An hors d'oeuvre ( ; ), appetiser, appetizer or starter is a small dish served before a

meal A meal is an occasion that takes place at a certain time and includes consumption of food. The English names used for specific meals vary, depending on the speaker's culture, the time of day, or the size of the meal. A meal is different from a ...

European cuisine European cuisine (also known as Continental cuisine) comprises the cuisines originating from the various countries of Europe. The cuisines of European countries are diverse, although some common characteristics distinguish them from those of oth ...

. Some hors d'oeuvres are served cold, others hot. Hors d'oeuvres may be served at the dinner table as a part of the meal, or they may be served before seating, such as at a reception or

cocktail party A cocktail party is a party at which cocktails are served. It is sometimes called a cocktail reception. A cocktail party organized for purposes of social or business networking is called a mixer. Some events, such as wedding receptions, are ...

. Formerly, hors d'oeuvres were also served between courses.''

Oxford English Dictionary The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' (''OED'') is the principal historical dictionary of the English language, published by Oxford University Press (OUP), a University of Oxford publishing house. The dictionary, which published its first editio ...

'', First Edition, 189
''s.v.''
Typically smaller than a main dish, an hors d'oeuvre is often designed to be eaten by hand. Hors d'oeuvre are typically served at parties as a small "snack" before a main course.

Etymology

in French literally means 'outside the work', that is "not part of the ordinary set of courses in a meal". In practice, it is a dish which stands on its own as a snack or supports the

main course A main course is the featured or primary dish in a meal consisting of several courses. It usually follows the entrée () course. Usage In the United States and Canada (except Quebec), the main course is traditionally called an "entrée". En ...

. The French spelling is the same for singular and plural usage. In English, the

typographic ligature In writing and typography, a ligature occurs where two or more graphemes or letters are joined to form a single glyph. Examples are the characters and used in English and French, in which the letters and are joined for the first ligature ...

is usually replaced by the digraph and two plural forms are acceptable: "hors d'" (same as singular) or "hors d'" (pronounced ).

Origins

A small number of food historians believe that the tradition may have begun in Russia, where small snacks of fish,

caviar Caviar or caviare is a food consisting of salt-cured roe of the family Acipenseridae. Caviar is considered a delicacy and is eaten as a garnish or spread. Traditionally, the term caviar refers only to roe from wild sturgeon in the Caspi ...

and meats were common after long travels. However, it may be that the custom originated in China, possibly coming through the

Steppe In physical geography, a steppe () is an ecoregion characterized by grassland plains without closed forests except near rivers and lakes. Steppe biomes may include: * the montane grasslands and shrublands biome * the tropical and subtropica ...

s, into Russia,

Scandinavia Scandinavia is a subregion#Europe, subregion of northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. It can sometimes also ...

, France and other European countries. The tradition may have reached Italy, Greece and the Balkan nations through Russia or Persia. Many national customs are related, including the Swedish

smörgåsbord Smorgasbord or Smörgåsbord (, ) is a buffet-style meal of Swedish origin. It is served with various hot and mainly cold dishes. It assumed its present form in the 19th century, following old traditions. Smörgåsbord became known in the US ...

, Russian zakuska, middle eastern

mezze ''Meze'' (also spelled ''mezze'' or ''mezé'') (, ) is a selection of small dishes served as appetizers in Eastern Mediterranean cuisines. It is similar to Spanish cuisine, Spanish tapas and Italian cuisine, Italian Antipasto, antipasti. A ''me ...

, and Italian antipasto. During the

Roman Period The Roman Empire ruled the Mediterranean and much of Europe, Western Asia and North Africa. The Roman people, Romans conquered most of this during the Roman Republic, Republic, and it was ruled by emperors following Octavian's assumption of ...

the meal practice was to have two main courses which were supplemented before the meal with small amounts of fish, vegetables, cheeses, olives and even stuffed

dormice A dormouse is a rodent of the family (biology), family Gliridae (this family is also variously called Myoxidae or Muscardinidae by different taxonomists). Dormice are nocturnal animals found in Africa, Asia, and Europe. They are named for their ...

. These would be served at the start of the meal known as either '' gustatio'' or '' promulsis''. The Greeks called the appetiser course '' propoma''. As early as 500 CE, the

Babylonian Talmud The Talmud (; ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (''halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the centerpiece of Jewi ...

