Honduran cuisine is best described as mixture of several cuisines. These include the cuisines of Spain, Africa, the Caribbean Islands, the indigenous Lenca people, as well as recipes original to the Garifuna people. Regional favorites of note are baleadas, carne asada, tamales and fried fish. Both savory and sweet dishes often include coconut and coconut milk as featured ingredients.

(Photo Attributed to Author: Juancbg2015)

Favorite soups in Honduran cuisine include mondago (tripe soup), beef soups, bean soups, and seafood soups. One of the most popular seafood soups is Sopa Catratcha De Mariscos Con Un, which features seafood with corn and coconut. Most of the time, traditional soups will have yucca, cabbage and plantains as ingredients – or some combination of them. Whatever soup is served, there will be corn tortillas on the table with them.

Other national favorite dishes in Honduran cuisine include carne asada, meat roasted with chismol (a fresh vegetable salsa), fried fish with jalapeños and pickled onions, and chicken with corn and rice.

Tamales are, as with all Central American countries, a national favorite, prepared in many different ways. There are montucas (corn tamale), stuffed tortillas, and tamales wrapped in plantain leaves – among others. Also integral to Honduran cuisine is liberal use of many tropical fruits, including plum, sapote, passion fruit, papaya, pineapple, and bananas. Bananas are prepared in lots of different ways, including recipes that call for unripe, still green bananas.

Hondurans traditionally enjoy a breakfast that is big and hearty. On the table you will often find eggs, prepared in various ways,  Honduran salty sour cream (mantequilla), refried beans, avocado, hard olancho cheese, tortillas and sweet fried plantains.

If you are a tourist in Honduras, you can buy wonderful, hearty breakfasts at street vendors. They sell such breakfasts as will include eggs, prepared any way you like them, various grilled or fired meats, and small tamales (called tamalitos de Elote) that are made of sweet yellow maize dough, and eaten with sour cream. Also you can get baleadas made of the flour tortillas, fresh Horchata and posole, and pickled onions.

Yojoa Fish is a famous dish all over Honduras, originating in the Yojoa Lake region. The fish is salted and spiced, and then deep fried. It is traditionally served with accompaniments of deep fried tajaditas (sliced plantains), pickled red cabbage, and pickled onions.

Another famous national dish in Honduran cuisine is Carneada – known more often in restaurants as Plato Tipico. Carneada is more of a social event than any one dish or entree. It is a festive affair, featuring lots of drinks and a feast of barbecued beef.  Choice beef cuts are marinated in salt, pepper and spices, and sour orange juice, and then grilled.

On the Honduran Caribbean coastal region, a very popular side dish is a special preparation of beans and rice. They cook the dish in coconut milk, along with several spices and cilantro.

Honduran Cuisine!