Cheeses and local products
With a production of around 800,000 tons per year, the Netherlands is one of the largest producers and exporters of cheese in the world. And also one of the biggest consumers, with an average of 22 kg per year and per inhabitant. If in France you often find Dutch cheeses slightly boring, in the Netherlands you will discover many delicious, long-aged cheeses.
In the Netherlands, most cheeses (kaas) are hard and made from cow's milk. The best known varieties are gouda and edam, but there are many others, such as beemster, which is similar to gouda, and the creamier limburger, which is also produced in Germany and Belgium and tastes similar to munster. The Dutch also love cheeses flavored with cumin, caraway, mustard seeds and other spices. This is the case of leidse or kanterkaas, which are part of the komijnekaas, or cumin cheeses. The nagelkaas from Friesland, in the north of the country, is flavored with cloves. The brandnetelkaas is garnished with nettles which give it a spicy and almost garlicky taste. Finally, delfts blauw is one of the few Dutch blue-veined cheeses. Other cheeses, such as maasdam or leerdammer, are actually industrial brands.
The term boerenkaas, which can be translated as "farmer's cheese", encompasses a variety of products that have the common characteristic of being made from raw milk. For the discerning palate, it is recommended to try a boeren gatenkaas and an overjarige boerenkaas
, old cheeses with a strong taste and full of character. Mimolette, on the other hand, is not Dutch as is often believed, but comes from Lille. It was created to imitate edam, whose trade was banned in the 17th century under Colbert, to favor French products. Indeed, many Dutch cheeses were already very appreciated in Europe, especially for their good conservation, thanks to the thick layer of wax that covers them. In the Middle Ages, cheese production and trade were central to the life of the country. Haarlem was the first city to receive the right to hold a cheese market in 1266. This was followed by Leiden in 1303, then Oudewater in 1326 and finally Alkmaar in 1365. The Alkmaar cheese market remains extremely popular, both for locals and tourists. In Amsterdam, the Albert Cuypmarkt offers a wide range of Dutch specialties and of course many cheeses, which come in every conceivable form and variety, including some more modern variations, flavored with basil, chili or even spirulina.Spices and rijsttafel
During the 17th century, the Netherlands - then the United Provinces - entered a period of unprecedented economic development, known as the Gouden Eeuw
or Dutch Golden Age. Thanks to an efficient and modern merchant navy, Dutch sailors criss-crossed the seas and created colonial trading posts throughout the world, particularly in Asia. This economic boom resulted in the Netherlands taking control of the very lucrative spice trade, which was then sold at a high price in Europe. Indonesia remained under Dutch control until 1949 after several centuries of trade, creating a very tasty fusion cuisine.Nasibal is a perfect example. This recipe consists of steamed rice mixed with pork, vegetables, spices and a chili paste called sambal. The whole thing is molded into croquettes and then breaded and fried. You can even find it in vending machines (snackautomaten). The bamischijf is a similar snack prepared with noodles. The spekkoek
is an Indonesian-influenced cinnamon cake with many layers of dough in different colors that requires careful preparation. More than just a specialty, the rijsttafel (understand "rice table") is a banquet with up to 50 different dishes. While the recipes are undeniably Asian, the origin of this type of buffet is actually colonial, created by wealthy Dutch landowners in Indonesia to show their financial affluence. Other purely Indonesian dishes are also very popular such as rendang, a very spicy beef stew with coconut milk, satays, small chicken skewers served with a peanut sauce or nasi goreng, a stir-fried rice with omelette and vegetables.The essentials of Dutch cuisine
In the Netherlands, a wide variety of cold cuts and cheeses are served as an appetizer, usually with beer, such as metworst, a dry sausage from the north of the country, or ossenworst, a spicy and smoked beef sausage. The whole thing is accompanied by a dense, dark rye bread (roggebrood). Bitterballen are small fried dumplings made of beef or veal, served with mustard. In the same way, kroketten are breaded sausage-like croquettes filled with beef, fish or shrimp and bound with a béchamel sauce. Worstenbroodje is a sausage roll. Kibbeling
are fried fish cubes served with tartar sauce.The Dutch are very fond of seafood and fish, which is not surprising with a territory mostly surrounded by sea and estuaries. Oysters from Zeeland, smoked eels, grey shrimps, mussels, fish of all kinds including the famous herring in brine called maatjes or Hollandse nieuwe