(''

Yoma Yoma (Aramaic: יומא, lit. "The Day") is the fifth tractate of '' Seder Moed'' ('Order of Festivals') of the ''Mishnah'' and of the ''Talmud''. It is concerned mainly with the laws of the Jewish holiday Yom Kippur, on which Jews atone for t ...

'' 83^b) recounts the practice of feeding sweet desserts to a person before the main course of a meal in order to revive his strength and increase his appetite (

Aramaic Aramaic (; ) is a Northwest Semitic language that originated in the ancient region of Syria and quickly spread to Mesopotamia, the southern Levant, Sinai, southeastern Anatolia, and Eastern Arabia, where it has been continually written a ...

: מגרר גריר).

French service

During the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

formal French meals were served with

entremets An entremet or entremets (; ; from Old French, literally meaning "between servings") in Medieval French cuisine referred to dishes served between the courses of the meal, often illusion foods and edible scenic displays. The term additionally re ...

between the serving of plates. These secondary dishes could be either actual food dishes, or elaborate displays and even dramatic or musical presentations. In the 14th century, recipes for entremets were mostly made with meat, fish, pork and vegetables. By the 15th century the elaborate display and performances were served up between courses, and could be edible or displays of subjects relevant to the host, created in butter sculpture or other types of crafted work. With the introduction in the 17th century of '' service à la française'', where all the dishes are laid out at once in very rigid symmetrical fashion, entremets began to change in meaning but were still mainly savoury. Along with this came elaborate silver and ceramic table displays as well as pièces montées. The entremets were placed between the other dishes within the main work of the meal. At about this time in the 17th century, smaller dishes began to be served by being placed outside the main work of symmetrically placed dishes. These were known as hors d'oeuvre. Hors d'oeuvres were originally served as a canapé of small toasted bread with a savoury topping before a meal. The first mention of the food item was by

François Massialot François Massialot (1660, in Limoges – 1733, in Paris) was a French chef who served as ''chef de cuisine'' (''officier de bouche'') to various illustrious personages, including Philippe I, Duke of Orléans, the brother of Louis XIV, and his so ...

in 1691, mentioned in his book: ''Le cuisinier roial et bourgeois'' (The Royal and Bourgeois Cook) and explained as ''"Certain dishes served in addition to those one might expect in the normal composition of the feast"''. In the French publication ''Les plaisirs de la table'', Edouard Nignon stated that hors d'oeuvres originated in Asia. He went on to state that the French considered hors-d'oeuvres to be superfluous to a well cooked meal. ''Service à la française'' continued in Europe until the early 19th century. After the 19th century the entremet would become almost exclusively a sweet dish or dessert with the British custom of the "savoury" being the only remaining tradition of the savoury entremet. The style of formal dining changed drastically in the 19th century, becoming successive courses served one after the other over a period of time. Some traditional hors d'oeuvres would remain on the table throughout the meal. These included olives, nuts, celery and radishes. The changing, contemporary hors d'oeuvres, sometimes called "dainty dishes", became more complicated in preparation.

Pastries Pastry refers to a variety of doughs (often enriched with fat or eggs), as well as the sweet and savoury baked goods made from them. The dough may be accordingly called pastry dough for clarity. Sweetened pastries are often described as '' bak ...

, with meat and cream sauces among other elaborate items, had become a course served after the soup.

English savouries

As a result of French influence on the

English language English is a West Germanic language that developed in early medieval England and has since become a English as a lingua franca, global lingua franca. The namesake of the language is the Angles (tribe), Angles, one of the Germanic peoples th ...

, "hors d'oeuvre" has become a commonly used term in English to refer to small dishes served before meals. The custom of the savoury course is of British origin and comes towards the end of the meal, before dessert or sweets or even after the dessert, in contrast to the hors d'oeuvre, which is served before the meal. The British favored the savoury course as a

palate The palate () is the roof of the mouth in humans and other mammals. It separates the oral cavity from the nasal cavity. A similar structure is found in crocodilians, but in most other tetrapods, the oral and nasal cavities are not truly sep ...

cleanser before drinking after the meal, which made the hors d'oeuvre before the meal unnecessary. The savoury is generally small, well spiced and often served hot, requiring cooking just before serving. In the Victorian and Edwardian periods, savouries included such toppings as fried oysters wrapped in bacon, and Scotch woodcock, which was a savoury made of scrambled eggs, ground

black pepper Black pepper (''Piper nigrum'') is a flowering vine in the family Piperaceae, cultivated for its fruit (the peppercorn), which is usually dried and used as a spice and seasoning. The fruit is a drupe (stonefruit) which is about in diameter ...

and Gentleman's Relish on buttered toast, served hot. In France, cheese was often part of the savoury course or added with simple fruit as a dessert. A typical Edwardian dinner might consist of up to four courses that include two soups, two types of fish, two meats, ending with several savouries then sweets.

