The Atlas · Nº 29 ·Hungary

Most Popular Hungarian Food

Hungarian food is paprika, pork, and long simmering: a cauldron of gulyás out on the plains, pörkölt thick with onions and sweet paprika, chicken stewed pale-orange with sour cream. The country bakes as seriously as it stews, from coffee-house layer cakes to the chimney-turned Kürtőskalács, and Budapest keeps the sweetest tables.

85 dishes ranked·5 in the global top 1,000 ·4,883 diner ratings·Best rank Nº 259

Plate I — The Origins

Fig. 1 Where 85 ranked hungarian dishes were born. Dish origin

Drag to pan · Double-click or +/− to zoom · Select a marker for its entry

The Signature Dishes

The twelve highest-ranked Hungarian dishes, by global position.

Gulyás, meat soup from Hungary
Plate IIMeat Soup · Hungary

1 Nº 259 worldwide

Gulyás

Meat Soup · Gulyásleves · Goulash · Gulaš

Not the thick stew the word conjures elsewhere, but a paprika-red soup of beef, onions, and root vegetables that Hungarian herdsmen once cooked in cauldrons out on the plains. Tiny pinched csipetke noodles go in near the end, and it is the dish the world pictures when it thinks of Hungary.

★ 4.3|82% positive |609 ratings

Rákóczi túrós, cheese dessert from Hungary
Plate IIICheese Dessert · Hungary

2 Nº 552 worldwide

Rákóczi túrós

Cheese Dessert · Hungarian Curd Cheese Cubes Rákóczi-Style

A curd cheese slice on a shortcrust base, the sweet túró filling topped with a lattice of piped meringue and dabs of apricot jam. Named for the chef János Rákóczi, who created it for a 1958 world's fair, it has held its place in Hungarian pastry cases ever since.

★ 4.1|89% positive |34 ratings

Húsleves, meat soup from Hungary

3HúslevesNº 560

Meat Soup

A clear golden broth simmered slowly from beef or chicken with carrots, parsley root, and celeriac, then strained and ladled over thin noodles. It is the traditional first course of a Hungarian Sunday lunch, restorative and unhurried.

★ 4.1|103 ratings

Pörkölt, stew from Hungary

4PörköltNº 885

Stew · Also Perkelt

Hungary's national stew, meat seared then cooked down slowly with onions, garlic, and a heavy hand of paprika until the sauce turns thick and rust-red. Its name comes from pörkölni, to singe, and boiled potatoes or soft nokedli dumplings are there to catch the gravy.

★ 4.0|129 ratings

Lekvár, spread from Hungary

5LekvárNº 898

Spread

A dark, intensely thick fruit spread, usually apricot or plum, boiled down far past the point of jam so it can fill a pastry without running. Families still put it up by the jar each autumn, and it is the classic smear inside a rolled palacsinta.

★ 4.0|51 ratings

Palacsinta, pancake from Hungary

6PalacsintaNº 1,340

Pancake

Hungary's thin crêpe, rolled paper-thin around apricot lekvár, sweet curd, or ground walnuts, and never eaten at breakfast. Dressed up as Gundel palacsinta, filled with walnuts and rum and flamed in chocolate sauce, it becomes a restaurant showpiece.

★ 3.9|13 ratings

Pogácsa, savory pastry from Hungary

7PogácsaNº 1,361

Savory Pastry

Small, round savory scones, flaky and best eaten warm, flavored with cheese, cracklings, cabbage, or dill. A fixture of Hungarian home baking and welcome tables, pogácsa is the thing set out with wine or handed to a traveler for the road.

★ 3.9|94 ratings

Majgaluska leves, soup from Hungary

8Majgaluska levesNº 1,422

Soup · Also Liverball Soup

A clear soup floated with liver dumplings, chicken livers ground with egg, breadcrumbs, onion, and paprika and poached until light. It is grandmother cooking, the kind of soup you meet at a family table more than on a restaurant menu.

★ 3.9|25 ratings

Tepertős pogácsa, snack from Hungary

9Tepertős pogácsaNº 1,519

Snack

The richest member of the pogácsa family, its sour-cream dough shot through with tepertő, the crisp bits of rendered pork crackling. Salty, peppery, and flaky in layers, it is a savory snack made to go with a glass of wine.

★ 3.9|40 ratings

Füszerezett vöröskáposzta, side dish from Hungary

10Füszerezett vöröskáposztaNº 1,536

Side Dish · Also Spiced Red Cabbage

Spiced red cabbage as they braise it in Sopron, cooked down with pears, onion, and bacon in red wine, sharpened with caraway and vinegar and rounded out with a little honey. A traditional partner to roast pork and game.

