Have you ever heard of »pregreta smetana« (overheated cream)? Or of »potanc« – a substitute for bread, which was often lacking in the daily lives of our ancestors? These are only two of the most typical traditional dishes of Posavje, which testify to the diversity and richness of the food heritage of the Posavje region. Many dishes eaten by our ancestors have been preserved in various forms to this day – the influence of traditional cuisine is increasing over the last years and it is more and more present even in modern culinary.
Maybe many traditional dishes of Posavje might have sunk into oblivion, or the recipes for them would have been lost for ever if Ida Intihar had not collected and edited them in her book Prehranska kulturna dediščina Posavja. In recent years many of these dishes have returned to the menus in various forms, and today they can be tasted in many restaurants, where they are prepared in more contemporary ways.
One of the most traditional dishes, overheated cream from milk, was well-known from Radeče to Brežice, and it was not known elsewhere. Such specialities also include liver sausage, bread with “ocvirki” (cracklings), buckwheat porridge with prunes and many others.
Throughout history Posavje cuisine has been marked and formed by natural and social conditions. Cuisine of Posavje is not without fish and “krškopoljskega” pig. The region is geographically somewhat “on the draft” and that can also be felt in the cuisine of our ancestors. Periods of famine, scarcity, wars, and other historical circumstances influenced the way our ancestors prepared and ate their food. Many traditional Posavje dishes reflect ingenuity and adaptability of the cooks, who often had to be very creative and resourceful, especially for example in the periods of famine. One such example is potanc, which is a substitute for bread that was often in short supply, especially where families were very large and there were many hungry mouths to fed. Very special are also bread with “ocvirki” or “širkahen” soup (fried cracklings in potato soup with carrots and spices), which was one way to preserve meat months after slaughter of the animals. Our ancestors ate and cooked mainly strong dishes, porridge, barley, štruklji and močnik. Many of these special elements and features of the food heritage of our ancestors have been preserved in Posavje region to this day.
Today, cuisine of Posavje is all about “krškopoljski” pig, capon, Posavina fish and many other specialities, that have been passed down from our ancestors till this day. All these dishes make it possible to make a great lunch. Annually traditional and local cuisine is also given a special place at Okusi Posavje – traditional weekly festival, dedicated to presenting fresh-local-delicious food, top chefs and winemakers who preserve traditional dishes of Posavje with local ingredients. In addition, you can pamper your palates throughout the year at one of the restaurants who offers dishes from traditional cuisine.