Lithuanian Recipes

Lithuanian food grows out of a cool, damp climate and a long farming tradition. Potatoes are the backbone: grated into cepelinai and kugelis, fried as pancakes and boiled beside nearly every main course. Dark rye bread comes with every meal, and sour cream, buttermilk and curd cheese are used daily. Pork and smoked meats dominate, with herring and river fish alongside. Beets make the famous pink cold soup, mushrooms and berries come from the forest, and cabbage is fermented for winter. Seasoning is restrained: dill, caraway, marjoram, onion and black pepper. The biggest meals fall on Christmas Eve, a meatless table with herring, mushrooms and poppy seed treats, and on Easter, when eggs and cured meats take over. Bakers favor dense honey cakes, poppy seed pastries and the tall, spiky šakotis baked on a spit. Gira (a bread drink) and mead have long been served at celebrations.

Staple ingredients

• potatoes
• dark rye bread
• pork and smoked meat
• sour cream and curd cheese
• beets
• herring
• wild mushrooms
• dill

• Appetizers 1
• Soups 2
• Main Dishes 5
• Desserts 2
• Snacks 1
• Drinks 1

Appetizers

• Marinuota Silkė (Lithuanian Marinated Herring with Onions)LT15 minEasy

Soups

• Šaltibarščiai (Lithuanian Cold Beet Soup)LT1 h 15 minEasy
• Grybų Sriuba (Lithuanian Mushroom and Barley Soup)LT1 h 15 minEasy

Main Dishes

• Cepelinai (Lithuanian Potato Dumplings with Meat)LT1 h 45 minChallenging
• Bulviniai Blynai (Lithuanian Potato Pancakes)LT50 minEasy
• Kibinai (Lithuanian Lamb and Onion Hand Pies)LT1 h 25 minMedium
• Koldūnai (Lithuanian Meat Dumplings)LT1 h 25 minMedium
• Kugelis (Lithuanian Baked Potato Pudding)LT1 h 50 minEasy

Desserts

• Kūčiukai su Aguonų Pienu (Lithuanian Christmas Eve Biscuits with Poppy Milk)LT1 h 25 minMedium
• Spurgos (Lithuanian Curd Cheese Doughnuts)LT35 minEasy

Snacks

• Kepta Duona (Lithuanian Fried Garlic Rye Bread)LT25 minEasy

Drinks

• Gira (Lithuanian Rye Bread Kvass)LT30 minEasy