1800s · De Negentiende Eeuw

The Nineteenth Century

The potato rules, factory margarine is invented in the Netherlands, and the household manual codifies plain cooking.

Holland

Kalfskroket (Veal Croquette)

Kalfskroket

The genteel elder of the Dutch croquette — a delicate veal ragout set with a hint of nutmeg, breaded and fried pale gold, the café-terrace bite with mustard.

75 minAdvanced

Stews

Holland

Runderlappen (Braised Beef Slices)

Runderlappen

The foundational Dutch braise — thick beef slices browned in butter and simmered hours in a dark, mustard-sharpened jus until fork-tender. Sunday food.

200 minBeginner

Ontbijtkoek (Dutch Spiced Breakfast Cake)

Sweets

The East

Ontbijtkoek (Dutch Spiced Breakfast Cake)

Ontbijtkoek

The dense rye-and-honey spice loaf the Dutch eat at breakfast — no butter or egg, deeply moist, sliced thick and spread with cold butter or nothing at all.

75 minBeginner

Bruine Bonen met Spek (Brown Beans with Bacon)

Stews

Holland

Bruine Bonen met Spek (Brown Beans with Bacon)

Bruine Bonen met Spek

The Dutch brown-bean pot — dried bruine bonen slow-simmered with smoked bacon and onion, finished sweet-sour with syrup and vinegar. Deep winter thrift food.

140 minBeginner

Fish

Zeeland

Paling in 't Groen (Eel in Herb Sauce)

Paling in 't Groen

Fresh eel gently poached in a vivid green sauce of spring herbs — chervil, sorrel, parsley and spinach — a river dish of the Scheldt borderlands.

55 minIntermediate

Zeeuwse Bolus (Cinnamon-Sugar Coiled Bun)

Sweets

Zeeland

Zeeuwse Bolus (Cinnamon-Sugar Coiled Bun)

Zeeuwse Bolus

Zeeland's sticky coiled bun — a rope of soft dough rolled in cinnamon sugar and wound into a spiral that bakes into a dark, caramelised, chewy whirl.

50 minIntermediate

Soups

Groningen

Bietensoep (Beetroot Soup)

Bietensoep

A deep-crimson Dutch beetroot soup — earthy roasted beets simmered with apple and stock, finished with a swirl of soured cream and a shower of dill.

70 minBeginner

Cheese

Friesland

Karnemelksepap (Buttermilk Porridge)

Karnemelksepap

Tangy buttermilk thickened with a little flour and pearl barley, sweetened with syrup — Friesland's homely everyday porridge of the dairy farms.

35 minBeginner

Stews

Noord-Brabant

Spek en Bonen (Bacon & Beans)

Spek en Bonen

The plain Brabant farmhouse pot — green or runner beans stewed slow with smoked bacon and potato until soft and savoury. Thrift cooking, still loved.

80 minBeginner

Bread

Friesland

Krentenwegge (Frisian Currant Loaf)

Krentenwegge

The long, fruit-heavy currant loaf of the Dutch north — enriched dough packed with soaked currants and raisins, once carried metres long to a new mother's door.

65 minIntermediate

Leverworst op Roggebrood (Liver Sausage on Rye)

Borrel

Holland

Leverworst op Roggebrood (Liver Sausage on Rye)

Leverworst op Roggebrood

Soft Dutch liver sausage on dense dark rye — a butcher's-counter borrel classic topped with mustard, pickle or a slick of appelstroop, sliced thick and unfussy.

15 minBeginner

Bossche Bol (Den Bosch Chocolate Cream Puff)

Sweets

Noord-Brabant

Bossche Bol (Den Bosch Chocolate Cream Puff)

Bossche Bol

Brabant's giant choux puff — a tennis-ball of pastry stuffed with barely-sweet whipped cream and dipped whole in a thick coat of dark chocolate.

85 minAdvanced

Fish

Holland

Gemarineerde Haring (Pickled Herring)

Gemarineerde Haring

Herring fillets steeped in a sweet-sour vinegar marinade with onion, bay and peppercorns — the keeping herring of the Dutch larder, sharp and bright.