American appetisers and cocktail hors d'oeuvres

The term ''appetiser'' (

American English American English, sometimes called United States English or U.S. English, is the set of variety (linguistics), varieties of the English language native to the United States. English is the Languages of the United States, most widely spoken lang ...

: ''appetizer'') is a

synonym A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means precisely or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words ''begin'', ''start'', ''commence'', and ''initiate'' are a ...

for hors d'oeuvre. It was first used in the United States and England simultaneously in 1860. Americans also use the term to define the first of three courses in a meal, an optional one generally set on the table before guests were seated. Drinks before dinner became a custom towards the end of the 19th century. As this new fashion caught on, the British took inspiration from the French to begin serving hors d'oeuvres before dinner. A

is considered a small gathering with mixed drinks and light snacks. Hors d'oeuvres may be served as the only food offering at cocktail parties and receptions, where no dinner is served afterward. After the end of

prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholic b ...

in the United States, the cocktail party gained acceptance. Prior to the First World War, American dinner guests would be expected to enter the dining room immediately where drinks would be served at the table with appetisers. This changed by the 1920s, when hors d'oeuvres were served prior to a non-alcoholic cocktail; however, after the

repeal of Prohibition in the United States In the United States, the nationwide ban on alcoholic beverages was repealed by the passage of the Twenty-first Amendment to the United States Constitution on December 5, 1933. Background In 1919, the requisite number of List of state legislature ...

, cocktail parties became popular with many different hors d'oeuvres meant as something to help counter the stronger drinks. It is the cocktail party that helped transfer the hors d'oeuvres from the formal dining table to the mobility of the serving tray. These appetisers passed around the cocktail party may also be referred to as canapés.

Preparation

In restaurants or large estates, hors d'oeuvres are prepared in a '' garde manger'' which is a cool room. Hors d'oeuvres are often prepared in advance. Some types may be refrigerated or frozen and then precooked and then reheated in an oven or

microwave oven A microwave oven, or simply microwave, is an electric oven that heats and cooks food by exposing it to electromagnetic radiation in the microwave frequency range. This induces Dipole#Molecular dipoles, polar molecules in the food to rotate and ...

as necessary before serving.

Use

If there is an extended period between when guests arrive and when the meal is eaten, for example during a

cocktail A cocktail is a mixed drink, usually alcoholic beverage, alcoholic. Most commonly, a cocktail is a combination of one or more liquor, spirits mixed with other ingredients, such as juices, flavored syrups, tonic water, Shrub (drink), shrubs, and ...

hour, these might serve the purpose of sustaining guests during the wait, in the same way that apéritifs are served as a drink before meals. It is also an unwritten rule that the dishes served as hors d'oeuvres do not give any clue to the main meal. They are served with the main meal menu in view either in hot, room temperature or cold forms; when served hot they are brought out after all the guests arrive so that everyone gets to taste the dishes. Hors d'oeuvres before a meal may be rotated by waiters or passed. Stationary hors d'oeuvres served at the table on a tray may be referred to as table hors d'oeuvres or as buffet-style. Passed hors d'oeuvres provided by servers are part of

butler A butler is a person who works in a house serving and is a domestic worker in a large household. In great houses, the household is sometimes divided into departments, with the butler in charge of the dining room, wine cellar, and pantries, pantr ...

-style service. or butlered hors d'oeuvres.

