Food writer Caroline Eden highlighted the rich and diverse flavors of Baltic cuisine in a recent article following her visit to Riga and other parts of the Baltic region. During her visit to Riga’s central market, Eden explored a variety of local foods including smoked sprats, black pudding sausages, quince lemonade, cloudberry jam, and pickled garlic, among others. She reflected on the underappreciation of Baltic cuisine compared to that of nearby Nordic countries, despite its richness and variety.
Eden’s culinary tour also took her to Estonia and Lithuania, where she experienced local dishes that incorporate traditional methods like pickling, fishing, fermenting, foraging, and berry collecting. In Estonia, she enjoyed pikeperch, while in Lithuania, the menu featured halibut with fennel and steak with cedar nuts and honey. She particularly noted the sea buckthorn cheesecake in Liepāja, Latvia, as a culinary revelation.
The article also touches on the personal connections at the marketplace, specifically through a conversation with Mariya Karavacka, a vendor who shared insights into her pickling process using local produce. Eden’s exploration extended to various traditional foods like Baltic shrimp, lingonberry jam, and birch syrup, capturing the essence of Baltic gastronomy that, according to her, rivals the famed cuisines of its geographic neighbors.