4 Traditional Foods
You Have To Try in Basel

Cordon bleu is a very popular international dish with Swiss origins. In its most basic form, it consists of a meat cutlet that is filled with a thin slice of ham and cheese (usually Gruyère), breaded, and either deep-fried in hot oil, shallow fried in a pan, or baked in an oven. The dish is usually prepared with two meat scallops, one on top of the other with the ham and cheese sandwiched in between. The first mention of cordon bleu is found in a cookbook from 1949. Today, there are numerous varieties of the dish such as veal cordon bleu, chicken cordon bleu, and cordon bleu served with mushroom sauce. The dish can be served with a variety of side dishes such as french fries or a selection of vegetables and garnishes such as lemon wedges and parsley.Expand

Basler läckerli is a hard, spiced Swiss biscuit consisting of hazelnuts, almonds, candied peel, honey, and Kirsch. These cookies are a specialty of Basel, where it is believed that they have been prepared ever since the Middle Ages. Once baked, the biscuits are traditionally cut into rectangular pieces, then topped with sugar glaze. Nowadays, they are typically enjoyed during Christmastime, although they can be bought or prepared throughout the year.Expand

Fondue is Switzerland's national dish, a melting pot of different flavors and aromas, similar to the country itself–a melting pot of people and different cultures. Its name comes from the French word fondre, meaning to melt, and it was first described in Homer's Iliad as a mixture of goat cheese, flour, and wine. Fondue's key ingredient is cheese that is melted over a fire, with a lot of regional varieties and flavorful additions such as cherry brandy, white wine, or a sprinkle of nutmeg. It was invented out of necessity, when the alpine locals and traveling herders relied only on cheese, wine, and bread to get them through the winter. As the summer cheese dried out and bread became stale during the winter months, the people started to melt cheese with wine and dip pieces of stale bread into it. Traditionally, fondue is prepared in a flameproof casserole called a caquelon. The dish varies from region to region: fondue Neuchatel uses Gruyére and Emmental, fondue Vandois adds a lot of garlic, while fondue Fribourg is prepared with ripe Vacherin cheese. Pieces of bread are placed on traditional, long-handled fondue forks used for swirling the bread in cheese. According to local customs, if one loses a piece of bread in the pot, he or she has to buy a round of drinks for everyone involved in this unique and cheesy communal affair.Expand

Rösti is a simple, buttery and fragrant national dish of Switzerland, a crispy crusted potato pancake with an appetizing golden color. It is a great side dish to traditional Swiss delicacies such as leberspiesschen (grilled calves' livers wrapped in bacon and sage) or émincé de veau. The potatoes for rösti are boiled, peeled, chilled, grated into long strips, and fried with butter, oil, salt, and maybe a bit of bacon fat. The dish is then cut into wedges and served to hungry consumers. Additionally, herbs, onions, ham, or grated cheese can be added to the dish to enhance its flavors. Rösti was originally consumed for breakfast by farmers from the Swiss canton of Bern, but today it is a popular side dish with lots of variations. For example, Bernese rösti is prepared with bacon, Valaisian rösti with sliced tomatoes and raclette cheese, while Basilean rösti is a mixture of potatoes and sliced onions in a 1:1 ratio.Expand