Šúľance s Makom

Bratislava. The rest of the year is preserved rather than fresh. Kapustnica, a sour cabbage soup with smoked sausage and dried mushrooms, is the Christmas Eve dish, sauerkraut and smoked pork carry the winter, and the dumpling turns up in a dozen forms, boiled, fried, filled and plain.

Slovakia. Bryndzove halusky is highland food, from the salas and koliba of the sheep-grazing centre of the country rather than from the cities. Slovenska bryndza, the soft sheep's cheese it depends on, holds EU protected status; the traditional drink beside it is zincica, the whey left from making that cheese; and the village of Turecka hosts an annual world championship in eating it.

Europe. European cooking is built on the land and the seasons, wheat, butter, and cured pork in the north; olive oil, tomatoes, and seafood around the Mediterranean; preserved vegetables and hearty stews through long winters. Centuries of peasant tradition, guild craft, and royal courts refined techniques from French mother sauces to Italian fresh pasta and Central European baking. Regional identity runs remarkably deep, with a single dish often changing from one valley to the next.