Belgian Food Log Summer 2009

I thought people might be interested in what kind of foods people eat in Belgium, so when I went most recently I made a little log of what I ate everyday for anyone who’s curious. Mind you, I only wrote down the more substantial dishes – in the evenings and several times at lunchtime too we would have sandwiches or leftovers and the like. If anyone wants to know any details on these foods, feel free to ask!

Boudin blanc
A sort of “white” sausage that was served with French fries and applesauce. Made by my grandmother~

Chipolatas
Long, thin sausages that taste a little more like what I might find in America, that was served with carrots and mashed potatoes. Also made by my grandmother.

Steak béarnaise
A steak with a sort of buttery sauce, served with a salad and French fries. I ate this at a higher-class restaurant, but even at cheaper places steaks tend to be amaaazing.

Mousse au chocolat
Chocolate mousses are usually fairly light and there are so many different chocolate flavors out there, but because it’s Belgian chocolate, it’s almost automatically great. The time I had mine at a restaurant there were small bits of chocolate mixed in with a light whipped cream on top~

Gauffres de Brussels
Um, they don’t call them Belgian waffles for nothing. I loooove these things! There are the more pedestrian, but still delicious kind you order and walk around with that are usually just coated in sugar, but you can also sit down at a restaurant or café-type place and order a more fancy waffle with fruit and stuff. I usually get one with strawberry and whipped cream. This may really heavy and unhealthy, but really they’re usually a very light dessert and not considered that big of a deal.

Croquettes au fromage (aka fondus au parmesans)
Croquettes come in many different forms, and it’s hard to explain what it is if you don’t know already. There’s always some kind of filling enclosed in a batter and deep fried. It’s sort of grainy and crunchy on the outside, and is usually filled with mashed potatoes (probably my favorite kind <3), shrimp, or in this case melted cheese. I guess these are comparable with those mozzarella stick things… except, in my honest opinion, infinitely better (^^)

Poulet-frittes et compote de pomme
Nothing particularly outlandish, chicken in a complementing brown sauce with French fries. What might be a little different for some was that the other side was applesauce. This is pretty common in Belgium, I eat applesauce with a lot of different things!

Crêpes au champignon crème
If people are familiar with crepes, most are probably imagining the sweet kind, with whipped cream and fruits and whatnot. There are also the salty kind, though, where you can put in meats, vegetables, fish, sauces, etc. The possibilities are endless~ (Seriously, the menu of the crepe restaurant we went to was like a novel…) The one I had was with cream of mushroom.

Spaghettis bolognaise
An extremely common dish, you might have had this before even if you’ve never been to Europe. It’s simply spaghetti noodles with a meat and tomato sauce, and sometimes other vegetables such as carrots, peas, mushrooms, etc.