30 minBeginner

Soups

Holland

Preisoep (Leek & Potato Soup)

Preisoep

The homely Dutch leek and potato soup — sweet softened leeks and floury potatoes simmered in stock, blended smooth or left chunky, with smoked bacon.

50 minBeginner

Arnhemse Meisjes (Sugar-Crusted Biscuits)

Sweets

Gelderland

Arnhemse Meisjes (Sugar-Crusted Biscuits)

Arnhemse Meisjes

Gelderland's crisp oval biscuits — thin rounds of yeasted puff dough rolled in coarse sugar that caramelises into a shattering, glassy crust.

60 minAdvanced

Stews

Holland

Blinde Vinken (Stuffed Veal Rolls)

Blinde Vinken

"Blind finches" — thin veal escalopes wrapped around a seasoned mince filling, browned in butter and braised soft in their own gravy. A Dutch Sunday classic.

95 minIntermediate

Sweets

Friesland

Oranjekoek (Frisian Almond Cake)

Oranjekoeke

Friesland's flat celebration cake — a dense almond-and-spice base under a bright layer of icing, ginger and glacé cherries, cut into generous squares.

60 minIntermediate

Soups

Zeeland

Vissoep (Dutch Fish Soup)

Vissoep

A North Sea fish soup — a stock built from bones and shells, then chunks of white fish and shrimp poached in a light saffron-tinged, tomato-touched broth.

75 minIntermediate

Zuurkool met Spek (Sauerkraut with Bacon Mash)

Stamppot

Limburg

Zuurkool met Spek (Sauerkraut with Bacon Mash)

Zuurkool met Spek

The Limburg way with sauerkraut — mashed through potato with a whole slab of streaky bacon simmered on top and a thread of dark apple stroop to soften it.

80 minBeginner

Bread

Noord-Brabant

Worstenbroodje (Brabant Sausage Roll)

Worstenbroodje

Brabant's beloved sausage roll — seasoned minced meat wrapped in soft enriched bread dough and baked golden. The savoury pride of the Catholic south.

65 minIntermediate

Fish

Holland

Gerookte Makreel (Smoked Mackerel)

Gerookte Makreel

Whole mackerel brined and hot-smoked to a burnished gold, its oily flesh turned firm and savoury — eaten flaked on rye or whipped into a pâté.

75 minIntermediate

Sweets

Friesland

Fryske Sûkerbôle (Frisian Sugar Bread)

Suikerbrood

Friesland's tall enriched loaf shot through with pearls of sugar that melt into sweet caramel pockets — sliced thick, buttered, and eaten with coffee.

70 minIntermediate

Soups

Zeeland

Zeeuwse Mosselsoep (Zeeland Mussel Soup)

Zeeuwse Mosselsoep

Zeeland's mussel soup — plump Zeeuwse mussels steamed open, their briny liquor strained into a leek-and-cream broth and finished with parsley and mussel meat.

55 minIntermediate

Bread

Holland

Eierkoek (Soft Egg Cakes)

Eierkoek

The pale, pillowy Dutch egg cake — a low-fat sponge round, soft as a cloud, eaten plain or buttered with morning coffee. Light, mild, and comforting.

35 minIntermediate

Hutspot met Klapstuk (Hutspot with Braised Beef)

Stamppot

Holland

Hutspot met Klapstuk (Hutspot with Braised Beef)

Hutspot met Klapstuk

The full Sunday version — coarse carrot, onion and potato mash crowned with klapstuk, beef rib braised for hours until it falls apart in its own dark jus.

210 minIntermediate

Cheese

The East

Krentjebrij (Groninger Fruit Porridge)

Krentjebrij / Watergruwel

The northern fruit porridge of barley, currants and berry juice bound to a glossy set — Groningen and Drenthe's beloved cold-or-warm brij.

