Netherlands Local Custom Tips by ATLC Top 5 Page for this destination

Staatsloterij

The national lottery is called Staatsloterij. You can buy tickets at cigarette shops, post offices and Bruna bookstores.

I'll let you know if I win a grand prize (NOT!)

FOOD: Zeeuwse oesters (Oysters from Zeeland)

The oysters from the province of Zeeland (south west Netherlands) are a veritable delicacy.
There are two kinds: The Zeeuwse oester and the Platte oester (flat oyster).
Both differ quite a bit. The Zeeuwse oester grows to maturity in 2 years, the flat oyster does the same in 6, which makes the latter rather more delicate and extremely pricy.
Often people think that oysters are 'snotty'. Not these oysters from Zeeland. You can really bite into them and chew. The taste lasts an extraordinarily heavenly long time. I've never had that with any other oyster, from any country.

On Christmas Day we eat 2 dozen oysters every year. And not much else. It has become a tradition in our home. We eat a dozen 'as is', and prepare half a dozen au gratin and half a dozen Chinese style. That's our Christmas dinner!

The quality and size is categorised thus:

Flat Oyster
1/0 (40-50 g)
2/0 (50-60 g)
3/0 (60-70 g)
4/0 (70-80 g)
5/0 (80-90 g)
6/0 (90-110 g)
6/0 super (>110 g)

Zeeuwse oester
IV (<70 g)
III (70-100 g)
II (100-140 g)
I (140-180 g)
0 (>180 g)

Price indication:
2007, Flat Oyster 5/0 is € 2.50 a piece, € 30 per dozen.
They were delicious!
Read more about the Dutch Oyster industry at the links below.
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Other Contact: http://www.roemvanyerseke.nl/

Dutch hotel breakfast

In The Netherlands. most hotels offer a buffet breakfast.
You will find:
- cereals and yoghurt(s)
- fruit and fruit salad
- a selection of bread and crackers
- jam and other sweet spreads
- a selection of cold cuts
- a selection of cheese
- fruit juice(s) and milk
Sometimes there are chafing dishes with scrambled eggs and fried bacon. Often there is a dish with boiled eggs.

In other hotels you'll find most of the above set out on your breakfast table.

The so-called Continental breakfast (French bread and jam, a croissant and coffee) is never served in Dutch hotels.

Breakfast is ONTBIJT in Dutch

Photo: breakfast table in hotel Watermolle in Haaksbergen. Only the bread is still missing.

Other Contact: -

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FOOD: Dutch cheese (kaas)

We Dutch have lots of cheese. To make a very overall distinction you look for 2 things first:

1 - age
2 - pasteurised milk (which is mostly the case, thus never mentioned) or raw milk (boerenkaas).

All those huge yellow wheels of cheese are all different:
Old, crumbly, dry salty cheese, or soft, creamy young cheese.

Pasteurised or raw milk, they all have the same age distinctions:

- jong (young)
- jong belegen (young matured)
- belegen (matured)
- extra belegen (extra matured)
- oud (old)
- brokkel (extra old and crumbly)

Friese Nagelkaas (with cloves), Komijnekaas (cumin), Graskaas (made from milk when the first grass grows in spring), Boerenkaas (raw milk) and many more varieties.
Don't be fooled by those small Gouda cheeses. They are for tourists. In fact, there is no cheese made in Gouda anymore.
Another Dutch cheese from Limburg (= province), comparable to the French pavé is a cube, about 7 cm. all sides, packed in a foil covering. It is hugely strong, smelly even.
Goat's cheese in general is my favourite.
Cheese from Ankeveen (Ankevener geitenkaas) is the most well known Dutch goats cheese.
There are also blue goat's cheeses available.
Most cheese is made in factories and there are different "brands". But cheese is still made on farms too.
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Photo left to right:
cheese with cumin, cheese with cloves, old cheese, young cheese

Other Contact: --

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FOOD: Hollandse nieuwe (young herring)

This morning (June 23rd 2003) I sauntered off to the local fish stall because I feel like eating one of my favourite things for lunch: Hollandse Nieuwe (herring). I buy fresh white soft bread at the bakery to put them on or I may slide one down my throat and enjoy it pure. It's a typical Dutch thing!

Every year the herring lives the same cycle. In the months May and June the herring will have fattened enough but not formed any hard or soft roe yet. Herring can acquire plenty of fat in May if the weather is good. Fishermen will watch the weather and temperature closely during this period. Lots of sun will mean lots of food for the herring, so that they will grow nicely.

The Hollandse Nieuwe (Dutch New) is the first herring that is caught in season, usually in May. As soon as the herring has a minimum of 16% fat, it may hit the market as “Hollandse Nieuwe”. But there are other demands. The herring must be gutted, ripened, salted and filleted in the traditional Dutch way. During gutting, the gills, intestines and throat of the herring are removed. The pancreas remains as it helps the herring ripen.

Herring is caught nearly all year long, but not all herring can be called “Hollandse Nieuwe” or maatjesharing (young herring). During the year, the amount of fat in the herring changes. During these different fat stadia, the uses of the herring change also. Herring caught in August through October is smoked, marinated or turned into rollmop (rolmops in Dutch). De hard roe of the herring is partly exported to Japan where it is a veritable delicacy.

