Sample traditional Dutch cuisine while on a city break in Amsterdam

A city break to Amsterdam can be a great way to sample fantastic Dutch cuisine. When visiting the Netherlands’ capital – which is also its largest city – you will find hearty traditional food is plentiful.

One well-established element of the country’s culinary heritage comes in the form of erwtensoep, or snert.

This is an extremely thick soup and while split peas are the main ingredient, it can also contain a variety of other vegetables, including celery, carrots, onions and leaks.

Erwtensoep is traditionally served with roggebrood (rye bread) and slices of bacon, and is particularly popular in the winter.

When ponds and lakes are frozen over during the colder months, locals often go ice skating over them before stopping at a koek en zopie, a pop-up outlet on the water’s edge, for a serving of the dish. However, one place in Amsterdam where you can try erwtensoep all year round is New Dorrius, a restaurant situated near the Crown Plaza hotel.

Another historic part of the country’s cuisine is hutspot. This dish dates back to the late 16th century, a time where the Netherlands was under occupation by the Spanish Empire.

In October 1574, Leiden, which is about 30 miles from Amsterdam, was under siege as Dutch freedom fighters and the Spanish army wrestled for control. The liberators – who followed the exiled prince William I – decided they would flood the town in order to take back control, which ultimately led the occupying forces to flee.

According to local legend, as the invaders escaped they left a pot of potato, carrot and onion stew cooking. This was one of the first foods distributed to the starving residents, with the dish being named hutspot and its popularity spreading quickly across the Netherlands.

Today, hutspot can also be cooked with various kinds of meat, including rookworst (a type of smoked sausage) or bacon.

To try hutspot in the Dutch capital, a good place to visit is Haesje Claes. This centrally-located restaurant between the Spui and Dam squares is just a short distance from the Amsterdam Museum.

Another dish to look out for on menus is zurkoolstamppot which is popular for combining sweet, sour and salty elements into a single wholesome, warming dish.

Zurkoolstamppot consists of fried bacon, mashed potatoes and sauerkraut, so it should certainly prove to be a filling meal. A range of additional ingredients may be added to it depending on where you eat, so you could find your zurkoolstamppot also includes apricots or raisins.

Why not check out De Keuken van 1870’s take on zurkoolstamppot? This restaurant once provided food to the city’s poor people but over the years has developed into a mainstream dining establishment, specialising in traditional Dutch food and drink.

The Netherlands is famous the world over for pancakes so make sure you try some over the course of your holiday to Amsterdam.

Known locally as pannenkoek, you’ll find the pancakes produced here are thinner and larger than their British or American counterparts.

You can choose from a range of sweet and savoury fillings, with apples a particularly popular option. However, many people eat their pannenkoek with cheese or bacon, although having them plain with a sprinkling of powdered sugar is also bound to go down a treat.

To sample pannenkoek on a break to Amsterdam, visit the Pancake Bakery. This aptly-named restaurant is near the Prinsengracht canal and here you can try pancakes that contain peaches, cinnamon liquor, salami and a whole host of ingredients.

Another traditional Dutch dish is meatballs, or gehaktbal. These are likely to be much bigger than the meatballs you may have with spaghetti back home and instead of pasta, they are accompanied with boiled potatoes and vegetables. Wednesday could be the best time to have gehaktbal as on this day of the week butchers often sell minced meat at discounted prices.

If you’re in the mood to try gehaktbal, visit Eik en Linde. This eatery is situated near the Hollandsche Schouwburg museum and has been recognised in a number of culinary publications for being a fantastic place to sample the dish.

There is so much fantastic cuisine to sample that a holiday to Amsterdam is bound to be a tasty experience!

Written by the team at travelsupermarket.com

About The Author

Cecil Lee

The author is an avid traveler and photography hobbyist who loves to share with others his travel and photo-taking experience in many popular tourist destinations around Europe, Asia and Australasia. Read the exciting stories with many photos captured on his journeys.