What to eat in Malta
A culinary guide to Malta: from rich rabbit stew and flaky pastizzi to prickly pear liqueur and bittersweet Kinnie soda.

[ ] Try Maltese rabbit stew (Stuffat tal-fenek)
    Malta's undisputed national dish features rabbit slow-braised for hours in red wine, abundant garlic, bay leaves, tomato kunserva, and potatoes until meltingly tender.
[ ] Try fresh pastizzi
    Malta's quintessential street snack consists of flaky, blistered phyllo-like pastry parcels stuffed either with fresh sheep's ricotta or spiced curried mushy peas.
[ ] Try Ħobż biż-żejt
    Thick slices of crusty Maltese sourdough rubbed with ripe tomatoes or sweet kunserva paste, drizzled with olive oil, and topped with tuna, capers, olives, and fresh mint.
[ ] Try authentic Gozitan ftira
    A wood-fired flatbread unique to the island of Gozo with folded pastry edges, layered with paper-thin sliced potatoes, sheep cheeselets, tomatoes, and anchovies.
[ ] Try ġbejniet sheep cheeselets
    Small round cheeselets crafted from sheep's or goat's milk. Sample them fresh and soft (friski), sun-dried (moxxi), or cured in vinegar and crushed black pepper (tal-bżar).
[ ] Try timpana
    The ultimate comfort bake: penne pasta tossed in a rich beef and pork ragù, hard-boiled eggs, and cheese, completely encased in a golden puff pastry shell.
[ ] Try aljotta fish soup
    A fragrant Maltese bouillabaisse brewed from small rock fish simmered with heaps of smashed garlic, fresh mint, diced tomatoes, marjoram, and a handful of rice.
[ ] Try seasonal lampuki pie (Torta tal-lampuki)
    A traditional autumn pie filled with tender fillets of lampuki (mahi-mahi/dorado), braised cauliflower, spinach, green olives, capers, and crushed walnuts.
[ ] Try bragioli (beef olives)
    Thinly beaten beef slices wrapped around a stuffing of minced bacon, breadcrumbs, parsley, garlic, and chopped hard-boiled egg, slow-braised in red wine and tomatoes.
[ ] Try Ross il-forn
    Maltese baked rice tossed in a rich meat sauce spiced with saffron and curry powder, bound with beaten eggs, and baked until a crunchy cheese crust forms.
[ ] Try kusksu bil-ful
    A comforting spring soup made with tender broad beans, garlic, kunserva, and tiny pasta peppercorn beads, crowned with a whole melting round of fresh ġbejna cheese.
[ ] Try Zalzett tal-Malti
    Coarse pork sausage seasoned distinctly with crushed coriander seeds, sea salt, garlic, and cracked black pepper, preserved in natural casings.
[ ] Try Kapunata
    The Maltese iteration of ratatouille, braising eggplant, bell peppers, tomatoes, garlic, capers, and green olives in good olive oil without heavy Sicilian vinegar sweetness.
[ ] Try warm imqaret
    Diamond-shaped pastries stuffed with spiced date paste infused with aniseed, cloves, and citrus zest, flash-fried in boiling oil and served blisteringly hot.
[ ] Try Qagħaq tal-għasel (treacle rings)
    Pastry rings with decorative slits revealing a rich, dark filling made from black treacle, citrus peel, cinnamon, cloves, and aniseed.
[ ] Try Maltese kannoli
    Crisp, bubbly fried pastry shells stuffed to order with sweetened local sheep's milk ricotta, dark chocolate flakes, candied peel, and pistachios.
[ ] Try Pudina tal-ħobż
    A traditional thrift dessert transforming stale sourdough bread into a dense, spiced cake soaked with milk, cocoa, sultanas, citrus peel, and vanilla.
[ ] Try Kinnie soda
    Malta's signature bittersweet soda invented in 1952; brewed from bitter Mediterranean Seville oranges (chinotto) blended with aromatic wormwood herbs.
[ ] Try te fit-tazza
    The iconic Maltese working-class morning drink: strong English black tea served piping hot in a transparent glass tumbler with unsweetened evaporated milk.
[ ] Try Ruġġata
    A refreshing heritage cordial made from crushed almond syrup diluted with iced water, perfumed with fragrant orange blossom water.
[ ] Try Cisk lager
    Malta's iconic golden pale lager, brewed locally since 1929; crisp, light-bodied, and finishing with a pleasant grassy hop bitterness.
[ ] Try Bajtra prickly pear liqueur
    A sweet, vibrant digestive liqueur distilled from the fruit of the prickly pear cactus that covers the Maltese drystone walls and countryside.
[ ] Try Ġellewża and Girgentina indigenous wines
    Malta's rare indigenous grape varieties: red Ġellewża produces light, fruity reds and refreshing sparkling rosés, while white Girgentina delivers crisp citrus notes.

Checklist from Unload: https://unloads.me/c/food-malta