Examples

Though any food served before the main course is technically an hors d'oeuvre, the phrase is generally limited to individual items, such as cheese or fruit. A glazed fig topped with

mascarpone Mascarpone (, ; ) is a soft Italian cuisine, Italian Acid-set cheese, acid-set cream cheese. It is recognized as a ''prodotto agroalimentare tradizionale'' (PAT). Production process After Denaturation (biochemistry), denaturation of cream, the ...

and wrapped with

prosciutto Prosciutto ( ; ), also known as ''prosciutto crudo'', is an uncooked, unsmoked, and dry-cured ham. It is usually served thinly sliced. Several regions in Italy have their own variations of ''prosciutto crudo'', each with degrees of protected ...

is an hors d'oeuvre, and plain figs served on a platter may also be served as hors d'oeuvres. It could be pickled beets or anchovy eggs as topping over tomatoes as part of the initial "drinks" session such as of alcoholic or non-alcoholic beverages. They are also served in the forms of dips, spreads, pastries, olives or nuts with or without a base of egg, cheese, meats, vegetables, seafood or breads. Single cold items served are smoked salmon, avocado pear, caviar, pâté, shellfish cocktails and melon with garnishes and decorations. Seasoned hot dishes served are of vegetables, meat, fish, egg, pasta, cheese, soufflés, tartlets,

puff pastry Puff pastry, also known as , is a light, flaky pastry, its base dough () composed of wheat flour and water. Butter or other solid fat () is then layered into the dough. The dough is repeatedly rolled and folded, rested, re-rolled and folded, encas ...

choux pastry Choux pastry, or (), is a delicate pastry dough used in many pastries. The essential ingredients are butter, water, flour and eggs. Instead of a raising agent, choux pastry employs its high moisture content to create steam, as the water in ...

. *

Bruschetta Bruschetta ( , ) is an Italian appetizer ( antipasto) consisting of grilled bread topped with garlic, olive oil, and salt. Most commonly it is served with toppings of tomatoes, vegetables, beans, cured meat or cheese. In Italy, bruschetta is ...

() * Canapés *

Caviar Caviar or caviare is a food consisting of salt-cured roe of the family Acipenseridae. Caviar is considered a delicacy and is eaten as a garnish or spread. Traditionally, the term caviar refers only to roe from wild sturgeon in the Caspi ...

* Charcuterie * Devilled eggs *

Dumpling Dumplings are a broad class of dishes that consist of pieces of cooked dough (made from a variety of starchy sources), often wrapped around a filling. The dough can be based on bread, wheat or other flours, or potatoes, and it may be filled wi ...

s * Gherkin *

Pigs in a blanket In the United States, pigs in a blanket are small hot dogs or other sausages individually wrapped in pastry. It is commonly served as an appetizer. Ingredients and preparation In the United States the term "pigs in a blanket" typically refer ...

* Smoked egg * Spanakopita * Tongue toast File:Restaurant appetizers.jpg, Appetisers in a restaurant File:Tomato Bruschetta.jpg, Tomato

bruschetta Bruschetta ( , ) is an Italian appetizer ( antipasto) consisting of grilled bread topped with garlic, olive oil, and salt. Most commonly it is served with toppings of tomatoes, vegetables, beans, cured meat or cheese. In Italy, bruschetta is ...

File:Deviled egg closeup.jpg, Deviled eggs, a cold hors d'oeuvre File:Chlebicky.JPG, Obložené chlebíčky, a

Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus *Czech (surnam ...

and Slovak appetiser or snack File:Tbilisi, Dining, Georgia.jpg, Hors-d'oeuvre,

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

File:Azerbaijan Light snack.jpg, Hors d'oeuvres in

Azerbaijani cuisine Azerbaijani cuisine () is the cooking styles and dishes of the Azerbaijan, Republic of Azerbaijan and Azerbaijan (Iran), Iranian Azerbaijan. The cuisine is influenced by the country's diversity of agriculture, from abundant grasslands which hist ...

By culture and language

In the Americas

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

, '' botanas'' refers to the vegetarian varieties commonly served in small portions in wine bars. In many

Central America Central America is a subregion of North America. Its political boundaries are defined as bordering Mexico to the north, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. Central America is usually ...

n countries, hors d'oeuvres are known as '' bocas'' (). ''Pasapalos'' () is

Venezuelan Spanish Venezuelan Spanish ( or ) refers to the Spanish spoken in Venezuela. Spanish was introduced in Venezuela by colonists. Most of them were from Galicia, Basque Country, Andalusia, or the Canary Islands. The last has been the most fundamental in ...

for an hors d'oeuvre.

