Slovak ingredients and substitutes: a guide for cooks abroad

Bryndza is a white, spreadable, slightly granular cheese made by milling ripened sheep's lump cheese, on its own or mixed with cow's lump cheese. It tastes mildly sour, moderately sharp and salty. Slovenská bryndza is a protected geographical indication in the EU, and Slovak food rules require at least 50 % sheep's cheese, counted on dry matter; ovčia bryndza is made from sheep's milk only.

Bryndza is what makes bryndzové halušky, the Slovak national dish, and it is also used in pirohy fillings and in bryndzová nátierka, a cold spread. Outside Central Europe it is hard to find, which is why Slovak cooks abroad often mix a stand-in from feta.

What to ask for: US: bryndza, sheep's milk feta; UK: bryndza, sheep's milk feta; Canada: bryndza, sheep's milk feta

Where to look: US: A few Slovak and Czech delis carry it, for example in New York (reported in 2024) – call ahead. UK: We could not confirm a regular UK seller; use a substitute. Canada: We could not confirm a regular Canadian seller; use a substitute.

Keep in mind: Use real bryndza for the cold bryndza spread (bryndzová nátierka), where the cheese is the whole flavor. The published substitutes below are for warm dishes.

Allergens and diets: All options contain milk. Ovčia bryndza is sheep's milk only; mixed bryndza, most cream cheese and non-PDO feta contain cow's milk; PDO feta is sheep's milk, sometimes with up to 30 % goat's milk.

Our recipes with bryndza

• Bryndzové halušky: Slovak potato dumplings with sheep cheese
• Bryndzové pirohy: Slovak sheep cheese dumplings
• Zucchini halušky: dumplings with bryndza and bacon
• Bryndzové pečivo: Slovak sheep cheese and dill rolls
• Bryndzové pagáčiky: Slovak cheese and crackling biscuits
• Bryndzový demikát: Slovak sheep cheese soup

Tvaroh is a fresh curd cheese made by souring milk and draining the curd; it is not ripened. It is mildly tangy and is the base of Slovak sweet fillings, cheesecakes, quark doughs and dumplings. In Slovak shops it comes crumbly (hrudkovitý, in a foil block) or creamy and spreadable (in a tub); Slovak food rules also grade it by fat, and on labels jemný means the low-fat grade.

The closest North American match is farmer cheese (farmer's cheese) or dry curd cottage cheese. Ordinary cottage cheese and ricotta are much wetter – creamed cottage cheese is about 80 % water – so they need draining before they go into a filling or dough.

What to ask for: US: farmer cheese, farmer's cheese, dry curd cottage cheese, quark; UK: twaróg (curd cheese), quark; Canada: farmer's cheese, pressed cottage cheese, quark

Where to look: US: Farmer cheese is sold by some supermarkets (for example the Lifeway and Friendship brands); Polish delis sell twaróg. UK: Polish twaróg (for example Łowicz curd cheese) is listed by some large supermarkets and sold in Polish shops; supermarket quark is smoother and wetter. Canada: Look for farmer's cheese, pressed cottage cheese or quark in the dairy case or at European delis.

Keep in mind: Fillings and doughs depend on a dry, crumbly cheese: if your substitute is wet, drain it first rather than adding extra flour.

Allergens and diets: All options are cow's milk dairy and contain lactose (creamed cottage cheese about 2.7 g per 100 g, USDA).

Our recipes with tvaroh

• Tvaroháč: Quark sheet cake with raisins and lemon zest
• No-yeast quark buns with vanilla sugar
• Layered quark and chocolate dessert cups
• Cocoa-dusted sponge cake with quark cream
• Budapest-style quark and red pepper spread
• Crispy quark sticks with powdered sugar

Slovak shops sell white wheat flour in three grinds, defined by particle size in Slovak food rules: hladká (fine), polohrubá (semi-coarse) and hrubá (coarse). Polohrubá feels slightly gritty between your fingers. Slovak cooks use it for dumpling doughs such as halušky, for yeast doughs and for many cakes.

US all-purpose flour and UK plain flour are finer, closer to hladká. Semolina and farina are far coarser. All-purpose or plain flour is the usual stand-in, with a slightly different texture; some Czech cooks abroad suggest Wondra quick-mixing flour in the US or Robin Hood Best for Blending in Canada as a closer match.

