Your Guide to the Best Traditional Austrian Cuisine on Your Ski Holiday

Snow sports require a lot of physical strength. Taking a balanced diet and drinking plenty of fluids are essential on a ski holiday, along with the occasional treat of course. Austria is an extremely popular ski destination and has plenty of delicious and nutritious food to offer its guests!

We all know that it is important to get off to a great start with a healthy breakfast. Most ski chalets in Austria serve healthy continental breakfasts to help boost your energy before hitting the ski slopes. Don’t forget to drink plenty of water to keep you hydrated! Take a light lunch if you plan to ski in the afternoon; if you prefer to avoid the pricey lunches on the mountain restaurants, some ski chalets offer packed lunches at a cheaper price. After a day of skiing, you should take a hearty soup, some meat with some carbohydrates and a tasty dessert.

Here is a list of delicious and nutritious Austrian dishes that will give you the energy for doing winter sports.

Wiener Schitzel

Wiener Schnitzel is commonly known as Austria’s national dish. This classic cuisine is made of a thin, bread-crumbed and deep fried escalope that is made with veal. It’s traditionally served with kopfsalad (lettuce tossed with a sweetened vinaigrette dressing), cucumber or potato salad.

Tafelspitz

Tafelspitz, known as the king of the beef dishes, is boiled beef broth served with horseradish and roasted potato slices on the side. Tafelspitz is simmered with root vegetables and spices in the broth.

Gulasch Suppe

This is a soup or stew made up of meat and vegetables and is usually seasoned with paprika and other spices. When served with a bread roll, this soup makes an ideal light lunch.

Käsespätzle

This hearty dish is a great comfort food after a day out in the cold. This dish is Austrian’s version of macaroni and cheese. The pasta is tossed with onion and grated Emmentaler or Gruyere cheese.

Tiroler Gröstl

This dish is great for sharing during lunch. Tiroler gröstl is a traditional way to eat yesterday’s leftovers. The dish is made of potato fry-up, onion and pork which is cut in pieces and served with fried egg.

Apfelstrudel (Apple strudel)

This well-known Austrian dessert is a delicious treat after a day on the ski slopes. The pastry is lined with apple filing inside. The dough is thin while the filling is made of grated cooking apples, sugar, cinnamon, raisins and bread crumbs. The apfelstrudel is sometimes served with vanilla ice-cream or whipped cream as a topping.

Sachertorte

Sachertorte is a classic Austrian chocolate cake topped with chocolate icing and filled with apricot jam. The traditional way is to serve it with unsweetened whipped cream.

Glühwein

This mulled wine is a mixture of red wine, cinnamon stick, sugar, oranges and cloves. This wine has been popular since the Middle Ages. It’s a perfect drink while relaxing in front of a blazing log fire after a cold, winter day out skiing.

As well as the importance of refuelling after hitting the slopes, trying the delicious and nutritious local cuisine are one of the pleasures of skiing in the Austrian mountains.

Image by Dustpuppy, used under the Creative Commons license.