10 Traditional Welsh Foods You Must Try

Traditional Welsh food is a must-try for those visiting Wales, with half of the country backing onto the coast and the other half full of beautiful countryside, it’s no wonder Wales produces some of the UK’s best produce. It is also home to a number of fantastic traditional recipes!

After exploring this magnificent country’s wonderous castles, the glorious coastline and endless, rolling countryside you can look forward to ending the evening with one of these mouthwatering, traditional Welsh dishes.

Find below 10 of our favourite traditional Welsh dishes…

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• Traditional Welsh Foods FAQs
• 10 Traditional Welsh Foods

Traditional Welsh Foods FAQs

12 Traditional Welsh Foods

1. Welsh Rarebit

Perhaps one of the more popular of Welsh dishes and one of the more traditional, Welsh arebit is in a sense, the best cheese on toast you can have.

It was originally known as Welsh rabbit, however the dish has never seen any rabbit as one of the ingredients. Welsh rarebit is often compared to cheese on toast but it’s so much more than that! A true comfort food.

Welsh rarebit combines cheese, mustard, beer and flour to make a tasty topping for thick-cut, rustic Welsh bread. Easy to make and easily found in many Welsh eateries, this dish is a must for anyone looking for a hearty Welsh breakfast. You can serve it with a fried egg on top, but this then becomes buck rarebit.

Perfect for a late breakfast or brunch, this Welsh food is a real treat for anyone in the area. Nobody really knows where the name came from, although some say it was a joke by the English to say ‘the closest thing to rabbit the Welsh could afford was melted cheese on toast’.

The jokes on them though as Welsh rarebit is a delight and one of the best ultimate Welsh comfort foods.

Try it Yourself!

Visit BBC Food for a fantastic Welsh rarebit recipe that serves four people and takes less than 30 minutes to make.

2. Welshcakes

Regarded as one of the more popular Welsh foods, Welshcakes are small circular cakes, dusted in sugar and provide the perfect accompaniment to a hot cup of tea.

Welshcakes can be eaten at any time of day. Traditionally cooked over a bakestone, they are now more commonly cooked on a griddle for two to three minutes on each side. They are filled with dried fruit and a mixture of spices which normally include nutmeg, sugar and ginger. They can also contain sultanas and chocolate chips for a sweeter twist on the original recipe.

Their Welsh name is Picau ar y maen, which means “cakes on the stone”, with the flat griddle they are traditionally cooked on being the stone. Popty Bakery in Betws-y-Coed is a great place to visit for traditional Welshcakes, I prefer mine slightly warm or with jam and cream!

Try it Yourself!

Good Food has put together this tasty recipe for Welshcakes. The recipe makes 16 Welsh cakes and takes around 20 minutes from start to finish; perfect for sharing amongst friends and family.

3. Cawl

Cawl is a traditional Welsh stew made with lamb, leeks and root vegetables, usually potatoes, carrots and swede. Each region in Wales has its own take on cawl so although the core ingredients stay the same, you should see the addition of other seasonal veg and possibly even bacon as you travel around the country.

Usually eaten alongside a side of fresh bread, this stew is the perfect choice for a winter’s night or after a day exploring one of Wales’ best beaches! The Plash Inn in Whitland is part of Discover Carmarthenshire’s Cawl Crawl and serves up a truly tasty cawl full of flavour!

Try it Yourself!

This fantastic recipe from Visit Wales is sure to warm you up on a cold day. Packed full of goodness this recipe will serve six people and takes around three hours to cook.

4. Bara Brith

You might have seen this next Welsh food, bara brith, in cafés and shops throughout the country. Dating back to the 19th century, the Welsh phrase, bara birth translates to ‘speckled bread’, however, it is hotly debated across the country whether it is bread or cake!

As bara brith is traditionally made with yeast, packed full of dried fruit and spice, and served with salted Welsh butter, we’re going to say it’s most definitely a bread!

Treat yourself to a Welsh afternoon tea at Caffi Gwynant in Snowdonia and along with an array of other delicious treats, you’ll also receive a slice of their mouth-watering bara brith with Welsh butter.

You cannot head home from Wales without trying this classic Welsh dish!

Try it Yourself!

For a tasty bara brith loaf that will be cut into 10 slices, we would suggest this recipe from Good Food. Ready in just one hour and 40 minutes, this bara brith is best served with traditional Welsh salted butter.

5. Glamorgan Sausage

Next on our list of the best Welsh dishes is a culinary item made famous during the Second World War, the Glamorgan sausage; it is still cherished today!

The Glamorgan sausage does not include any meat at all, although history believes that some earlier versions of the dish did include meat, dating as far back as the late 1700s. The Glamorgan sausage we know now is a cheese and leek mixture coated in breadcrumbs.