★ 3.9|12 ratings

Aranygaluska, sweet bread from Hungary

11AranygaluskaNº 1,614

Sweet Bread

Golden dumplings, literally: balls of soft yeast dough rolled in butter, walnuts, and sugar, packed into a tin, and baked until they fuse into one caramelized pull-apart cake. Brought warm to the table to tear at, it is a likely ancestor of American monkey bread.

★ 3.9|34 ratings

Chicken Paprikash (Paprikás csirke), stew from Hungary

12Chicken Paprikash (Paprikás csirke)Nº 2,047

Stew

Chicken thighs stewed gently with onion and sweet paprika, the sauce finished with sour cream until it turns pale orange and silky. Born as rustic cauldron cooking, it is now Sunday-lunch comfort food, spooned over soft nokedli dumplings.

★ 3.9|183 ratings

The Departments

Every Hungarian dish in our ranking, grouped the way you'd order them.

The Complete Ledger

All 85 Hungarian dishes in the world ranking. Every entry, leaf by leaf.

85 entries
  1. 259 Gulyás Meat Soup Hungary ★ 4.3
  2. 552 Rákóczi túrós Cheese Dessert Hungary ★ 4.1
  3. 560 Húsleves Meat Soup Hungary ★ 4.1
  4. 885 Pörkölt Stew Hungary ★ 4.0
  5. 898 Lekvár Spread Hungary ★ 4.0
  6. 1,340 Palacsinta Pancake Hungary ★ 3.9
  7. 1,361 Pogácsa Savory Pastry Hungary ★ 3.9
  8. 1,422 Majgaluska leves Soup Hungary ★ 3.9
  9. 1,519 Tepertős pogácsa Snack Hungary ★ 3.9
  10. 1,536 Füszerezett vöröskáposzta Side Dish Sopron District ★ 3.9
  11. 1,614 Aranygaluska Sweet Bread Hungary ★ 3.9
  12. 2,047 Chicken Paprikash (Paprikás csirke) Stew Hungary ★ 3.9
  13. 2,102 Bundás kenyér Snack Hungary ★ 3.8
  14. 2,372 Dödölle Dumplings Hungary ★ 3.8
  15. 2,415 Flódni Cake Hungary ★ 3.8
  16. 2,458 Gombapaprikás Stew Hungary ★ 3.8
  17. 2,479 Túrógombóc Dumplings Hungary ★ 3.8
  18. 2,694 É Édes babos rétes Sweet Pastry Sopron District ★ 3.8
  19. 2,866 Fatányerós Barbecue Hungary ★ 3.8
  20. 2,908 Hungarian Foie Gras Offal Dish Hungary ★ 3.8
  21. 2,957 Kifli Snack Hungary ★ 3.8
  22. 3,034 Dios torta Chocolate Cake Hungary ★ 3.8
  23. 3,039 Shlishkes Dumplings Hungary ★ 3.8
  24. 3,202 G Gundel saláta Salad Hungary ★ 3.8
  25. 3,205 B Búbos rántotta Egg Dish Hungary ★ 3.8
  26. 3,421 Lángos Snack Hungary ★ 3.8
  27. 4,148 Gesztenye szelet Cake Hungary ★ 3.7
  28. 4,242 Túró rudi Cheese Dessert Hungary ★ 3.7
  29. 4,248 Somlói galuska Cake Budapest ★ 3.7
  30. 4,253 Rakott krumpli Casserole Hungary ★ 3.7
  31. 4,255 Debreceni kolbász Sausage Debrecen ★ 3.7
  32. 4,274 Gundel palacsinta Pancake Budapest ★ 3.7
  33. 4,343 Köménymagleves Soup Hungary ★ 3.7
  34. 4,593 Jókai bableves Soup Hungary ★ 3.7
  35. 4,597 Gesztenyepüré Dessert Hungary ★ 3.7
  36. 4,601 Paprikás krumpli Stew Hungary ★ 3.7
  37. 4,673 Soproni mandulás rétes Sweet Pastry Sopron District ★ 3.7
  38. 4,856 Nyúlpaprikás Stew Hungary ★ 3.7
  39. 5,048 Hurka Sausage Hungary ★ 3.7
  40. 5,172 Lókolbász Sausage Hungary ★ 3.6
  41. 5,274 Kürtőskalács Sweet Pastry Hungary ★ 3.6
  42. 5,573 Székely gulyás Stew Szeged ★ 3.6
  43. 5,600 Töltött kaposzta Ground Meat Dish Hungary ★ 3.6
  44. 5,704 Palócleves Meat Soup Northern Hungary ★ 3.6
  45. 5,711 Mézes krémes Cake Hungary ★ 3.6
  46. 6,037 Zserbó Cake Budapest ★ 3.6
  47. 6,136 Rigó Jancsi Chocolate Cake Hungary ★ 3.6
  48. 6,142 Dobostorta Cake Hungary ★ 3.6
  49. 6,179 Főzelék Stew Hungary ★ 3.6
  50. 6,182 Krémes Cake Hungary ★ 3.6
  51. 6,235 Birkagulyás Stew Hungary ★ 3.5
  52. 6,265 B Bundás csiperkegomba Appetizer Hungary ★ 3.5
  53. 6,561 Rakott palacsinta Pancake Hungary ★ 3.5
  54. 6,615 Mákos guba Dessert Hungary ★ 3.5
  55. 6,653 Sólet Stew Hungary ★ 3.5
  56. 6,667 Lecsó Vegetable Dish Hungary ★ 3.5
  57. 6,825 Csöröge Sweet Pastry Hungary ★ 3.5
  58. 6,913 Betyár gulyás Stew Hungary ★ 3.5
  59. 7,075 Csángó Gulyás Stew Hungary ★ 3.5
  60. 7,091 Lekváros bukta Sweet Pastry Hungary ★ 3.5
  61. 7,174 Rántott sajt Snack Hungary ★ 3.4
  62. 7,343 Kalács Sweet Bread Hungary ★ 3.4
  63. 7,391 Túrós csusza Pasta Hungary ★ 3.4
  64. 7,442 Esterházy torta Cake Budapest ★ 3.4
  65. 7,445 C Catfish Paprikash (Harcsapaprikás) Stew Hungary ★ 3.4
  66. 7,482 Slambuc Stew Hajdú-Bihar County ★ 3.4
  67. 7,485 Zöldségleves Vegetable Soup Hungary ★ 3.4
  68. 7,685 Babos pogácsa Savory Pastry Sopron District ★ 3.3
  69. 7,743 Töltött paprika Ground Meat Dish Hungary ★ 3.3
  70. 7,786 V Vintner's Rice (Boros rízs) Rice Dish Hungary ★ 3.3
  71. 7,841 Oroszkrém torta Cake Budapest ★ 3.3
  72. 7,848 S Szeged Fish Cracklings (Haltepertő) Fish Dish Szeged ★ 3.3
  73. 7,852 Hortobágyi palacsinta Pancake Hungary ★ 3.3
  74. 7,859 Hamisgulyás Stew Hungary ★ 3.3
  75. 8,024 Halászlé Fish Soup Hungary ★ 3.2
  76. 8,049 Rakott káposzta Casserole Hungary ★ 3.2
  77. 8,078 Borleves Soup Hungary ★ 3.2
  78. 8,129 Meggyleves Sweet Soup Hungary ★ 3.2
  79. 8,228 Töltött tojás Appetizer Hungary ★ 3.1
  80. 8,257 Tojásleves Soup Hungary ★ 3.1
  81. 8,277 Vadas marha Beef Dish Hungary ★ 3.1
  82. 8,359 Pacalpörkölt Stew Hungary ★ 3.1
  83. 8,361 Stefánia szelet Pork Dish Hungary ★ 3.1
  84. 8,654 Szaloncukor Dessert Hungary ★ 2.7
  85. 8,739 Krumplileves Vegetable Soup Hungary ★ 2.5
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Gazetteer

