Traditional Romanian Food: 14 Dishes I’d Tell You to Try

1. Mici

The story goes that a Romanian chef who worked in a Bucharest kitchen back in the 19th Century one day ran out of skin for his sausages.

In a fit of panic, he threw the minced meat on the grill with some spices, served it up with some mustard, and hoped for the best.

The result was a meal which soon became a staple amongst Romanian dishes.

Mici is a celebrated and cherished dish in Romania and can be found at every local restaurant across the country.

And it all began with some skinless sausages.

2. Scovergi

Scovergi are a simple Romanian street food that don’t get talked about enough.

You don’t see them in restaurants; instead, they’re often found in hole-in-the-wall little bakeries.

Scovergi are fluffy, fried flatbread wrapped around a range of different fillings to make a delicious sandwich-esque meal.

Typical toppings are jam, honey or sugar for a sweet version, or cheese and sour cream for a savoury one.

Scovergi are incredibly cheap and absolutely delicious.

They make for a filling and satisfying lunch any day of the week.

3. Sarmale

Officially, sarmale are Romania’s national dish.

They’re rolls of pickled cabbage leaves wrapped around minced pork, rice and onion, then slowly simmered, usually with sour cream and polenta on the side.

A huge burst of warming and soothing flavours that really fills you up.

Sarmale are cooked and eaten all year round, and you can find them at any and every Romanian restaurant.

Sarmale is the quintessential meal amongst traditional Romanian dishes, and given its status as Romania’s national dish it is certainly the one food you must try in Romania.

4. Ciorba

Ciorba simply means ‘soup’, and its name comes from the Persian ‘shorba’.

So much Romanian cuisine has been influenced by invading cultures from east and west over the centuries, and ciorba is a great eastern example.

Although soup can be found in cultures around the planet, they’re also all always unique.

Romanian ciorbă is a sour soup, soured with borș (fermented wheat bran) or lemon, and it’s often filled with pork, beef or meatballs and flavoured with lovage or dill.

By now you may have noticed that pork, dill and sour cream are true staples of Romanian cooking.

5. Drob de Miel

At first glance, drob de miel (often shortened to just drob) looks like meatloaf, or even a dark loaf of bread.

In fact, it’s a loaf of lamb offal mixed with spring onions, dill and other herbs, and it’s traditionally made at Easter.

When sliced open, you can see a boiled egg in its centre, which is cooked inside the loaf.

Drob is a traditional Romanian food that many Romanians grew up with.

6. Salata de Boeuf

Romania has a long history of adoring and respecting French culture, and sometimes you can see that in their language.

Like here, with salata de boeuf (beef salad) it’s a traditional Romanian dish with a French name.

Salata de boeuf is a blend of boiled beef or chicken, root vegetables and pickles, all mixed with mayonnaise.

Typically, salata de boeuf is made for special occasions like Christmas and New Year.

7. Jumari

By now you can see how vital pork is to Romanian cuisine.

And the purest example of that is jumări, which are crispy pieces of fried pork fat and skin, served with salt.

It makes for a great snack during the extremely cold Romanian winter months.

8. Salata de Vinete

Whether you call it aubergine or eggplant, it’s the key ingredient in salata de vinete.

Although it’s called a salad, it’s actually more of a dip (think hummus) made from roasted aubergine mixed with onion and oil or homemade mayonnaise.

It’s used in starters often in Romanian households and the recipe varies from family to family in true local style.

9. Cighiri

Not unlike mici, cighiri are large pork meatballs made from pork meat but also pork offal.

This meat is mixed with various local herbs such as garlic and pepper to make large and filling pork meatballs that are a common household meal in Romania.

Let’s move on to the best Romanian Desserts to try during your time in Romania!

10. Papanași

Papanași is the greatest of the Romanian desserts, and a generally irresistible Romanian dish.

Essentially, papanași are fried doughnuts made with soft cheese, topped with a smaller doughnut, sour cream and jam, usually blueberry or sour cherry.

Romanian cuisine is all about indulgence, and papanași might be the very pinnacle of that.

Not many desserts come close to the enormous treat that is papanași, made up entirely of things that everyone with a sweet tooth adores.

11. Cozonac

This is a mouth-watering sweet Romanian bread that’s traditionally made at Christmas and Easter.

It’s a beloved local dish, and you’ll see it piled up in every bakery and supermarket when the holidays come around.

The loaf is made with sugar to sweeten it, and the swirls inside are usually walnuts, cocoa or Turkish delight for even more sweetness and flavour.

12. Alivenci

Originally from the Moldavia region of eastern Romania (and what is now Moldova), alivenci is a soft cornmeal cake made with fresh cheese, sour cream and eggs.

13. Vargabeles

Traditionally a Hungarian dessert which is now eaten all over Transylvania, vargabeles is a baked noodle pudding made with sweet cheese.

Raisins, vanilla, and lemon are added for flavour and extra sweetness, turning it into a light and fluffy Romanian dessert.

14. Placinta cu Mere

‘Mere’ in Romanian means ‘apple’, and placinta cu mere is a sweet apple pie that’s eaten all over Romania.

It’s sweetened and made irresistible by generous helpings of cinnamon, sugar, and even more grated apple before being baked and served hot.

So that’s the traditional Romanian food I’d tell you to try, and if you’re still planning your trip, here are the best cities in Romania to visit.