Childhood favorites 🍲🍋
(These pictures are once again not foodie

-style photos 😅)

Today I had some work in the countryside, not far from my mom – and she welcomed me with lunch.
👉 Egg soup and “kemény tarhonya” (elsewhere known as “paraszt tarhonya”).
👉 And finally, a homemade lemon cake 🍰.

When I lived in Bali, I often missed these Hungarian flavors. Now my mom is cooking my childhood favorites one by one – she’s such a sweetheart and I’m really grateful 🙏.
Since I won’t be able to go home for my birthday because of work, she baked this cake for me in advance. 💛


🔸 Similar foods in other countries

🇨🇳 China: reminds me of 西红柿鸡蛋汤 (xīhóngshì jīdàn tāng – tomato egg soup), also simple and thickened with eggs.

🇯🇵 Japan: 卵かけご飯 (tamago kake gohan – rice with raw egg) gives the same homely feeling.

🇰🇷 Korea: 계란국 (gyeran guk – egg soup) is very close.


Tarhonya has a texture a bit like rice or barley, but here it’s toasted first and cooked with spices.


🔸 Fun fact – dialect differences
In Hungary, the same dish is often called by different names depending on the region. For example:

paraszt tarhonya is also known as száraz tarhonya or (in my region) kemény tarhonya,

egg soup is sometimes called rántottleves.


This is just like the regional language differences in China, Japan, or Korea:

🇨🇳 In China, the word for “orange” can be 橙子 (chéngzi) or 桔子 (júzi).

🇯🇵 In Japan, Kansai and Tokyo use different words for the same things (like ingredients of okonomiyaki).

🇰🇷 In Korea, Seoul and Jeolla regions use different terms for everyday foods.

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As far as I know, you can’t find these dishes anywhere else – only if you come to Hungary and let me know. Then my mom will happily cook them for you too 😅😊