65 minBeginner

Fish

Zeeland

Hollandse Garnalen (Dutch Brown Shrimp)

Hollandse Garnalen

Tiny North Sea brown shrimp, hand-peeled and served sweet and briny on buttered bread or bound into a classic garnalencocktail.

45 minIntermediate

Jachtschotel (Hunter's Beef & Potato Bake)

Stews

Holland

Jachtschotel (Hunter's Beef & Potato Bake)

Jachtschotel

The Dutch hunter's dish — braised beef layered with onions and apple under a potato-mash lid, baked golden. Leftover-braise comfort food at its best.

100 minIntermediate

Beschuit met Muisjes (Rusk with Aniseed Sprinkles)

Bread

Holland

Beschuit met Muisjes (Rusk with Aniseed Sprinkles)

Beschuit met Muisjes

The Dutch birth ritual on a plate — crisp round rusk, buttered, heaped with sugared aniseed "little mice" in pink or blue to announce a newborn.

5 minBeginner

Sweets

Holland

Banketstaaf (Almond Pastry Log)

Banketstaaf

The festive Dutch pastry log — a length of puff pastry wrapped around dense almond spijs, glazed, and cut into slices for the Sinterklaas and Christmas table.

65 minIntermediate

Rode Kool met Appel (Braised Red Cabbage with Apple)

Stews

Holland

Rode Kool met Appel (Braised Red Cabbage with Apple)

Rode Kool met Appel

The Dutch winter side — red cabbage braised slow with apple, clove and a splash of vinegar until sweet, tart and glossy, the classic partner to hachee.

80 minBeginner

Filet Américain (Dutch Steak Tartare Spread)

Borrel

Holland

Filet Américain (Dutch Steak Tartare Spread)

Filet Américain

The Dutch broodje staple — seasoned raw beef whipped smooth with egg yolk, capers and mustard into a soft, spreadable tartare for rye, rolls and the borrel.

20 minIntermediate

Soups

Holland

Uiensoep (Dutch Onion Soup)

Uiensoep

Dutch onion soup — onions cooked down slow and dark, simmered in beef stock, and finished with a cap of toasted bread and melted Gouda or Leiden cheese.

95 minBeginner

Bread

Holland

Krentenbollen (Currant Buns)

Krentenbollen

Soft Dutch breakfast rolls studded with currants and raisins — enriched dough baked to a glossy dome, split warm and spread thick with butter.

50 minIntermediate

Sweets

Friesland

Boterkoek (Dutch Butter Cake)

Boterkoek

A single flat round of pure butter, sugar and flour — dense, chewy and deep gold, cracked across the top and barely set in the middle. Frisian at heart.

45 minBeginner

Fish

Holland

Gebakken Kabeljauw (Pan-Fried Cod)

Gebakken Kabeljauw

A thick fillet of cod floured and fried in butter until golden and just set, finished with lemon and parsley — the plain, perfect Dutch fish supper.

22 minBeginner

Bread

Gelderland

Spekpannenkoek (Bacon Pancake)

Spekpannenkoek

The savoury Dutch pancake — smoked bacon fried into the batter until crisp, the whole plate-sized round eaten with a thread of dark syrup over the salt.

40 minBeginner

Stamppot

Holland

Wortelstamppot (Carrot Mash with Bacon)

Wortelstamppot

A sweet, sunset-orange mash of carrot and potato shot through with crisp bacon and onion — softer and sweeter than hutspot, a plain winter comfort.

45 minBeginner

Sweets

Holland

Tompouce (Pink-Glazed Cream Slice)

Tompoes

The Dutch pastry impossible to eat with dignity — two sheets of puff pastry, a thick slab of crème pâtissière, and a lid of glossy pink fondant.

70 minIntermediate

Cheese

Holland

Hopjesvla (Coffee-Caramel Custard)

Hopjesvla

Pourable Dutch custard flavoured with hopjes — the burnt coffee-caramel sweet born in The Hague — a grown-up vla the colour of strong tea.

