Croatian cuisine

Along with the standard international cuisine, available in all restaurants and hotels, specialties from the barbecue, dishes broiled in hot ashes, lamb, pork and poultry are also quite popular. Some of the specialties are also: the Gavrilovic sausage, Dalmatian prosciutto, salted sardines, sheep cheese, hot Slavonian sausages, etc.

Sea shells as well as scampi, are grilled or cooked in their own juices “buzara”. In way of fish dishes, brodetto is quite tasty, and in the continental region, peppered sweet-water fish. As regards specialty meat-dishes, let us mention the Dalmatian pasticada, the Zagreb steak, the Zagorje cutlet, turkey with mlinci (pastry side-dish), etc.


Croatian cuisine is heterogeneous and is therefore known as the cuisine of regions, since every region has its own distinct culinary traditions. Its modern roots date back to ancient periods and the differences in the selection of foodstuffs and forms of cooking are most notable between those on the mainland and those in coastal regions.

Croatia is a country of coffee drinkers, not only because it was formerly part of the Austrian-Hungarian Empire, but also because it bordered the former Ottoman Empire. Traditional coffee houses similar to those in Vienna are located throughout Croatia. Regarding its water resources, Croatia has a leading position in Europe. Concerning water quality, Croatian water is greatly appreciated all over the world. Due to a lack of established industries there have also been no major incidents of water pollution.

Ivan Bierling in 1813 containing recipes for the preparation of 554 various dishes (translated from the German original), and which is considered to be the first Croatian cookery book.