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Papua New GuineaFlavors · Szeged
Szeged river fish soup, red from paprika, made with a thick broth of several fish, carp heads and bones, and onion, passed through a sieve. Carp pieces cook in that broth, and the soup is served with bread and hot pepper on the side.
Traditional dish from Szeged, Csongrád-Csanád
Also known as: szögedi halászlé, tiszai halászlé
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Szegedi halászlé — Szeged, Hungary
Szegedi halászlé is the river fish soup of the Tisza tradition, whose best-known form comes from Szeged. It begins with a broth: white-fleshed fish, carp heads and tails, and lots of onion simmer for a long time until they break down. That broth is passed through a sieve, seasoned with salt and paprika, and only then are the carp pieces added, cooking briefly so they do not fall apart.
The result is a red, full-bodied soup, thicker than other Hungarian fish soups. Many cooks in Szeged use more than one type of fish in the broth, and Szeged paprika, grown in the region, is commonly chosen. The soup contains no noodles; it is served with bread and with hot pepper on the side so each person can adjust the heat.
The Tisza fish soup was inscribed in 2017 in the Collection of Hungarikumok, the official list of national values. The official entry describes it as a symbol of the fishing traditions preserved on the riverbanks.
In Szeged, the soup is an everyday dish, served in many fish houses along the Tisza, and also a festive dish: the International Tisza Fish Festival has been held in the city since 1997. Throughout the country, fish soups like this are part of the Christmas Eve meal.
Szeged , Csongrád-Csanád
Szeged, on the banks of the Tisza, is the city most associated with the river fish soup made with a sieved broth.
Carp and other white-fleshed river fish; heads, tails and bones for the broth; onion; ground paprika; salt; hot fresh pepper served on the side.
Very hot, often in a small cauldron or a deep bowl, with white bread. The pepper is served on the side so each person can mash it into their own bowl.
Everyday dish in Szeged and a festive dish; across the country, fish soups are part of the Christmas Eve meal.
Your questions
Szeged river fish soup: a thick broth of fish, carp heads and onion passed through a sieve and seasoned with paprika, in which carp pieces are cooked.
No. Szeged soup is served with bread and with hot pepper on the side.
Because of the ground paprika, which is used in a generous amount in the broth. The Szeged region is known for paprika production.
Flavors of Hungary
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Baja fish soup from the banks of the Danube, made with carp, onion and ground paprika cooked together in a cauldron, without straining the broth. It’s served over a thin noodle, gyufatészta, with the fish on the side and hot pepper.
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Bitter herbal liqueur, dark, produced by the Zwack family in Budapest with a secret recipe of more than 40 herbs and spices, aged in oak casks. The round bottle with a cross on the label is recognised throughout the country.
Sweet wine from the Tokaj wine region in northeastern Hungary, made from grapes affected by noble rot and harvested berry by berry. The aszú berries are crushed and macerated in must or wine, and the wine ages in oak barrels in underground cellars.
White wine from the kéknyelű grape, grown almost exclusively in the Badacsony wine region on the northern shore of Lake Balaton. The grape’s name means “blue stem.” The wines are usually dry with marked acidity, and there are also sparkling and sweet versions.