In Asia

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

, ''moqabbelat'' (, "things which make one accept what is to come". From root lit. "to accept") is the term for an hors d'oeuvre. In

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

, it is known as chaat, which is served throughout the day. Dahi puri is another snack from India which is especially popular from the city of

Mumbai Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...

in the state of

Maharashtra Maharashtra () is a state in the western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. It is bordered by the Arabian Sea to the west, the Indian states of Karnataka and Goa to the south, Telangana to th ...

and in the

Ahmedabad Ahmedabad ( ), also spelled Amdavad (), is the most populous city in the Indian state of Gujarat. It is the administrative headquarters of the Ahmedabad district and the seat of the Gujarat High Court. Ahmedabad's population of 5,570,585 ...

city of

Gujarat Gujarat () is a States of India, state along the Western India, western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the List of states and union territories ...

state. Chaat is the snack food consumed separately and not part of main course meals. is Japanese for an hors d'oeuvre; commonly for western dishes, , which is a direct transcription of hors d'oeuvre, is used. In

Korea Korea is a peninsular region in East Asia consisting of the Korean Peninsula, Jeju Island, and smaller islands. Since the end of World War II in 1945, it has been politically Division of Korea, divided at or near the 38th parallel north, 3 ...

banchan ''Banchan'' ( ; ; ) are small side dishes served along with cooked rice in Korean cuisine. ''Banchan'' are often set in the middle of the table to be shared. At the center of the table is the secondary main course, such as ''galbi'' or ''bulg ...

() is a small serving of vegetables, cereals or meats. Additional Korean terms for hors d'oeuvres include ''jeonchae'' (), meaning "before dish" or ''epitaijeo'' (), meaning "appetiser". In Vietnamese ' ("cold plate first course") is the name for an hors d'oeuvre. In

Mandarin Mandarin or The Mandarin may refer to: Language * Mandarin Chinese, branch of Chinese originally spoken in northern parts of the country ** Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Mandarin, the official language of China ** Taiwanese Mandarin, Stand ...

, ''lěng pán'' ("cold plate") or ''qián cài'' ("before dish") are terms used for hors d'oeuvres, which are served in steamer baskets or on small plates. '' Meze'' is a selection of small dishes served in

Mediterranean cuisine Mediterranean cuisine is the food and methods of preparation used by the people of the Mediterranean basin. The idea of a Mediterranean cuisine originates with the cookery writer Elizabeth David's book, ''A Book of Mediterranean Food'' (1950), ...

Middle Eastern cuisine Middle Eastern cuisine includes a number of cuisines from the Middle East. Common ingredients include olives and olive oil, pitas, honey, sesame seeds, dates, sumac, chickpeas, mint, rice and parsley, and popular dishes include '' kebabs'', ...

, and Balkan cuisine. ''Mezedakia'' is a term for small mezes. ''Pembuka'' () is Indonesian for an hors d'oeuvre. ''Yemekaltı'' is Turkish for an hors d'oeuvre. Caviar served in

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

is the traditional

roe Roe, ( ) or hard roe, is the fully ripe internal egg masses in the ovaries, or the released external egg masses, of fish and certain marine animals such as shrimp, scallop, sea urchins and squid. As a seafood, roe is used both as a cooking, c ...

from wild

sturgeon Sturgeon (from Old English ultimately from Proto-Indo-European language, Proto-Indo-European *''str̥(Hx)yón''-) is the common name for the 27 species of fish belonging to the family Acipenseridae. The earliest sturgeon fossils date to the ...

in the Caspian and

Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal sea, marginal Mediterranean sea (oceanography), mediterranean sea lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bound ...

s. File:Bhalla Papri Chaat with saunth chutney.jpg, Chaat, a starter in

Indian cuisine Indian cuisine consists of a variety of regional and traditional cuisines native to the Indian subcontinent. Given the diversity in soil, climate, culture, ethnic groups, and occupations, these cuisines vary substantially and use locally av ...

File:Lanna cuisine starters.JPG, A sampling of starters in Northern Thai cuisine (Lanna cuisine) File:Kaiseki 001.jpg, Zensai in

Japanese cuisine Japanese cuisine encompasses the regional and traditional foods of Japan, which have developed through centuries of political, economic, and social changes. The traditional cuisine of Japan (Japanese language, Japanese: ) is based on rice with m ...

