Rösti or rööschti () is a
Swiss dish consisting mainly of
potato
The potato is a starchy food, a tuber of the plant ''Solanum tuberosum'' and is a root vegetable native to the Americas. The plant is a perennial in the nightshade family Solanaceae.
Wild potato species can be found from the southern Uni ...
es, sautéed or shallow-fried in a pan. It was originally a
breakfast
Breakfast is the first meal of the day usually eaten in the morning. The word in English refers to breaking the fasting period of the previous night.Anderson, Heather Arndt (2013)''Breakfast: A History'' AltaMira Press. Various "typical" or " ...
dish, commonly eaten by farmers in the
canton of Bern
The canton of Bern or Berne (german: Kanton Bern; rm, Chantun Berna; french: canton de Berne; it, Canton Berna) is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. Its capital city, Bern, is also the ''de facto'' capital of Switzerland. ...
, but is now eaten all over
Switzerland
). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
and around the world. The
French
French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to France
** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents
** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
name ''röstis bernois'' directly refers to the dish's origins.
Many
Swiss people
The Swiss people (german: die Schweizer, french: les Suisses, it, gli Svizzeri, rm, ils Svizzers) are the citizens of Switzerland or people of Swiss ancestry.
The number of Swiss nationals has grown from 1.7 million in 1815 to 8.7 million ...
consider rösti to be a
national dish
A national dish is a culinary dish that is strongly associated with a particular country. A dish can be considered a national dish for a variety of reasons:
* It is a staple food, made from a selection of locally available foodstuffs that can be ...
.
Rather than considering it a complete breakfast, lunch or dinner, it is more commonly served to accompany other dishes such as ''Spinat und Spiegelei'' (
spinach
Spinach (''Spinacia oleracea'') is a leafy green flowering plant native to central and western Asia. It is of the order Caryophyllales, family Amaranthaceae, subfamily Chenopodioideae. Its leaves are a common edible vegetable consumed either f ...
and
fried eggs, sunny side up),
cervelas or
Fleischkäse. It is commonly available in Swiss restaurants as a replacement for the standard side dish of a given meal.
Preparation
Rösti dishes are made with coarsely
grated potato, either parboiled or raw.
Rösti are most often pan-fried and shaped in the frying pan during cooking, but they can also be baked in the oven. Depending on the frying technique,
oil,
butter
Butter is a dairy product made from the fat and protein components of churned cream. It is a semi-solid emulsion at room temperature, consisting of approximately 80% butterfat. It is used at room temperature as a spread, melted as a condim ...
,
cheese
Cheese is a dairy product produced in wide ranges of flavors, textures, and forms by coagulation of the milk protein casein. It comprises proteins and fat from milk, usually the milk of cows, buffalo, goats, or sheep. During productio ...
, or another fat may be added (and usually
salt
Salt is a mineral composed primarily of sodium chloride (NaCl), a chemical compound belonging to the larger class of salts; salt in the form of a natural crystalline mineral is known as rock salt or halite. Salt is present in vast quant ...
and
pepper). The grated potatoes are shaped into rounds or patties, usually measuring between in diameter and thick.
Although basic rösti consists of nothing but potato, a number of additional ingredients are sometimes added, such as
bacon
Bacon is a type of salt-cured pork made from various cuts, typically the belly or less fatty parts of the back. It is eaten as a side dish (particularly in breakfasts), used as a central ingredient (e.g., the bacon, lettuce, and tomato sand ...
,
onion
An onion (''Allium cepa'' L., from Latin ''cepa'' meaning "onion"), also known as the bulb onion or common onion, is a vegetable that is the most widely cultivated species of the genus '' Allium''. The shallot is a botanical variety of the on ...
, cheese,
apple
An apple is an edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus domestica''). Apple trees are cultivated worldwide and are the most widely grown species in the genus '' Malus''. The tree originated in Central Asia, where its wild ancest ...
or fresh
herb
In general use, herbs are a widely distributed and widespread group of plants, excluding vegetables and other plants consumed for macronutrients, with savory or aromatic properties that are used for flavoring and garnishing food, for medicina ...
s. This is usually considered to be a regional touch.
In
Palau
Palau,, officially the Republic of Palau and historically ''Belau'', ''Palaos'' or ''Pelew'', is an island country and microstate in the western Pacific. The nation has approximately 340 islands and connects the western chain of the ...
, instead of potato, rösti is prepared from the grated corm of
taro
Taro () (''Colocasia esculenta)'' is a root vegetable. It is the most widely cultivated species of several plants in the family Araceae that are used as vegetables for their corms, leaves, and petioles. Taro corms are a food staple in Afri ...
.
Cultural impact
In Swiss popular cultural ethos, rösti are predominantly eaten in German-speaking regions, although they can be found easily elsewhere in the country. Rösti dishes are portrayed as a stereotypical part of the Swiss-Germanic culture, as opposed to Latin culture. The geographic border separating the French- and German-speaking parts of the country is therefore commonly referred to as the ''
Röstigraben'': literally the "rösti ditch".
See also
*
Hash browns
Hash browns, also spelled hashed browns, are a popular American and British breakfast food, consisting of finely chopped potatoes that have been fried until browned. Hash browns first started appearing on breakfast menus in New York City in th ...
, a similar American dish
*
Maluns
Maluns are a traditional dish of the Grisons. They are essentially made of boiled and grated potatoes mixed with flour. The mixture is then slowly fried in butter until it breaks into little balls or crumbs. The dish is typically served with a com ...
, another Swiss fried potato dish essentially eaten in the Grisons
*
List of potato dishes
*
Liechtensteiner cuisine
References
External links
* Wikibooks
/ Cookbook recipe
Rösti on helvetickitchen.comHow to cook the perfect rösti on theguardian.comRösti recipe on youtube
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rosti
Breakfast dishes
Culinary Heritage of Switzerland
Culture of Bern
Fried foods
Liechtenstein cuisine
National dishes
Palauan cuisine
Potato pancakes
Swiss cuisine
Vegetarian cuisine