Cuisine of Liotain

Liotainian cuisine is noted for its extensive use of the country's native grains, fruits and vegetables.  In general, Liotainians usually eat a light and early breakfast, often of cooked oats or sorghum, possibly accompanied by buttered flatbreads and fruits.  A midday meal is served between 1 to 2 PM, and is the largest meal of the day, with the widest potential variety of dishes.  An evening meal is served between 6 to 8 PM, often with leftovers from a previous day - or easily-prepared dishes - accompanied by boiled, smoked, or grilled vegetables.

Foreigners find Liotainian cuisine fairly spicy, and visitors are encouraged to be cautious about unwarily consuming food.

Particularly noteworthy is the use of peppers (*pipirai*) of various types.  A favorite dish is *idaryta pipirai*, where a mild pepper (usually a *plati* or Birzai pepper) is stuffed with meat and cheese, coated in egg, and then cooked.  *Idaryta pipirai* is fast becoming a traditional dish for certain Orthodox holidays, such as Svent Matas Day.  Peppers, both stuffed and otherwise, are used in virtually all regions of Liotain.

Sorghum is more widely harvested than wheat, and is used to make a variety of flatbreads (or *paplociai*)  which form one of the staples of a normal Liotainian meal.  Tomato sauce, cheeses, and other toppings are sometimes placed atop a large slice of paplociai in order to make *pica*, which is sliced and served; pica is a very popular meal.  Paplociai is also wrapped around meat and vegetable fillings, resulting in *plevele*, which often serves as a simple afternoon meal.

Beef, sausage and chicken are the three major meats used in Liotainian cooking.  As with many foods, they are often heavily-seasoned or spiced.  One of the easier and more common meals, particularly for dinners, is *maisant kepkite*, which is prepared by cooking strips of meat on an iron pan, adding diced peppers, garlic, and other various ingredients, which is then served on a small slice of paplociai flatbread.  Preparing a spicy *maisant kepkite* (and the attendant paplociai) is viewed as one of the basic cooking skills taught to Liotainian children.

Fruit is served at the majority of meals, with figs being the single most common item on virtually any table, trailed closely by mangoes, citrus (primarily oranges), pomegranates, and finally pears.  Most desserts incorporate fruit in some fashion or another. Although not native to Liotain, bananas and pineapples were both introduced in the 1840s, and a small number of plantations grow them for domestic consumption.  These two fruits generally serve as luxury foods, however, not being commonly available outside of rich neighborhoods. Liotain is a major cultivar of wine grapes, which represents a major industry within the country, as well as a primary export.  Liotainian wine is organized by various wine regions, with Dainava, Svedasai, and Rekyva being the most well-recognized wines.  These three wines are limited by law, which protects other products being sold under their brand name.  The somewhat generic *Vynasai* (a fortified wine from the Eletrenai coastal plain) is one of the most common wines native to Liotain, being readily-accessible to most of the population.  *Vynasai* is common enough that the term may be used outside the country to apply to Liotainian wines in general, although this is a misnomer.

*Granatu* (a pomegranate fruit wine) and *ananasu* (pineapple wine) are also regularly used in accompaniment with Liotainian cuisine.  Fruit wines in general remain a small but steadily-growing segment of the wine market. Wine with very low alcohol content is served at most meals, and there is little opprobrium about its consumption outside of drunkenness.