Geographical position
Bosnia and Herzegovina is situated on the Balkan Peninsula, covering an area of 51,129 km2 which borders Croatia in the west and south, Serbia in the east, Montenegro in the southeast and southwest and the Adriatic Sea in the south. The Ivan Sedlo pass (959 m), situated between the mountains Bitovnje and Bjelašnica, connects two large geographical units, the more inhabited with forest and arable land in the north and the smaller, rocky Herzegovina in the south. The climate is mainly continental.
Historical influence
The cultural, religious and natural
diversity on a relatively small area of Bosnia and Herzegovina has from the very beginning resulted in turmoil but also wealth
and forms a specific political, economic and cultural region. The state of Bosnia
has been inhabited since the neolith age. During its turbulent history it has been
influenced by Byzantine, Hungary and the neighbouring Croatia
and Serbia. In 1463 Bosnia fell under Turkish control and in 1878 under Austro-Hungarian. On 28 June 1914 the heir to the throne Franz Ferdinand was assassinated in Sarajevo,
triggering the beginning of World War I.
At the end of the war and from 1918-1941 Bosnia and
Herzegovina comes into the formation of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and
Slovenians, later the Kingdom of Yugoslavia and from 1943 it is within the
Socialist Federative Republic of Yugoslavia. Bosnia and Herzegovina proclaimed independence in October 1991 and in 1992 a referendum
followed for dissimilation from Yugoslavia. New war turmoil started in 1993 ending in 1995 with the Dayton
Agreement. Today Bosnia
and Herzegovina
consists of two entities: the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Serbian Republic. The Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina is further divided into 10 cantons.
Cuisine characteristics
Food preparation, beverages and the pleasure food and drink offers is taken very seriously in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Fast food does not exist apart from «ćevabdžinice» or «burek parlours» and they could be considered as some kind of slow food meeting places. All the food in Bosnia is prepared slowly and it is enjoyed in the same manner, in good company and chatting. Meals are generous, mostly made from meat, vegetables and dairy products, and spices are used moderately. Dishes are mainly sautéed and boiled, and desserts, coffee and strong drinks are an unavoidable part of the eating ritual.
A special treat for guests is "meza", a cold platter with smoked home-made meat, sausages, cheese, kaymak, pickled vegetables, home-made bread, sweet bread and other ingredients.
Typical ingredients
- Vegetables: cabbage, aubergines, tomato, zucchini, onion, string beans, leek, pepper, potato, cucumbers …
- Dairy products: kaymak, sour milk, pavlaka and cream
- Meat: lamb, veal/beef/baby beef/ mutton, pork
- Fish: trout, carp, catfish and other freshwater fish
- Fruit: plums, apples, pears, quince, preserved fruits, jams, home-made cornel-cherry marmalade and other.
Bosnian specialties:
- Starters: cicvara, popara, cold platter – “meza”
- Chowders: beg’s, Sarajevo, tarhana, Višegrad, vegetable chowder, Bosnian đuveč
- Ćevapčići (grilled minced meat): hadji’s, šiš, chicken, veal, and meat patties
- Cured meat products: smoked meat, bacon, sausages
- Burek and pies: cabbage, cheese, kljukuša, maslenica, potato,
- Sarma, sarma japrak (with wine leaves)
- Sataraš, peppers stuffed with potato, buranija
- Moussaka: (zucchini, blue aubergine) and kvrguša
- Sweet bread: Bosnian, somun, đevrek, corn
- Baklava, hurmašice, tufahije, lokum, cream puffs, cream pies and whipped-cream pies
- Coffee – in Bosnia you drink “kafa” by rule from a fildžan (Turkish coffee cup) with a sugar cube and rahat-lokum
- Home-made beer: Sarajevo, Tuzla and Nectar
- Strong drinks: plum brandy, pear brandy, quince and grape brandy, and the wine tradition is characteristic for the Herzegovina area.
Bosnian coffee is a reflection of Bosnian gourmet mentality. The preparation of coffee starts by roasting and grinding then finely ground coffee is put in a mildly heated metal pot or «džezva» and topped with boiling water. Džezva is then placed on a hot plate, coffee is stirred and brought to boil to the top of the džezva, making fine foam. A few drops of cold water are added to help the sediment drop. The bottom of the džezva has to be wider and become narrower towards the top. Coffee has to stand for a while and then you just have to pour the coffee or as Bosnians would say «Kafu/kahvu» into Turkish coffee cups and serve on specially forged trays with rose or walnut rahat-lokum and a glass of cold spring water. Of course, we thought of the «extra cup».
Interesting facts
- Baščaršija in Sarajevo
- Old bridge in Mostar
- Neum on the Adriatic
- Monastery Tvrdoš, Međugorje
- Blagaj, spring of the river Buna and Derviška tekija from the 16th century
- National park Sutjeska
- Skiing resorts – Jahorina and Bjelašnica
- Travnik – birth place of the Nobel Prize winner Ivo Andrić
Autor of image: Andrew Curran