A food tradition that lives on - Maltese honey rings
Two events this week prompt my post about Maltese traditional food. The Malta Standards Authority (MSA) announced it is carrying out a survey over the next two months to ‘clearly establish the eating habits of the Maltese’. Then, my son told me that he needed to dress up like a Maltese villager of yesteryear (flat cap & waistcoat) and serve traditional hobz biz zejt (Maltese bread smeared with tomato paste, olives, onions, tuna and capers) at his end-of-term open day.
The common theme that links the two is a feeling that in Malta we need to return to our roots when it comes to our diet if we are to pass on the dubious honour of our current high rankings in the world’s obesity indices.
Undoubtedly, the Maltese diet has changed drastically in the past 50 years, and now includes all the fast, convenience, additive-laden, pre-packed foods found across the western world. So much for the Mediterranean diet. But, the hobz biz-zejt lives on strongly in snack bars along with qassata and pastizzi (ricotta and pea-filled pastry turnovers) with their interesting blend of healthy filling and carb-laden pastry.
While even the old-style Maltese diet would have included (‘bad’) refined carbs in bread and pasta, it would have been off-set by a larger proportion of fresh fish, meat and vegetables. If you add reasonable amounts of fresh meat or fish to your weekly shop here, the total bill shoots up. We may be surrounded by sea, but its fruits are costly. Perhaps in days gone by, people caught or bred more of the protein themselves and kept the costs down that way.
If there’s one thing we need public health campaigns to do, it’s to show the regular Maltese family how to eat cheaply, cooking fresh meat and fish and leaving out the majority of refined carbs and processed foods. A glance at the list of traditional dishes below, shows that we must have had this knack here once upon a time! As in most of the Mediterranean, meat would have been eked out padded with vegetables and with its juices moped up with crusty bread.
All the recipes below required cooking from scratch with fresh ingredients – that is a good start to eating healthier! Bear in mind, that in the past, the Maltese diet would have included desserts and pastries as a treat on high days, feasts and Sundays only, and not as a regular snack with a cafe pit stop.
Here’s a selection of some traditional recipes, but whether they are cooked at home much? We’ll await the findings of that food diary survey:
Savoury dishes
Lampuki pie – late summer to autumn’s seasonal fish – lampuka (dolphin fish). Also served as shallow fried steaks.
Bragioli – beef olives (thin strips of beef rolled and filled with bacon, bread crumbs, parsley all bound together with an egg), served in red wine and tomato sauce.
Stuffed squid
Octopus stew
Spaghetti with Sea Urchins (Rizzi)
Ricotta Pie – goats cheese and ricotta mixed with some broad beans and parsley on pastry base.
Rabbit stew – with olives, red wine, bay leaves, onion, garlic, tomato puree.
Spinach and Tuna Pie – onion, garlic, anchovy, pastry base, olives, tuna, chopped spinach
Pumpkin soup
Stuffed marrow – mince beef filled marrow rings, baked
‘Widow’s Soup‘ (soppa ta’ l’armla) – this vegetable soup and other minestre are a mainstay of the Maltese kitchen. They are still cooked here big time; I smell various soups or broths in my village street most days.
Bigilla – fava bean paste. A homely dip you find ready-made in supermarkets, and which features also on wine bar menus today.
Timpana – baked macaroni (kind of lasagna using mince beef (sometimes lamb), but with pastry top.
Rice balls (arancini)– chicken or beef mince mixed in with rice to form ball coated in bread crumbs and then deep fried.
Desserts & Pastries
Most desserts and sweets you find in Malta, now as in the past, are directly inherited from our neighbour Sicily. Read about them and their history in our dedicated post on Maltese sweets.
Kannoli – deep-fried sweet pastry tubes filled with sweetened ricotta, and sometimes candied peel.
Cassata – cakes made with almond paste and filled with sweet ricotta
Mqaret – small packages of sweet pastry filled with a date mixture and served mouth blisteringly hot!
Photo: Peter Grima (Know Malta) – he has the recipe for honey rings here!
FAQs
Traditional Maltese food is rustic and based on the seasons. Look out for Lampuki Pie (fish pie), Rabbit Stew, Bragioli (beef olives), Kapunata, (Maltese version of ratatouille), and widow's soup, which includes a small round of Gbejniet (sheep or goat's cheese).
What is Malta most famous dish? ›
A traditional rabbit stew, stuffat tal-fenek is considered the national dish of Malta. This lovingly prepared dish is slow-cooked to ensure the meat falls off the bone and blends with a rich tomato, red wine and garlic sauce.
