Euros 2021: National dishes and cocktail ideas for Group A - Turkey, Italy, Wales and Switzerland

10 June 2021, 15:23 | Updated: 10 June 2021, 15:25

Recipes to get you in the mood for the Euros. Picture: Getty Images

Check out some delicious recipe ideas from Group A in the Euros 2021 - Turkey, Italy, Wales and Switzerland.

The Euros are here, which means it’s time to enjoy the football in the sun with a drink in your hand.

And while we can’t predict which teams are going to make it through to the final, we can make the whole event more enjoyable with some fun food and drink ideas.

So, ahead of the group stages, here’s a list of the national dishes and cocktails from Turkey, Italy, Wales and Switzerland…

Turkey

Turkey is known for its fresh spices and beautifully colourful vegetable dishes, so why not try making your very own meze?

A meze is a collection of small dishes that is either served as an appetiser, or as the main meal.

These can include dishes such as Yaprak Sarma, which are vine leaves wrapped around a mixture of rice, currants and sauteed onions.

There are also a lot of vegetable-based dips you can try such as hummus and a red pepper and walnut dip known as Muhammara. This can be eaten with marinated vegetables, salads and breads.

If you want to try a cocktail to go with your meze, the ‘Turkish Delight’ - created by South Yarra’s Turkish restaurant Yagiz - uses rose petal-infused Hendricks, creme de cacao and rose water.

Hummus us a traditional Turkish dip. Picture: Getty Images

Italy

You can’t go wrong with a proper Italian pizza, but if you don’t have your own pizza oven to hand, there are some sneaky tricks to help you achieve a good base.

Experts at thekitchn.com suggest bringing your dough to room temperature before kneading and using olive oil on your surfaces to stop it sticking.

Check out a simple margherita pizza recipe HERE.

Obviously, there is no better Italian cocktail than the negroni, which is made of one part gin, one part vermouth rosso, and one part Campari and is garnished with orange peel.

It is also traditionally made stirred, not shaken.

A negroni is the perfect cocktail for a summers day. Picture: Getty Images

Wales

Welsh rarebit is one of the most famous Welsh foods and is made of a cheese-based sauce served over slices of toasted bread.

If you have a sweet tooth it might be worth trying Welsh Cakes which are a cross between a cookie, a scone, and a pancake. Check out a delicious recipe here!

While Beer is the national drink of Wales, whisky is also very popular.

Why not try the ‘Prince of Wales’ cocktail, made of Champagne, rye whiskey, Maraschino cherry liqueur and Angostura Bitter.

Rarebit is a traditional Welsh dish. Picture: Getty Images

Switzerland

Heading to Switzerland, Rösti is one of their national dishes which is a kind of potato cake served as a main course or side dish.

The potatoes are first cooked in their jackets, then peeled and grated before being fried to form a round flat cake.

Bern-style lekerlis biscuits are also popular, especially at Christmas time, and are spiced, gingerbread-like biscuits which are particularly delicious when dunked in tea.