Romanian Cuisine

All foreigners coming to Romania are impressed with the taste of traditional dishes. Although international cuisine is available in best quality restaurants, make sure that you savour the local Romanian dishes. Romanian cooking is rich, tasty and substantial, as befits a country where all food is still naturally grown, and fruits and vegetables follow their normal season.

The Romanian cuisine can be divided according to different regions: for example, the Moldavian cuisine with its old traditions using sour-cream, the Transylvanian which specializes in sweetened sauces and spices and the Oltenian which savors soups, meat and fish, as well as highly spiced dishes. Besides these regional aspects, the Romanian cuisine is also influenced by the seasons: summer brings an abundance of fruits and vegetables, while in winter there are very few, except, of course, for pickles. Dairy products are highly appreciated in our country.
Pork takes the place of honour during winter, especially at holiday time. You can buy small sausages, blood sausages, piftie (highly seasoned pork in aspic), head cheese, ham and many other kinds of highly appetizing varieties. Especially popular are the pork meat balls wrapped in sour cabbage leaves known as sarmale.

Mămăliga – a cornmeal mush – used to be the Romanian all purpose staple food. Hot, cold, fried, it is delicious in melted butter, sour cream or yogurts, garnished with salted herring and cottage cheese, or eaten with eggs for breakfast, and added to meat dishes.
A kind of broth called ciorbă is also typically Romanian. It is made out of vegetables, with or without meat.

A range of excellent white and red Romanian wines of the famous vineyards of Murfatlar, Cotnari, Jidvei, Dealu Mare, Odobeşti, Valea Călugarească, accompany local and international dishes to perfection, while ţuica – the local plum brandy – is often drunk as a digestive. But beware, it carries a sting in its tail! The local Romanian beers are excellent.

source: http://www.unibuc.ro/uploads_en/images/71/ERASMUS2.pdf