35 minIntermediate

Konijn in het Zuur (Soured Braised Rabbit)

Stews

Limburg

Konijn in het Zuur (Soured Braised Rabbit)

Konijn in 't Zuur

A Limburg braise of rabbit in a sweet-sour gravy — vinegar-marinated, simmered soft, and thickened with gingerbread and apple syrup like its zuurvlees cousin.

150 minIntermediate

Sweets

Holland

Gevulde Koeken (Almond-Filled Cookies)

Gevulde Koeken

The bakery-window classic — a fat round of buttery dough packed with almond spijs, glazed with egg and crowned with a single blanched almond.

65 minIntermediate

Stamppot

Noord-Brabant

Hete Bliksem (Potato & Apple Mash)

Hete Bliksem

"Hot lightning" — a Brabant mash of potato with sweet and sour apples, part savoury, part fruit, sharpened with bacon and a warning to blow before you eat.

50 minBeginner

Fish

Zeeland

Zeeuwse Mosselen (Zeeland Mussels in Broth)

Zeeuwse Mosselen

Plump Zeeland mussels steamed open in a pot with leek, celery, onion and white wine — the autumn ritual of the Dutch southwest.

32 minBeginner

Borrel

Holland

Kaasstengels (Cheese Straws)

Kaasstengels

Crisp, savoury cheese straws of buttery pastry and aged Gouda — the tidy borrel bite passed round with a cold glass, snapping cleanly and gone in two.

40 minBeginner

Stamppot

Holland

Andijviestamppot (Endive Mash)

Andijviestamppot

Cooked curly endive wilted into buttery mashed potato — a soft, faintly bitter green stamppot finished with crisp bacon and a knob of melting butter.

40 minBeginner

Fish

The East

Gerookte Paling (Smoked Eel)

Gerookte Paling

Freshwater eel hot-smoked to bronze, its fat rendered silky and its flesh richly savoury — the great delicacy of the Dutch inland waters.

130 minAdvanced

Soups

Groningen

Mosterdsoep (Groningen Mustard Soup)

Mosterdsoep

Groningen's creamy mustard soup — a light roux loosened with stock and cream, sharpened with coarse mustard and strewn with crisp bacon and chives.

45 minBeginner

Draadjesvlees (Long-Braised Shredded Beef)

Stews

Holland

Draadjesvlees (Long-Braised Shredded Beef)

Draadjesvlees

The Dutch Sunday braise cooked until the beef falls into fine threads — draadjesvlees, simmered low with clove and bay in its own dark gravy.

230 minBeginner

Sweets

Holland

Hollandse Appeltaart (Dutch Apple Tart)

Appeltaart

The tall, deep Dutch apple tart — a buttery cinnamon crust packed with spiced apples, raisins and a lattice top, baked in a springform and served in wedges.

110 minIntermediate

Stamppot

The East

Zuurkoolstamppot (Sauerkraut Mash)

Zuurkoolstamppot

Tangy fermented cabbage crushed through floury potato, the sharpest of the stamppotten — laced with smoked bacon and crowned with rookworst.

45 minBeginner

Cheese

Holland

Hangop (Drained Yoghurt Dessert)

Hangop

Yoghurt or buttermilk hung overnight in a cloth until thick as cream, then sweetened with sugar and cinnamon — the Dutch dairy nation's oldest dessert.

15 minBeginner

Soups

Holland

Snert (Dutch Split Pea Soup)

Erwtensoep

The Dutch winter soup thick enough to stand a spoon in — green split peas, smoked pork, celeriac and leek, finished with sliced rookworst on dark rye.

170 minBeginner

Cheese

Holland

Gebakken Goudse Kaas (Fried Gouda)

Gebakken Goudse Kaas

Slices of young Gouda in a crisp breadcrumb coat, fried until molten inside — the Dutch cheese country's simplest, most reckless pleasure.

23 minBeginner

Soups

Holland

Bruine Bonensoep (Brown Bean Soup)

Bruine Bonensoep

A thrifty Dutch brown bean soup — kidney-brown beans simmered soft with smoked bacon, root vegetables and a spoon of vinegar to cut the richness.

170 minBeginner