Amerikai Magyar Hírlap, 2001 (13. évfolyam, 2-43. szám)
2001-08-31 / 33. szám
AMERICAN Hungarian Journaí Secrets of the Balaton Cuisine The region of Lake Balaton is an interesting world from the aspect of cooking as well. Four types of landscapes meet here: water, mounts, hills and plains, which, from a gastronomic point of view, means that plenty of all the raw materials needed for cooking can be found here. The big lake has given fish for thousands of years, the forests of the hills are rich in game, in the valleys animal husbandry flourishes, on the hills fruit trees groan under the weight of their fruits, and the plains give wheat and vegetables. The cook who gets to work in the middle of such a big, natural larder can really give vent to his imagination. As for the dishes of the lake, it is indisputable that priority must be given to fish, especially to the ’king’ which is the Balaton pike-perch. This prey fish belonging to the family of perches can reach the weight of 9-10 kilos and the length of 120 centimeters. Its meat is white, tender with a distinct taste, there are no bones in it. It is not by accident that this delicacy has been on the front page of menu cards for centuries. The classical way of cooking pike-perch is to roast it in one piece. There is no table society that does not give an exclamation of pleasure when the waiter appears holding a silver tray with a goldish-brown roasted "piece of art" on it that holds a slice of lemon in its mouth. Balaton fish soup deserves a separate paragraph. It was first mentioned in writing in the 19th century at Lake Balaton. The Festetics domain of Keszthely specified in its contract with fishermen that fishermen were to cook "halászlé" for the guests of the count on special occasions. Fish soop is the most delicious if it is cooked from several kinds of fish of which the most important ones are carp and silure. Most foreigners mainly know the Goulash and Stew as Hungarian dishes but our vegetable dishes are also individual and Vacation £pots-. LAKE BALATON (continuedfrom last week) TIHANY □ Pottery Museum, Tihany Recognizable from a distance because of its twin-towered church, this volcanic-origin peninsula jutting out into the lake has been inhabited for almost 1000 years, and is covered with a variety of rare flora and fauna. From the Benedictine ABBEY which was founded in 1055, only the CRYPT - one of Hungary's most precious architectural treasures - has survived in which the tomb of King Andrew I lies. The BENEDICTINE ABBEY MUSEUM (I. András tér I.) operates in the monastery of the 18th century Baroque church decorated with valuable wood carvings erected above the crypt: visitors will find a history of the church, a memorial room dedicated to the last Hungarian king Charles IV, and a Roman and medieval lapidarium. The life of the former fishing village is preserved in the OPEN-AIR ETHNOGRAPHICAL MUSEUM (Batthyány Lajos u. 20.) which has 18th century folk historical houses, and in the folk POTTER'S HOUSE (Pisky sétány 9.) in the OLD VILLAGE. There's much of interest in the TIHANY LANDSCAPE PROTECTION RESERVE: winderoded basalt cliffs, and cut into the volcanic rock cells of Orthodox monks settled here in the I I th century. The peninsula has several natural viewpoints: from KISERDŐTETŐ and the geyser cone of ARANYHÁZ there is a simply unforgettable view. delicious. Hungarian cuisine treats vegetables in a special way. While vegetables are only served steamed without anything added to it in Europe and North America, in Hungary they are thickened with sour cream flour, roasted flour, cream or served in their own spicy cooking juices. Our dish of marrow with dill and sour cream even gained the appreciation of the gourmet French people! A dish of beans with smoked knuckle, a dish of cabbage in tomato sauce with fried ribs or a dish of lentils with Debrecen sausages are all marvelous dishes but, we must say, the palm is taken by stuffed cabbage. To make this dish, the sliced cabbage is cooked in water with pepper, paprika, onions and is is rolled in cabbage leaves enriched with spicy minced meat. There is sour cream on the top and a curly piece of bacon fried red. You’ve got to taste it to really know what it is like! Game dishes are also worth tasting while one is at Lake Balaton. The forests of the Bakony and Keszthely mountains and Somogy hills provide the restaurants’ tables with deer, stags, boars, moufflons and fallow deer; hares, pheasants and partridges come from the great meadows. To give a sample: stag-steak in wine with huckleberries and potato-croquette, or hare saddle with dumplings in brown sauce. Last but not least we should mention Gulyás (Goulash). For those who come to Lake Balaton from abroad for the first time, this "royal peasant dish" should serve as a worhty first encounter with Hungarian cuisine. Enjoy your meal! Enjoy Lake Balaton! Napoleon and the Fish Soup Could it be that Napoleon has done Hungary some good after all? Many people credit him with the birth of this most famous Hungarian dish. You see, when the Emperor wanted to reduce England to obedience with a blockade at the beginning of the 19th century, European markets ran out of pepper. The resourceful Hungarian peasants replaced pepper with dried, ground red paprika. This new kind of spice has become the symbol of Hungarian cuisine. Value Your Homeland Value your Hungarian descent, Value your homeland And the village of your birth, And if you were bom a Transylvannian Then you had better pray That God grant you special mercy, For orphans to be free. To Hungarians scattered in the world, Bring bright days, Bring together families In their happy, unhappy moments Because their hymns Come from the heart Every blessed night. Who knows what tomorrow brings, Suffering or dying?! Be proud of the soil where you were born Where you fought and will fight again, And if your country asks your death. Die proudly, oh patriot. Gyuláné Kaprinyúk (Szerénke Bodnar) Phoenix, Arizona Bird 's-eye view of the Tihany Abbey News of the Hungarian Lobby RE: Property Return (ROMANIA): E: romania@embassy.org * prim.ministru@gov.ro * presedinte@presidency.ro According to Romanian legistlation (#2001-10), claims can be filed until November 14, 2001 by ALL for the return of property confiscated by the Romanian government between March 6, 1945 and December 22, 1989. Descendents of owners of orperty are eligible to file claims with the assistance of Romanian residents or Romanian lawyers. For guidelines to follow in filing claims for property restitution, contact the Romanian Embassies. RE: Government Coalition (SLOVAKIA) E: Prime.Minister@government.gov.sk On July 4, 2001 the Slovak Parliament established new regional entities. On July 9, 2001 The Hungarian Coalition (SMK) has "temporarily" withdrawn from the ruling government coalition. On July 25, 2001 the Slovak premier Mikuls Dzurinda appealed to SMK not to leave and added that leaving would: "seriously jeopardize Slovakia's EU and NATO integration ambitions" and destabilize the political situation. The Deputy Premier of Slovakia, Pal Csaky is presently attending the ITT OTT Conference of the Hungarian Community of Friends in Columbus, Ohio and it is hoped that he will guidance on how we can help in improving the deteriorating situation in Slovakia. RE: State of Colorado Declared Hungarian Freedom Fighters’ Day * Thanks to the efforts of Eugene Megyesy, in a joint resolution of 37 Representatives and 25 Senators, the State of Colorado declared October 23, 2001 as "Hungarian Freedom Fighters Day." We congratulate Mr. Megyesy on his successful efforts and ask all HL members to follow his example in preparing for the 45th anniversary of the Revolution, which mortally wounded Soviet Communism. AMERIKAI 2001. augusztus 31. Magyar tfírlap 0
