Bosnia and Herzegovina cuisine

Bosnian cuisine is the traditional cuisine of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is influenced by Ottoman, Austro-Hungarian and Balkan cuisines.

Ingredients

Bosnian cuisine is a mixture of the local regions such as the Balkan countries, Greece, Italy and Turkey, with many recipes coming from the Ottoman era. It uses some spices, but usually in moderate quantities. Most dishes are light, as they are cooked in lots of water; the sauces are often natural, consisting of little more than the natural juices of the vegetables in the dish. Typical ingredients include tomatoes, potatoes, onions, garlic, bell peppers, cucumbers, carrots, cabbage, mushrooms, spinach, zucchini, dried and fresh beans, plums, milk, paprika and cream called pavlaka and kajmak. Typical meat dishes include primarily beef and lamb due to Bosnian Muslims, although the Bosnian Croats and Bosnian Serbs can consume pork. Some local specialties are ćevapi, burek (börek), 'zeljanica' spinach pie spanakopita, 'sirnica' cheese pie, 'paprike' stuffed peppers, sarma, 'pilav' tagliatelle, grah [butter bean soup], cured meats and cheeses (charcuterie) gulaš (goulash), ajvar and a whole range of sweets inspired by the Middle East like baklava. Food is prioritised for being organic and of good quality. Bosnians enjoy many natural fruit juices but often use cordials from various fruits and herbs. The best local wines come from Herzegovina where the climate is suitable for growing grapes. Plum or apple brandy rakija, is produced in Bosnia.

Meat dishes

Bosnian Ćevapi with onions in a somun

Ćevapi – Bosnian kebabs: small grilled minced meat links made of lamb and beef mix; served with onions, kajmak, ajvar and Bosnian pita bread (somun)
Pljeskavica – a patty dish
Begova Čorba (Bey's Stew) – a popular Bosnian soup (chorba) made of meat and vegetables
Punjena paprika – bell peppers stuffed with minced meat and rice cooked in a stew
Sogan-dolma – onions stuffed with minced meat and herbs
Ćufte – meatballs
Meat under sač (meso ispod sača) – a traditional way of cooking lamb, veal, or goat under a metal, ceramic, or earthenware lid on which hot coals and ashes are heaped
Pilav (tagliatelle) – a buttery tagliatelle
Burek – a meat-filled flaky pastry, traditionally rolled in a spiral and cut into sections for serving. The same dish filled with cottage cheese is called sirnica, one with spinach and cheese zeljanica, one with squash/zucchini called tikvenjača, and one with potatoes krompiruša. All these varieties are generically referred to as pita (Bosnian for "pie").
Sarma – meat and rice rolled in pickled cabbage
Grah/Pasulj – a traditional bean stew with meat
Bosanski Lonac – Bosnian meat stew cooked over an open fire
Tarhana – typical Bosnian soup with homemade pasta
Sudžuk – spicy beef sausage
Suho meso – air-dried meat similar to Pastirma

Stews

Đuveč – vegetable stew, similar to the Romanian ghiveci and Bulgarian gjuvec
Kačamak – a traditional Bosnian dish made of cornmeal and potatoes
Kljukuša – grated potatoes mixed with flour and water and baked in an oven; a traditional dish in the region of Bosanska Krajina
Sataraš – a dish made with bell peppers, eggplants, onions and tomatoes

Appetizers

Meze – an assortment of meats, vegetables, or other small dishes served before a meal

Cheeses

Cheese from Livno

Livno cheese – a dry yellow cheese from the west Bosnian town of Livno and surrounding villages
Vlašić cheese – a highland cheese similar in its salty taste to Travnički, originates in the villages on Vlašić Mountain in central Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnian smoked cheese – a dry piquant low-fat smoked cheese
Kajmak – a creamy dairy product, similar to clotted cream
Pavlaka – a soured cream product like crème fraîche
Cheese in sack - cheese aged in a sheep’s skin made usually in the region of Hercegovina

Desserts

Tufahija

Baklava
Halva
Hurmašica – date-shaped pastry drenched in a sweet syrup
Jabukovača – pastry made of filo dough stuffed with apples
Kadaif
Krofna – filled doughnut
Krempita
Oblanda, wafer with walnut filling
Palačinka (crêpe)
Pekmez
Rahatlokum (Turkish delight)
Ružica – similar to baklava, but baked in a small roll with raisins^[1]
Ruske Kape (trans. Russian Caps, plural)
Šampita – a whipped marshmallow-type dessert with fillo dough crust
Sutlijaš, rice pudding
Tufahija – whole stewed apple stuffed with a walnut filling
Tulumba – deep-fried dough sweetened with syrup

Relishes, seasoning and bread

Ajvar
Pindjur
Vegeta
Somun^[2] and Ramadan somun (with Ćurokot seeds).^[3]
Pogača
Djevrek
Lepinja
Uštipci

Alcoholic beverages

Wines are produced mainly in Herzegovina, in the regions of Mostar, Čitluk, Ljubuški, Stolac, Domanovići, and Međugorje.

Pelinkovac
Rakija
Blatina
Žilavka
Local spirits are distilled from plums, pears, or grapes, with alcohol content of 45% and higher.
Šljivovica (plum brandy)