The salting “cooks” the herring, so it is not truly raw when you eat it, though it looks like it. If you eat chopped raw onion with it is a matter of taste. Purists will be revolted but do what you like! With onion they taste great too.
There is lots of tradition around Hollandse Nieuwe of which I will relate another time.

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FOOD: Roombroodje (cream bun)

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Bread and cakes are available in a wide variety in Dutch bakeries.
Baker's shops are usually quite large shops with lots to choose from.

This is a roombroodje, a slightly sweet soft white bun with cream in it and icing sugar on top.
Messy to eat but sooo good! Often have one for breakfast on Saturdays.

Other Contact: --

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Wentelteefjes, how to use old bread

A hearty breakfast dish, or maybe for dessert after a light meal.
For 4 persons:
4 slices of stale white bread
3 eggs, broken into a shallow dish. Add a bit of milk, sugar and cinnamon, whisk well.
Put the slices in the egg mixture and let them soak up all the liquid (5-10 mins).
Heat some butter in the pan, fry the slices carefully until golden.

Serve with a dash of icing sugar and HOT !

RECIPE: Haagse bluf

A very cheap but festive and fresh tasting dessert that is made in a matter of minutes.

For four persons: whisk 3 egg whites with 75 gr. sugar and 300 ml red berry juice (not cordial!) until fluffy and stiff.
Serve immediately.

Haagse Bluf (Bluff from The Hague) refers to a supposed characteristic of people from The Hague who like to show off by making a little seem a lot.

Recipe: Broeder (Dutch version of Spotted Dick)

I treated myself to a baking tin with lid to steam puddings. And finally made a traditional Dutch 'broeder' (brother), a steamed pudding with currants and raisins with a syrup sauce (butter, syrup and the cinnamon liqueur that I soaked the raisins in).

It is similar to the English pudding 'Spotted Dick'.
Come to think of it, with this new baking tin, I can now make SD too!

I never made a ' broeder' before, nor have I ever heard any of my friends make it. I think it's too oldfashioned. I only remember it from when I grew up. So it's been well over 20 years since I'd eaten it.

Thought it would make a nice breakfast for a Sunday morning. And it was...delicious!

For recipe:

- 500 gr. flour
- a packet of powdered yeast (enough for the amount of flour)
- milk
- 1 egg
- raisins and current, soaked in liqueur if desired
- salt
- cinnamon
-butter
-syrup

Use the food processor, it's easiest.
Wash currants and raisins, soak in liqueur if desired for about 15-30 mins.
Mix flour and yeast and salt (or do the usual with lukewarm milk and real yeast if you prefer).

Add milk until a thick and just pourable consistency.
Add egg.
Add the fruit.

Butter the baking tin and its lid thoroughly and sprinkle liberally with cinnamon.

Put batter in tin, cover, put in a pan with boiling water and boil for 2 1/2 to 3 hours, top up water if necessary.

Melt the butter gently, add syrup and the left over liqueur, mix into a smooth mixture.

Check if the pudding is done (stick a knitting needle in, if it comes out clean, it's done).

Turn pudding onto a plate, slice and pour sauce over. Eat hot!
Be prepared to feel quite filled after two slices!
If the pudding is cold, just heat up a slice or two in the microwave.

Recipe: Erwtensoep (Dutch Pea Soup)

Typical Dutch winter soup. Here's my own recipe.

500 gram split peas
500 gram dried green peas
OR: 1000 gram split peas
2 pigs trotters
500 gram salted bacon (zuurkoolspek)
3 rookworsten (the thickest frankfurter would be similar
800 gram celeriac
600 gram winter carrot
800 gram leek
400 gram onions
400 gram aardappelen (optional)
¾ stronk bleekselderij
1 bunch of celery leaves
4-6 beef stock cubes (to taste)
salt and pepper
bay leaf, cloves

Boil the trotters in 3 litres of water, bay leaf, and cloves for 2-3 hours.
Softly boil the peas in a very big pan with 2 litres water and the bacon.
Boil both softly for 2-3 hours.
After boiling, remove bacon and set aside. Meanwhile slice and cut all the vegetables.

Add the trotters stock to the peas (remove bay leaf and cloves). Bring to boil carefully. Keep the soup thick, you can add the stock in portions while adding the vegetabels.
From this point: don’t let the soup boil too fast or it will burn. Stir often.

Add in this order, each 10 minutes after the previous:
Celeriac and carrots, leek and celery stalks, onions, potatoes, celery.
Bring to taste with stock cubes but be careful not to make it too salty. If you like, you can put half the soup in a food processor (not too long) and then add it back to the rest of the soup.
Now it is half chunky, half smooth.

Slice the sausages and cut up all the other meat in small pieces. Add to soup and let it simmer for a few minutes. Add pepper and salt. Remember the bacon is salty, so you don’t need much.

You now have 12 litres of erwtensoep, which you make only in winter. Set it outside to cool, then freeze it in portions. Don’t eat it the same day, it’s best a day after. When the soup is cold, you should be able to stand a wooden spoon in it upright and it stays like that.

I do not add potatoes because I don’t like it. I also rather add salt after reheating per portion. And I add the sausage later when I serve it, not before.

Phone: For Rookworst, click below

Website: http://members.virtualtourist.com/vt/tfr/1/312/a/6ee29/