. If it is often served in a bun with gherkin and raw onion, it can also be eaten the Dutch way: by taking it by the tail and gulping it down in one go. The locals love it.Stamppot is a traditional Dutch dish of sausages (rookworst) served with mashed potatoes, spinach and sauerkraut. A rich dish, perfect for cold winter days.Erwtensoep - or snert
- is the national split pea soup, almost as thick as a purée, often with slices of sausage. The French and the Belgians often fight over the paternity of the French fries, but in the Netherlands you can also find French fries bars absolutely everywhere. Often served as they are, they also exist in an even more substantial form: patatjes oorlog. These "war fries" - literally translated - are drowned in mayonnaise and satay sauce, then generously garnished with chopped onion. The fries are also served with braadworst (spicy sausage) or frikandellen (fricadelle), which are croquettes of minced meat - beef, pork, chicken, etc. - fried. Slavink is a tasty pork and beef patty with bacon on top.Sweets and coffee
On the sweet side, there is a wide variety of cakes, pastries, entremets and other sweets such as salted licorice called zoute drop. The most emblematic sweet is certainly the stroopwafel, consisting of two crispy wafers that hide a heart of brown sugar caramel flavored with cinnamon. Although it's hard to enjoy this snack without dripping caramel on it, these wafers are divine. In another style, poffertjes are small, plump pancakes sprinkled with powdered sugar and often accompanied by red fruit or spread. More substantial, oliebollen, which could be translated by the very explicit "oil ball", are small raisin doughnuts traditionally served for New Year's Day and, more widely, in winter. They are said to be the origin of the famous American donuts, imported by the Dutch into the New York area in the 17th century. More sophisticated, the bossche bol
originates from the city of 's-Hertogenbosch, although it can be found in all the pastry shops of Amsterdam. This large profiterole is filled with whipped cream before being covered with a layer of dark chocolate. Although the Dutch don't use much spice in their cooking, some pastries are generously flavored with cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg and white pepper. This is particularly true of speculoos, which are served with any hot drink in the country. The ontbijtkoek or peperkoek is a kind of local gingerbread made of rye flour. If the popular appeltaart is just an apple pie, it is very different from what we find in France. It is thicker and richly filled with raisins and spices. In another style the Limburgse vlaai is a pie from the south of the Netherlands. It is filled with cherries, plums or apricots and then covered with a criss-cross of dough that gives it its crispness.In the kingdom of beer
Like Belgium, the production and consumption of beer is deeply rooted in the culture of the Netherlands, and since the Middle Ages, the region has been an important brewing center. The country is one of the largest producers and exporters of beer in the world. The giant Heineken, thesecond largest brewer in the world, owns nearly 250 brands worldwide, including the famous Heineken, but also the Amstel. There are also other important breweries such as Grolsch, Bavaria, Brouwerij 't IJ and Arcense Bierbrouwerij. In 2021, there are more than 800 breweries in the country, of which a large proportion are microbreweries. In most cafés, draught beers are served in a pint called " een grote pils ". For a smaller size, order " een pils " or even smaller " een fluitje
".White beer - particularly refreshing - is drunk in summer. Stronger brown beers are more common in the south of the country, such as in the province of Limburg, between Belgium and Germany.
Of the 11 Trappist beers recognized by ATP (Authentic Trappist Product
), two are produced in the Netherlands. Trappe is brewed at the Koningshoeven Abbey in the village of Berkel-Enschot, and Zundert comes from the De Kievit brewery at the Zundert Abbey in the south of the Netherlands, not far from the Belgian border. In addition to beer, the Netherlands has a small production of wine, strongly localized in the southeast of the country, where the warmer climate in summer allows a respectable ripening of the grapes. There is also jenever, a spirit flavored with juniper berries, the local equivalent of British gin, beerenburg, a brandy containing various aromatics (gentian, laurel, licorice, juniper, etc.) or kraamanijs, a kind of anisette. Finally,advocaat is a creamy liqueur made from eggs, sugar and brandy (grape brandy).