A Regional Tour of Hungarian Food

Where Hungary's ranked dishes were born, and what to order there.

Questions, Answered

Hungarian food, frequently asked. Answered from the data.

What is the most popular Hungarian food?
Gulyás, and it is not close. Hungary's paprika-laced beef soup is the best-ranked Hungarian dish at #259 worldwide, and its ratings dwarf any other. Behind it come two street sweets: Kürtőskalács, the spit-roasted chimney cake, and Lángos, the deep-fried flatbread heaped with sour cream and cheese. All 27 Hungarian soups & stews →
What food is Hungary known for?
Paprika stews and serious cakes. Stews are Hungary's deepest category, led by the national Pörkölt and Chicken Paprikash, both built on onions and sweet paprika. The sweet side is just as distinctive, from the curd-cheese Rákóczi túrós to Aranygaluska, buttery walnut pull-apart dumplings. All 23 Hungarian desserts & sweets →
What is Hungary's national dish?
Gulyás, the herdsmen's soup that gave the world the word goulash, though in Hungary it is a paprika broth rather than the thick stew served abroad under that name. The closest thing to that stew is Pörkölt, which Hungarians actually call their national stew. Gulyás tops our Hungarian ranking.
What is the most famous Hungarian street food?
Lángos, a plate-sized round of deep-fried dough eaten hot, rubbed with garlic and heaped with sour cream and grated cheese. It is market and festival food, second only to Gulyás and the chimney cake Kürtőskalács among the most-rated Hungarian dishes.
What should I eat in Budapest?
Save room for dessert. Budapest's ranked dishes lean sweet, led by Somlói galuska, a rum-soaked sponge trifle, and Gundel palacsinta, a walnut-filled crêpe flamed in chocolate. Round it out with Zserbó, a layered walnut-and-apricot cake from the city's grand coffee houses.