When it comes to Belgian food, most tourists are well-acquainted with waffles, chocolate and fries. However, even though Belgium is a tiny country, it has a lot of lesser-known specialties to offer as well. Some of those are largely appreciated by foreign visitors, others not as much.
Taste Atlas, also known as the world food atlas, specialises in giving an overview of the best food, drinks and oddities countries from all around the world have to offer. Travellers can give their favourite discoveries a rating, which results in “best of” lists. They recently did so for Belgium and below is a list of 5 odd dishes that are not among the most appreciated by tourists, but they might still be worth a try!
1. Paling in ’t Groen
If you’ve never ordered one of these before, the green mess on your plate might deter you at first. Combing eel with white wine, parsley, spinach, mint, tarragon, sage, dill and lemon juice, this dish isn’t for the faint of heart, but many culinary enthusiasts rave about it.
2. Couque de Dinant
While many biscuits are known for their chewiness or overall softness, the couques de Dinant are famously tooth-breaking. Made out of only wheat flour and honey in equal amounts, they are a specialty you won’t find anywhere else in the world.
3. Bicky burger
Whenever you visit a Belgian festival, friterie or event of any kind, you’ll most probably find Bicky burgers on the menu. It might look like a hamburger at first but the special Bicky recipe has only been around since 1981 and the patty is made of a special combination of pork, chicken and horse meat. Served on a sesame-topped bun with Bicky sauce and pickles, fried onions, ketchup and hot sauce, not everyone might be able to appreciate this specialty.
4. Frikandel
Yet another friterie special. Frikandel is a skinless deep-fried sausage, served with a variety of sauces depending on the eater’s preferences. The snack is composed of pork, chicken and horse meat – even though horse meat is used less frequently nowadays.
5. Cougnou
Using a sweet wheat flour, sugar and butter mixture, cougnou tastes a lot like brioche and is usually sold and served around Christmas. It is also referenced to as “bread of Jesus”, as there is often a small sugary Jesus put on top of the bun. Depending on the maker, raisins or little pieces of chocolate can be integrated into the dough.
