Culinary Štajerska
Culinary Štajerska is wonderfully diverse, offering everything from homely traditional dishes to modern culinary delights. The fertile plains are known for richer, heartier meals, while the hillier areas preserve more modest recipes rooted in the past.
Culinary Štajerska is famous for satisfying, calorie-rich dishes, often featuring animal fats, pork, flour-based meals, potatoes, beans, butter, cream, eggs, and onions. A local standout is Ptuj lük, a native Slovenian onion variety that has been grown on the Ptuj Plain for more than 300 years. A special meat delicacy is meat from tünka—salted and smoked pieces of pork preserved in a “tünka” (a container) under rendered lard. And of course, pumpkin seed oil, made from the golica pumpkin variety, is an essential companion ingredient across the region.
A beloved signature dessert is gibanica, a layered pastry made with multiple sheets of dough and filled with a variety of fillings—most commonly cottage cheese. Traditionally, gibanica is baked in a wood-fired bread oven and served in a clay dish called a gibančnik.
Štajerska is also known for excellent honey, which is used to create a wide range of honey-based products.
A culinary gem of Štajerska is pumpkin seed oil. Its unique aroma, distinctive taste, and appealing appearance make it an indispensable ingredient in the Prlekija kitchen. The region’s long history of pumpkin cultivation has led to the development of various pumpkin varieties, each with its own shape, color, size, and flavor. Pumpkin seed oil made from the golica (hulless) variety is obtained by pressing the seeds and has a rich, nutty taste. Its intensely green hue, with hints of red, is characteristic of Slovenian pumpkin seed oil—and truly magical for the senses.
Pumpkin seed oil
Pumpkins are a very old cultivated plant, and over the centuries people have bred many varieties that differ in shape, color, size, and, not least, flavor.
It is precisely the golica pumpkin from which, today just as a hundred years ago, we obtain pumpkin seed oil. It takes 2.8 kg of dried seeds to press one liter of this precious, thick oil.
Štajerska culinary traditions offer an enticing palette of flavours that celebrates the region’s natural abundance. From traditional sausages and baked specialties to hearty stews and aromatic wines, Štajerska’s cuisine weaves together a rich tapestry of tastes and experiences. Exploring the culinary delights of Štajerska is a journey that blends tradition with innovation—creating a vibrant, unforgettable gastronomic adventure.
Meat from tünka
