Curious what Czech foods start with the letter P? The letter P is very abundant in Czech words, so I tried to choose recipes that are really typical for Czech cuisine. Let's take a look at them!
Podvodnice
Podvodnice is a Czech Christmas cookie, easy to make but fantastically tasty. Its fame dates back to the first half of the 20th century when Czech grannies used to bake podvodnice at Christmas as a festive sweet.
Interesting fact: Podvodnice cookies are baked with a yeast dough that is left to rise under cold water!
Get the recipe: Podvodnice cookies
Paprikas
I think chicken paprikash is a pretty well-known recipe. The Czechs adapted paprikash from the Hungarians, with whom we were part of the powerful Austrian Empire for several centuries.
The Czech version of this sweet and creamy sauce with chicken is "kuře na paprice"; however, the Czechs also call it simply "paprikáš".
Get the recipe: Paprikash with dumplings
Pracny
Pracny cookies are one of the other typical sweets that cannot be missed on the festive table at Czech Christmas. Made with buttery dough, the pracny cookies feature the aroma of the spices included in the recipe: cloves, cinnamon, lemon zest, and cocoa powder.
Get the recipe: Pracny
Polevka
The Czech word "polévka" does not mean any particular recipe, but the name for soup! When you visit one of Prague's famous pubs, you will find a list of soups at the beginning of the menu.
My tips for the best Czech soups: Sauerkraut soup (zelnacka), Garlic soup (cesnecka), Potato soup (bramboracka)
Or try Czech kulajda soup!
Pernik
Perník is a sweet pastry made as a sheet coffee cake. The perník cake contains gingerbread spices (perníkové koření), a blend of individual spices traditional to Czech cuisine: ground cloves, allspice, star anise, cinnamon, and more.
The special thing is that the Czech gingerbread mixture does not contain any ginger!
Get the recipe: Perník
Parek
Czechs and párky sausages, it works together! Párek is a type of thin sausage made of finely pureed meat, stuffed into a casing and then boiled.
Czechs love sausages warmed in water, with mustard and a slice of fresh bread. At street vendors, located in the streets of Czech cities, you can buy a so-called "párek v rohlíku", which is nothing but a hot dog!
Frankfurters and Wieners belong to the most popular kinds of párky sausages. Párky also make up an ingredient in various Czech recipes. One of them is this delicious Frankfurter soup.
TIP: Párek means a pair in the Czech language. If you order párek in the Czech Republic, you should get two pieces, not only one!
Palacinky
I don't know any Czech who doesn't like palačinky! These are thin pancakes, fried on a griddle. Czech palačinky resemble French crepes. After the palačinky pancakes are fried, they are brushed with jam and rolled up. And then there's nothing left to do but enjoy this delicious goodness!
Get the recipe: Palačinky
Porkova polevka
Czechs say that soup represents the basis of every main meal. This is true, and that explains why you can find a large number of soup recipes in Czech cookbooks. Today I would like to mention "pórková polévka", a leek soup with potatoes.
Pórková polévka is easy to make, tastes wonderful, and is flavored with traditional Czech spices: garlic and marjoram.
Get the recipe: Pórková polévka
Piskoty
Every Czech kid loves piškoty! These are sweet, light & crispy biscuits that taste delicious on their own. However, they fit perfectly into recipes as well. Czech home cooks use piškoty to conjure up all sorts of no-bake sweets that are so popular among Czechs!
My tip: try vosí hnízda, a famous Czech Christmas cookie made with piškoty
An alternative to them in the USA could be the so-called Nilla waffles, but hand on heart: the best way to taste real Czech piškoty is to bake them yourself at home!
And here's the recipe: Piškoty biscuits
Did you try any of these recipes?
Or you know any other Czech recipe that starts with this letter? Let me know in the comments. I would love to expand the recipe list! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
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