In Europe

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

, devils on horseback is a hot hors d'oeuvre in different recipes, but in general they are a variation on angels on horseback, made by replacing oysters with dried fruit. The majority of recipes contain a pitted date (though

prune A prune is a dried plum, most commonly from the European plum (''Prunus domestica'') tree. Not all plum species or varieties can be dried into prunes. Use of the term ''prune'' for fresh plums is obsolete except when applied to varieties of ...

s are sometimes used). ''Starter'' is a common colloquial term for an hors d'oeuvre in the UK,

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

, and

Crudités Crudités (, ) are French appetizers consisting of sliced or whole raw vegetables which are typically dipped in a vinaigrette or other dipping sauce. Examples of crudités include celery sticks, carrot sticks, cucumber sticks, bell pepper strip ...

from

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

are a blend of salads of raw vegetables and the serving has a minimum of three vegetables of striking colors. ''

Zakuski ''Zakuski'' (, ; ) is the term for an assortment of cold hors d'oeuvres, entrées and snacks in Russian food culture. They are considered to be an integral part of any Russian festive meal, as well as often everyday meals. Terminology Ori ...

'' are hors d'oeuvres in

Russian cuisine Russian cuisine is a collection of the different dishes and cooking traditions of the Russians, Russian people as well as a list of culinary products popular in Russia, with most names being known since pre-Soviet times, coming from all kinds ...

and other post-

Soviet cuisine Soviet cuisine, the common cuisine of the Soviet Union, was formed by the integration of the various national cuisines of the Soviet Union, in the course of the formation of the Soviet people. It is characterized by a limited number of ingredien ...

s, served in the form of a buffet of cured meats and fishes. In

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

'' antipasto'' means it is served cold in the form of olive, cheese, pickled vegetables; other similar hors d'oeuvres can be found in the rest of Southern Europe under different names ( in Portuguese, or in Spanish). in Dutch means the dish ('') before ('') the main course. Fattoush is a bread salad in Levantine cuisine made from toasted or fried pieces of

pita Pita ( or ; ) or pitta (British English), also known as Arabic bread (, ), as Lebanese bread and as kmaj (from the Persian ''kumaj''), is a family of yeast- leavened round flatbreads baked from wheat flour, common in the Mediterranean, Levant ...

bread () combined with mixed greens and other

vegetable Vegetables are edible parts of plants that are consumed by humans or other animals as food. This original meaning is still commonly used, and is applied to plants collectively to refer to all edible plant matter, including edible flower, flo ...

s. It belongs to the family of dishes known as (plural) or fatta, which use stale flatbread as a base. File:Hors d'oeuvres at a romanian banquet1.jpg, Various hors d'oeuvres at a

banquet A banquet (; ) is a formal large meal where a number of people consume food together. Banquets are traditionally held to enhance the prestige of a host, or reinforce social bonds among joint contributors. Modern examples of these purposes inc ...

Romanian cuisine Romanian cuisine () is a diverse blend of different dishes from several traditions with which it has come into contact, but it also maintains its own character. It has been influenced mainly by Ottoman cuisine, Ottoman and Turkish cuisine but a ...

File:ApetitizerShp.jpg, An appetiser served at a restaurant serving

Swiss cuisine Swiss cuisine (, , , ) is an ensemble of national, regional and local dishes, consisting of the ingredients, recipes and List of cooking techniques, cooking techniques developed in Switzerland or assimilated from other cultures, particularly ne ...

File:Brettljause 02.jpg, Typical

Carinthia Carinthia ( ; ; ) is the southernmost and least densely populated States of Austria, Austrian state, in the Eastern Alps, and is noted for its mountains and lakes. The Lake Wolayer is a mountain lake on the Carinthian side of the Carnic Main ...

n or

Styria Styria ( ; ; ; ) is an Austrian Federal states of Austria, state in the southeast of the country. With an area of approximately , Styria is Austria's second largest state, after Lower Austria. It is bordered to the south by Slovenia, and cloc ...

n "Brettljause", composed of different kinds of cold meat, horseradish, hard-boiled egg, meat paste, Liptauer, vegetables, butter and curd cheese

In the United States

In the United States the custom appears to have come from

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

, where a foreign saloon owner may have put out trays of simple hors d'oeuvres to serve his customers. This tradition soon became the 5-cent beer and free lunch in early America before

ended the custom. In the U.S., '''appetizers''', referring to anything served before a meal, is the most common term for hors d'oeuvres. Light

snack A snack is a small portion of Human food, food generally Eating, eaten between meals. Snacks come in a variety of forms including Food packaging, packaged snack foods and other processed foods, as well as items made from fresh ingredients at ho ...

s served outside of the context of a meal are called hors d'oeuvres (with the English-language pluralization).