What to ask for: US: all-purpose flour, Wondra quick-mixing flour; UK: plain flour; Canada: all-purpose flour, Robin Hood Best for Blending flour

Where to look: US: All-purpose flour is everywhere; Gold Medal sells Wondra quick-mixing flour in the US. UK: There is no exact UK equivalent; plain flour is the usual stand-in. Canada: Robin Hood Best for Blending is a granular flour sold in Canada.

Keep in mind: If you can get polohrubá flour (Slovak or Czech shops), use it – the recipe was written for it.

Allergens and diets: All of these are wheat flours and contain gluten, including Wondra and semolina.

Our recipes with polohrubá flour

• Tvaroháč: Quark sheet cake with raisins and lemon zest
• No-yeast quark buns with vanilla sugar
• Makovník and orechovník: Slovak poppy seed and nut rolls
• Bryndzové halušky: Slovak potato dumplings with sheep cheese
• Parené buchty: Slovak steamed yeast buns with plum butter
• Strapačky: Slovak potato dumplings with sauerkraut and bacon

Klobása means sausage, but in Slovak recipes it usually means a smoked, paprika-red sausage that is firm enough to slice. Traditional home recipes mix pork shoulder and belly with beef, season it with sweet and hot paprika, garlic and caraway, and cold-smoke it for two or three days before drying.

In kapustnica and other sauerkraut dishes it is simmered or fried with the cabbage. Smoked Hungarian sausage is the closest match; Polish smoked kielbasa is the easiest to find and works well, though it is milder, softer and sold fully cooked.

What to ask for: US: smoked Hungarian sausage, Polish smoked kielbasa; UK: Polish smoked sausage (kiełbasa); Canada: Hungarian smoked sausage, smoked kielbasa

Where to look: US: Smoked kielbasa is a common supermarket product (for example Hillshire Farm Polska Kielbasa); Hungarian sausage at European butchers and delis. UK: Polish smoked sausages such as Krakus Podwawelska or Sokołów Silesian are listed by several large supermarkets. Canada: Look for kielbasa or Hungarian sausage at supermarkets, European butchers and delis.

Keep in mind: Chorizo is a different sausage – Spanish chorizo is cured and dried, Mexican chorizo is raw – so it is not a like-for-like swap.

Allergens and diets: Usually pork, often with beef; turkey-and-beef kielbasa exists for pork-free cooking. Smoked sausages are cured with nitrite salts.

Our recipes with klobása

• Sedliacka výplata: potatoes with sauerkraut and sausage
• Kapustnica: Slovak sauerkraut soup with smoked meat
• Baked potatoes with smoked sausage and cheese
• Stewed beans with smoked sausage and vegetables
• Baked pork cutlets with mushrooms and cheese
• Koložvárska kapusta: sauerkraut and pork casserole

Slovak food rules describe údené mäso as whole cuts of cured pork smoked over cold or warm smoke until golden brown – a raw product that has to be cooked. It flavors the whole pot, which is why kapustnica, bean soups and barley dishes start with it.

In the US and Canada the closest everyday match is a smoked ham hock or a smoked pork shoulder (picnic) labeled "cook before eating". In the UK, smoked gammon is sold raw like údené mäso; smoked ham hocks are sold both raw and cooked, so check the label.

What to ask for: US: smoked ham hock, smoked pork shoulder (picnic); UK: smoked gammon, smoked ham hock; Canada: smoked pork hock, smoked pork shoulder

Where to look: US: Look for smoked ham hocks or a smoked picnic shoulder labeled "cook before eating" in the meat case. UK: Smoked gammon joints and ham hocks at butchers and supermarkets – gammon is sold raw. Canada: Smoked pork hocks from butchers and supermarkets.

Keep in mind: A fully cooked ham only needs heating: it gives less flavor to the pot than raw smoked pork, so add it toward the end.

Allergens and diets: All are pork; smoked turkey drumsticks are a pork-free option for flavoring a soup. Cured meats contain nitrite salts.

Our recipes with Slovak smoked pork

• Pearl barley with sauerkraut and smoked meat
• Kapustnica: Slovak sauerkraut soup with smoked meat
• Shredded potato and smoked meat bake
• Sejkory: Czech potato bake with smoked meat
• Potato pancakes with smoked meat and marjoram
• Skillet potato pizza with smoked meat and cheese