusian cuisine
Bulgarian cuisine
Cossack cuisine
Georgian cuisine
Kazakh cuisine
Moldovan cuisine
Gagauz cuisine
Ossetian cuisine
Romanian cuisine
Transylvanian Saxon cuisine
Russian cuisine
Bashkir cuisine
Chechen cuisine
Circassian cuisine
Komi cuisine
Mordovian cuisine
Tatar cuisine
Udmurt cuisine
Yamal cuisine
Ukrainian cuisine
Crimean Tatar cuisine
Odesite cuisine
Northern European cuisines
British cuisine
Channel Islands cuisine
English cuisine
Cornish cuisine
Devonian cuisine
Dorset cuisine
Victorian cuisine
Northern Irish cuisine
Scottish cuisine
Welsh cuisine
Cuisine of Carmarthenshire
Cuisine of Ceredigion
Cuisine of Gower
Cuisine of Monmouthshire
Cuisine of Pembrokeshire
Danish cuisine
Faroese cuisine
New Nordic Cuisine
Estonian cuisine
Finnish cuisine
Icelandic cuisine
Irish cuisine
Latvian cuisine
Lithuanian cuisine
Livonian cuisine
Norwegian cuisine
Sami cuisine
Swedish cuisine
Southern European cuisines
Albanian cuisine
Kosovan cuisine
Aromanian cuisine
Bosnian cuisine
Croatian cuisine
Cypriot cuisine
Gibraltarian cuisine
Greek cuisine
Ancient Greek cuisine
Byzantine cuisine
Cretan cuisine
Epirotic cuisine
Greek Macedonian cuisine
Ionian cuisine
Italian cuisine
Abruzzian cuisine
Ancient Roman cuisine
Apulian cuisine
Arbëreshë cuisine
Ligurian cuisine
Lombard cuisine
Mantuan cuisine
Lucanian cuisine
Neapolitan cuisine
Roman cuisine
Sardinian cuisine
Sicilian cuisine
Venetian cuisine
Macedonian cuisine
Maltese cuisine
Montenegrin cuisine
Ottoman cuisine
Portuguese cuisine
Sammarinese cuisine
Sephardic Jewish cuisine
Serbian cuisine
Spanish cuisine
Andalusian cuisine
Aragonese cuisine
Asturian cuisine
Balearic cuisine
Menorcan cuisine
Basque cuisine
Canarian cuisine
Cantabrian cuisine
Castilian-Leonese cuisine
Vallisoletano cuisine
Catalan cuisine
Castilian-Manchego cuisine
Extremaduran cuisine
Galician cuisine
Madrilenian cuisine
Valencian cuisine
Turkish cuisine
Western European cuisines
Belgian cuisine
Dutch cuisine
French cuisine
Corsican cuisine
Cuisine of Gascony
Haute cuisine
Cuisine classique
Nouvelle cuisine
Lyonnaise cuisine
Limburgian cuisine
Luxembourgian cuisine
Mennonite cuisine
Monégasque cuisine
Occitan cuisine
See also
Early modern European cuisine
Roman cuisine
Medieval cuisine
Romani cuisine
Soviet cuisine
Yoshoku
References
Further reading
Food- and drink-related lists
Cuisine by continent
Western cuisine