Hawaii

In the

Hawaiian language Hawaiian (', ) is a critically endangered Polynesian language of the Austronesian language family, originating in and native to the Hawaiian Islands. It is the native language of the Hawaiian people. Hawaiian, along with English, is an offi ...

hors d'oeuvres and appetisers are called '.

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...

an culinary influences are very diverse due to the multiple ethnicities living in the islands. This diversity, along with the Americanization of entertaining in the mid 20th century led to the Hawaiian Cocktail and the ''pūpū'' (hors-d'oeuvre) served at the beginning of luaus. This invention of a faux Polynesian experience is heavily influenced by Don the Beachcomber, who is credited for the creation of the ''pūpū'' platter and the drink named the ''

Zombie A zombie (Haitian French: ; ; Kikongo: ''zumbi'') is a mythological undead corporeal revenant created through the reanimation of a corpse. In modern popular culture, zombies appear in horror genre works. The term comes from Haitian folkl ...

'' for his Hollywood restaurant. At Don's the food was traditional

Cantonese cuisine Cantonese or Guangdong cuisine, also known as Yue cuisine ( zh, t=廣東菜 or zh, labels=no, t=粵菜), is the cuisine of Cantonese people, associated with the Guangdong, Guangdong province of China, particularly the provincial capital Guan ...

served with a fancy presentation. The first ''pūpū'' platters were eggrolls, chicken wings, spare ribs as well as other Chinese-American foods. Eventually Trader Vic would create the Mai Tai in his restaurants in the

San Francisco Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a List of regions of California, region of California surrounding and including San Francisco Bay, and anchored by the cities of Oakland, San Francisco, and San Jose, California, S ...

and the

Tiki bar A tiki bar is a themed drinking establishment that serves elaborate cocktails, especially rum-based mixed drinks such as the Mai Tai and Zombie cocktails. Tiki bars are aesthetically defined by their tiki culture décor which is based upon a rom ...

would become an American cocktail tradition.

In Oceania

Hors d'oeuvres, also called

amuse-bouche An ''amuse-bouche'' (; ) or ''amuse-gueule'' (, ; ) is a single, bite-sized'' hors d'œuvre''. Amuse-bouches are different from appetizers in that they are not ordered from a menu by patrons but are served free and according to the chef's selec ...

s, served around bars in Australia are

oyster Oyster is the common name for a number of different families of salt-water bivalve molluscs that live in marine or brackish habitats. In some species, the valves are highly calcified, and many are somewhat irregular in shape. Many, but no ...

s and

alsace Alsace (, ; ) is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in the Grand Est administrative region of northeastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine, next to Germany and Switzerland. In January 2021, it had a population of 1,9 ...

foie gras ; (, ) is a specialty food product made of the liver of a Domestic duck, duck or Domestic goose, goose. According to French law, ''foie gras'' is defined as the liver of a duck or goose fattened by ''gavage'' (force feeding). ''Foie gras'' i ...

. Appetisers in New Zealand are lamb skewer or blue cod sliders. In

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

the Māori call their snacks ''Kai Timotimo''.

Kiribati Kiribati, officially the Republic of Kiribati, is an island country in the Micronesia subregion of Oceania in the central Pacific Ocean. Its permanent population is over 119,000 as of the 2020 census, and more than half live on Tarawa. The st ...

appetisers served include pastes made from chickpeas and eggplant, meat dishes with spices and wheat. Samoan foil chicken and roast pork, tidbits of meat in a smoky, spicy sauce are appetisers in

Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa and known until 1997 as Western Samoa, is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania, in the South Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main islands (Savai'i and Upolu), two smaller, inhabited ...

. In

Tonga Tonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga, is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania. The country has 171 islands, of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in the southern Pacific Ocean. accordin ...

, puu-puus or appetisers served are Waikiki shrimp and grilled pineapple with dipping sauce.

In other countries

Appetisers served in

Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...

are raw and fresh vegetables and assorted dips with decorations. Before modern-day hors d'oeuvre were introduced from Europe into South Africa, starters served consisted of eastern fish sambals and cooked

bone marrow Bone marrow is a semi-solid biological tissue, tissue found within the Spongy bone, spongy (also known as cancellous) portions of bones. In birds and mammals, bone marrow is the primary site of new blood cell production (or haematopoiesis). It i ...

served with bread.

References

Bibliography

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External links

Hors d'oeuvre Recipes
'' Saveur''. {{DEFAULTSORT:Hors Doeuvre Courses (food) Garde manger fa:پیش‌غذا