Dutch dinner featuring 5 traditional dishes

Dutch Herring 'Hollandse Nieuwe'

Haring or ‘Hollandse Nieuwe’ (Dutch new herring) is probably the most famous Dutch food. If you like fish you should at least try it once. The cured herring is served together with chopped raw onions and gherkins. Also the way of eating is a real Dutch tradition. In the Netherlands new herring is eaten by lifting up the herring by its tail into the air and and dunking it into your mouth with your head thrown back. Of course you can also enjoy this Dutch delight by eating it in little pieces. Herring can only be called ‘Hollandse Nieuwe’ if the fish is caught between May and July. Also the preparation is quite special and must be done according to the Dutch tradition. The herring is cleaned, the head is removed and it is conserved in a special way (with salt).

Spring Summer: Light vegetable soup

Autumn Winter: Pea Soup with Smoked Sausage 'Snert/Erwtensoep'

Holland's version of pea soup is a thick green stew of split peas, celery, onions, carrots and leeks, and contrary to its name, it's completely delicious, widely consumed all over the Netherlands. The thick ‘erwtensoep’ is traditionally eaten during the winter with slices of ‘rookworst’ (smoked sausage) and rye bread with ‘katenspek’ (a type of Dutch bacon, first cooked and then smoked).
The Dutch consider that well-made ‘erwtensoep’ should be so thick that your spoon should stay vertically in it. That is why ‘erwtensoep’ is often eaten the next day when the flavors are better mixed and the soup got even thicker. (Snert makes for a hearty winter snack traditionally served up by street vendors to ice skaters on the frozen canals).

Summer: Mash pot of salad

Spring: Dutch Asparagus the classic way

Asperges are typical Dutch. Brabant and the northern part of Limburg are the two areas that are famous for the quality, and the quantity, of its asparagus. During harvesting time, pretty much each village in the area will host an asparagus fest, feed or fair. The vegetable, nicknamed 'white gold' because of the exorbitant prices it can fetch on the market, draws fans and foodies from far across the international borders.

Winter: Mash Pot with Smoked Sausage 'Stamppot met Rookworst'

Stamppot is an old-style Dutch dish and is the ultimate Dutch comfort food, literally translated as 'mash pot'. This traditional dish involves mashed potatoes mixed with one or more vegetables like kale, carrots, endive or sauerkraut. ‘Stamppot’ is traditionally served during the winter and enjoyed best with a little bit of mustard and ‘rookworst’ a typically Dutch smoked sausage which taste is comparable to a hotdog, but ‘rookworst’ is bigger and the skin is a bit crispier.

Golden Age Waffle with fresh Forest Fruit and whipped Cream

Coffee or tea with Syrup Waffle (Stroopwafel)

Popular throughout the world, the ‘stroopwafel’ is undoubtedly the most famous and popular pastry from The Netherlands. A ‘stroopwafel’ is a unique kind of cookie. It is a waffle made from baked batter and sliced horizontally. The two thin layers of the waffle are filled with special sweet and sticky syrup (the ‘stroop’) in between. The stiff batter for the waffles is made from butter, flour, yeast, milk, brown sugar and eggs. The ‘stroopwafel’ originates from Gouda, a place south of Amsterdam. It was first made during the late 18th or early 19th century by a baker using leftovers from the bakery, such as breadcrumbs and sweetened it with syrup.

Dutch licorice 'Drop'

The Dutch love licorice or as we called it ‘drop’. With more than 2 kilograms per year per person the Dutch consumption of licorice is the highest in the world. There is a flavor or type of drop for every taste from sweet to salty, hard to soft. Drop comes in many shapes and sizes. As a present I give you five different types to try on your way back to your hotel.