The impressions left from your vacation in the territory of southern Palmyra will be incomplete if you do not get acquainted with Odesa cuisine and its culinary traditions. Going on a trip, you should make a personal gastronomic "map" of Odesa. And this selection of the best dishes of the "pearl by the sea" will help you do it.
It is known that local cuisine is multinational. It is believed to be a mix of Ukrainian and Jewish culinary traditions. But Armenians, Georgians, Uzbeks, Moldovans, Bulgarians, and others have contributed significantly to the cuisine with a bright seaside flavor.
The best dishes in Odesa
Tsimes from white string beans
The dish is a homogeneous mass cooked on the basis of legumes, with the addition of vegetables and tomato paste. It is customary to lay fried onion rings on top.
It's interesting: there are variants of Odesa tsimmes that are served on the festive table in the form of a sweet treat. For example, with dried fruit, honey, and vegetables.
Blue Caviar
This bright, traditional dish of Odesa cuisine is prepared from eggplants familiar to us. The appetizer is served with black bread.
Stuffed Fish
This dish holds a special place of honor among Odessians. The main peculiarity of stuffed fish is that the skin, removed by "stocking," is stuffed with minced meat. Additional ingredients include juicy vegetables, mushrooms, and greens.
Forshmak
This crowning dish of Odessa cuisine, which has Jewish roots, is made of herring, onions, and green apples. Lemon juice, walnuts, and several other "secret" components are added to it. Traditionally, forshmak is eaten with croutons of black bread.
Stuffed Neck
Fans of Jewish cuisine should definitely try stuffed schalet in Odessa, a soup based on chicken broth with dumplings. This first course is nicknamed "Odessa penicillin" by locals.
Desserts
It is customary to serve nalysnyky or juicy dumplings with cherries as a dessert. Also, guests of Odessa like vertuta with apples, made of stretched dough.
Seasonal Treats for Tourists
If you go on vacation to Odesa during the hot season, the local cuisine will please you with a wide range of dishes. For example, from May to September, restaurants offer steak from katran (a type of shark that lives in the Black Sea).
Also in the summer period, the menu of local restaurants expands with dishes based on mussels and rapans. The last inhabitants of the Black Sea are especially loved by guests of Odesa. As a rule, rapans are served baked with garlic dressing or made into "lazy" chops.
Alcoholic Drinks
Odesa is famous not only for its delicious cuisine, most dishes of which are cooked on the basis of fresh fish, but also for winemaking. After all, locals believe that a quality drink allows you to better appreciate the depth of taste sensations.
Odessians also advise tourists to try local tinctures of their own production. Many people like ginger and berry tinctures. But "horseradish" is for the adventurous.
If you prefer stronger alcohol, you should try raisin vodka (of Jewish origin) - "peysakhovka."
Where to Go Besides Restaurants and Cafes
Odessa begins with "Privoz." And it truly does. The oldest and most popular market in Odessa offers a vast selection of fish, including trout, mullet, and flounder, among many others. But surprisingly, gobies and tulka are quite popular. A local delicacy is the bittochki made from tulka. This fish is also smoked, dried, and fried.
Odessitians joke that tourists should arrive in this port city with an appetite. Only then can you fully experience the entire range of gastronomic tastes and delights of Odessa cuisine. We wish you an unforgettable trip and the opportunity to immerse yourself in the colorful culinary traditions of this southern Ukrainian city.