Traditionally made with Caerphilly cheese, Glamorgan sausages can actually be made with any crumbly white cheese and are fantastic when served with pickle. This Welsh dish was popular during rationing in the 1940s, however they were not invented as a wartime speciality. But as the meat became harder to come by, the popularity of the dish rose.

Today, Glamorgan sausages can be found throughout the UK and it is easy to see why.

Try it Yourself!

The Guardian has put together a fantastic recipe for homemade Glamorgan sausages. This recipe will make six and should be ready in about 45 minutes.

6. Aberffraw Biscuit

Is this the oldest biscuit in the UK? Whilst we can never be certain about the oldest biscuit, we can say with certainty that Aberffraw biscuit is up there as one of the tastiest.

Aberffraw is a buttery shortbread, thought to have originated from the small village of the same name on the island of Anglesey during the 13th century.

The design distinctive scallop-shell shape of the biscuits is still a mystery. However, over the years it has been known as the ‘James cakes’, with a possible link to the Camino de Santiago (Way of St James) pilgrimage – as an image of a scallop shell was used as a way marker, which could explain the name.

A stone church was built under King Gruffudd ap Cynan (1075-1137) or his son and successor Owain Gwynedd (1137-70), at Aberffraw which comprised Romanesque features close to what you would find on the pilgrimage route to Santiago de Compostela in the 12th Century. The church is seen as the final link to the scallop shell of St James pilgrims and the small Welsh village of Aberffraw.

Try it Yourself!

Head to the Shepherds biscuit’s online shop and take your pick at a wide variety of flavourings. A number of delicatessen around the country will also have Aberffraw biscuits stocked up.

7. Oggies

Oggies may look and taste close like a Cornish Pasty but have no doubt that this is a Welsh staple quintessential Welsh ingredients such as lamb and leek.

The oggie was a favourite of the Welsh tin miners, the origins are very similar to that of the Cornish pasty, with the workers being unable to return to the surface, this was the perfect size lunchtime snack to take down with them. Although Welsh oggies are slightly larger than pasties; you can even buy giant oggies.

Oggies are now sold throughout the country, even including the highest mountain in Wales, the summit of Yr Wyddfa (Snowdon).

Try it Yourself!

Have a go at making this Welsh food yourself with the help of this Spruce Eats recipe.

8. Welsh Lamb

It would be very surprising if this delicacy did not make our list of the best Welsh food dishes. With three sheep for every person in Wales, it comes as no shock that Welsh Lamb is making an appearance.

Around the time of the Middle Ages, sheep were mainly looked after for their production of milk and wool, but as the 19th century came around lamb was a highly regarded option for food, renowned now for its taste and the quality of the meat.

Historically, people of Wales mainly ate lamb meat for special occasions or holidays and it was once considered a rare treat for the locals. It was once so highly thought of, that Queen Victoria is reported to have demanded Welsh lamb at the royal table. Embody royalty during your getaway and explore Welsh castles before tucking into a delicious lamb roast.

More recently it was the meat of choice for the G20 summit in London in 2009 by Jamie Oliver and has been on the menu for countless important events around the country such as the Ryder Cup, Wimbledon and the special dinner to mark the Queen’s jubilee.

Try it Yourself!

Take a look at this BBC Good Food recipe and have a go at cooking your own feast!

9. Tatws pum munud

Translating from Welsh to English as ‘Five-minute potatoes’, Tatws pum munud is a great dish throughout the year but is best appreciated as a winter warmer.

As the name suggests, this Welsh food is relatively easy and quick to make, but speaking from experience it might actually take you more than 5 minutes, maybe try to allocate around 20 mins to cook.

This traditional dish has been passed down across the generations and is a perfect meal to use up any ingredients left in the house, with the main ingredients including bacon, potatoes and vegetables.

Perfect for a cold and wet winter’s evening, I’d suggest adding some crusted bread on the side to help mop up the mouth-watering remains.

Try it Yourself!

Head to Amgueddfa Cymru which breaks down how to create the best version of Tatws pum munud.

10. Teisen Lap

Last but definitely not least on our list of the best Welsh foods is the delicious Teisen lap.

Baked in the villages of South Wales all associated with coal mining, this cake was the dessert of choice for coal miners. Not only was it a lovely sweet option but due to its consistency, it was easy to travel down the pits with, knowing it would not be all crumbled in the lunchbox when opened.

Teisen lap is known as “wet cake” or “moist cake” and is not to be confused with another option on our list, bara brith, which is often created with yeast.

This is an absolute classic across the country and is best being served alongside a nice cup of tea!

Try it Yourself!

Head to the Visit Wales website to try your hand at this Welsh delicacy.

Where better to try these delicious Welsh foods than at one of these wonderful holiday cottages in Wales? Be sure to use our Wales travel guides to plan your getaway.