What is Malta's traditional snack? ›
Pastizzi
The Maltese and visitors to the islands have been munching on these delicious savoury snacks for generations. Made with filo pastry and filled with either mushy peas or ricotta, traditional pastizzi cost under 50c. You can find them in street food pastizzerias practically on every corner.
What is the national food and drink of Malta? ›
Stuffatt tal-fenek, or rabbit stew, is considered the national dish of Malta, one that every proud Maltese person is fed practically from birth.
What is the national dessert of Malta? ›
Prinjolata is a traditional Maltese Carnival dessert. A huge dome shaped no bake cake made from a mixture of biscuits, cake, nuts and buttercream covered with Italian meringue and other toppings! Once the Carnival season starts approaching, Malta gets invaded with these white dome shaped Prinjolatas.
What do Maltese eat for breakfast? ›
Biscuits, chocolates or sweets are the preferred breakfast choice for the Maltese followed by processed meats and cereal, an eating habit survey has shown. The results of Malta's first Food Consumption Survey show some people even eat pasta and rice...
What is the Malta famous fruit? ›
The Prickly Pear
The Maltese prickly pear comes in various shades and sizes. The three most common variants are yellow (known “isfar” or “Malti” in native Maltese), red (“l-aħmar” or “l-ingliż”) and white ( “abjad” or “Franċiż”) The fruit's prickly skin served as a direct inspiration for its name.
Is Malta cheap or expensive? ›
According to Numbeo's Cost of Living Index, Malta currently ranks as a “Moderate” expensive country to live in. Cost of visiting is also moderate compared to other European destinations. In fact, Malta is a relatively cheap destination if compared to countries such as the Nordic countries.
Do they eat rice in Malta? ›
Ross il-forn is a traditional Maltese baked rice dish. The rice bake is made with a rich meat sauce finished with a crispy cheesy top. Like the Imqarrun, this baked rice dish is a staple in every Maltese household.
What is the most popular dessert in Malta? ›
Whereas the singular name is 'maqrut'. As one of the most popular desserts in Malta, imqaret can be found all round the island all year round. However, they take front scene during the Christmas celebrations and in other festive gatherings, such as during weddings or in the traditional Maltese festas!
Kinnie is a popular Maltese soft drink. Bitter-sweet, its flavour is orange with a herbal hint of wormwood. It represents a refreshing alternative to branded carbonated drinks with a far broader international presence.
What drink is Malta famous for? ›
Apart from wine and beer, Malta is also famous for its own liqueurs such as Lumicetta ta' Mari (a lemon infused liqueur), Bajtrija (made with the juicy part of prickly pears) and Hanini Digestiv (an after-dinner liqueur made with carobs, caramel and aromatic herbs).
What are 5 interesting facts about Malta? ›
5 fast Malta facts
- Malta is tiny but mighty. This fascinating little island is only 316 km squared, with its capital city, Valette, being one of the smallest in Europe. ...
- Rich diversity and culture. ...
- Malta has some of the oldest temples in the world. ...
- Home to 70+ celebrations and fiestas. ...
- Home to blockbuster films.
Malta Orange, also known as Blood Orange or Citrus sinensis, is a grafted fruit plant commonly grown for its juicy and flavorful citrus fruits. It is a hybrid variety of citrus that is believed to have originated in Italy.
Why does Malta taste like beer? ›
It is very much like beer, in that it's made with barley and has some similar flavors, but it is not fermented; beer is.
What is the main drink at Malta? ›
Apart from wine and beer, Malta is also famous for its own liqueurs such as Lumicetta ta' Mari (a lemon infused liqueur), Bajtrija (made with the juicy part of prickly pears) and Hanini Digestiv (an after-dinner liqueur made with carobs, caramel and aromatic herbs).
What is Malta best known for? ›
When asking the question, 'what is Malta famous for? ', the most generic answer we can provide is: sun, sea, and beautiful beaches. There's so much more to Malta than golden sands and blue waves, but it's undeniable that Malta's beautiful coast is one of the Mediterranean's most stunning landscapes.
What food is best for Maltese? ›
When choosing a dog food for your Maltese, look for one which contains real animal-based protein sources as the main ingredients. Chicken, beef, fish, or lamb are excellent protein options. Maltese are a small toy breed, so select a dog food with kibble that is appropriate for their mouth size.
