Briefly: According to science, snacks should be moderate and low-fat, because food puts a strain on the liver and pancreas, and this worsens the hangover. Also, a lump of undigested food can accumulate alcohol in itself, so that the drinker, unnoticed by himself, can drink more than his norm. Doctors also warn that spicy foods will slow down the processing of alcohol, and mushrooms in the presence of alcohol can become poisonous. Juicy fruits, drinks containing quinine, and enzyme preparations will help the body cope with the alcohol load.
| how to snack properly | why exactly? |
|---|---|
| , low-fat, easily digestible. On the day of drinking, give up protein foods: meat, sausage, mushrooms, legumes, pearl barley, homemade goose and duck | rich and difficult-to-digest food increases the load on the liver, causing a more severe hangover. In addition, food delays the absorption of alcohol, a person thinks that he has drunk little, and he continues to drink - this way you can “overdo it” and even drink a lethal dose of alcohol without noticing it. Be careful! |
| — take Mezim-Forte following the instructions | taking enzymes will help digest a heavy snack, which means it will reduce the load on the liver and pancreas |
| , apples are especially useful | they contain dietary fiber and pectin, which improve digestion and help the body cope better with alcohol. As a result, the hangover will be milder |
| sauerkraut, honey, juicy fruits and berries, lemons, grape and apple juice | these products contain many organic acids, which improve metabolism and speed up the processing of alcohol |
| , it is useful to drink one mug of coffee or a tonic + vodka cocktail | caffeine and quinine (found in classic tonics such as Shweppes) increase enzyme activity. The liver begins to work better and cope with alcohol more easily |
| : watermelon, zucchini, strawberries, wild strawberries, dandelion, green tea | Along with urine, toxic products of alcohol processing will leave the body faster. The hangover won't be as bad |
| containing garlic, horseradish, onion, mustard, pepper, vinegar | Spicy foods slow down the oxidation of alcohol and increase the vulnerability of the pancreas |
| for example, meat must be digested in an acidic environment, and potatoes in an alkaline environment. Therefore, meat and potatoes is a difficult dish to digest. | |
| . Do not snack on alcohol with strings, morels, red fly mushrooms, pigs, old raincoats, and some subspecies of russula | The edibility of many mushrooms is determined by individual sensitivity. And if you usually digest certain mushrooms well, then in the presence of alcohol they can become toxic to the liver or cause frightening hallucinations |
In our culture, the tradition of accompanying alcohol with a rich meal is so ingrained that the very fact that it is necessary and healthy is beyond doubt. The expressions “A snack steals a degree” and “You need to have a snack!” firmly entered into everyday life. Doctors have their own (correct) opinion on this matter. Read this text carefully and without prejudice. Print it out and show it to your friends. This is important for your health.
And fat food, or difficult to digest protein food. The latter includes meat, sausage, mushrooms, peas, beans, barley, domestic goose and duck.
The domestic tradition of “flying mushrooms” is also not suitable for everyone. On the one hand, there are a sufficient number of mushrooms, the edibility of which is determined by the individual insensitivity of the body.
Such mushrooms include strings, morels, red fly agarics, pig mushrooms, raincoats collected in an aging state, and some subspecies of russula. The presence of alcohol in the stomach and intestines creates an extractive effect, additionally releasing toxic substances from the mushroom pulp, and also facilitates their penetration through tissue barriers (increases bioavailability).
On the other hand, the combined effect of alcohol and certain substances in mushrooms leads to a pharmacological effect that these substances and alcohol cannot produce separately. A mixture of organic acids of strings and morels, generally called “helwellic” acid (from the name of the genus of mushrooms to which strings and morels belong), in the presence of alcohol becomes toxic to the liver, and gyromitrin contained in variable quantities, in addition to hepatotoxic, hemolytic (destroying red blood cells) and cardiotoxic effects, also becomes an LSD-like hallucinogen (probably due to the appearance of ethylamides in the reactions of incomplete reduction of keto groups of aldehydes formed during the oxidation of alcohol).
Alcohol also greatly increases sensitivity to substances that block sodium channels in cell membranes. One of these substances, tetrodotoxin, is found in small quantities in the famous puffer fish. If you are planning to order it in a Japanese restaurant, keep in mind that drinking it with alcohol is dangerous: its effect on the body can change, even being fatal.
We already figured out how harmful a rich snack is at the very beginning of this article. The snack should be moderate, low-fat, and easily digestible.
A hangover will be easier if you don’t rush to drink all the alcohol in one sitting, and spread out the same dose throughout the evening. At the same time, eat light food that slows down the absorption of alcohol, but does not burden the liver: for example, rice, which acts as a sorbent. The absorption of alcohol will slow down, and the body will have time to cope with it better.
By choosing the right snack, you can reduce the harm from drinking and ease tomorrow's hangover. Read more about this below.
Recommended vegetables and fruits, especially apples. They contain enough dietary fiber and pectin to improve digestion and help the body better process alcohol. The more efficiently the body processes alcohol, the less it will have time to suffer in the process and the less severe tomorrow’s hangover will be.
Fruits (especially apples), as well as grape and apple juices, improve metabolism, allowing you to process alcohol faster.
This is interesting: vegetables and fruits reduce the risk of hormone-dependent cancer in people who drink. It is reliably known that alcohol consumption increases the risk of developing hormone-dependent malignant tumors - in particular, breast cancer (one source: Seitz HK, Pelucchi C, Bagnardi B, La Vecchia C, Epidemiology and pathophysiology of alcohol and breast cancer: update 2012). This is due to the fact that alcohol increases the concentration of sex hormones in the blood. Scientists tried to figure out how to reduce this risk and conducted a prospective study. The results showed that a diet rich in dietary fiber significantly reduces the risk of ovarian cancer in people who drink alcohol.
It’s good if there are foods on the table that have a diuretic effect: watermelon, zucchini, garden strawberries and strawberries, dandelion, green tea. Along with urine, the toxic products of alcohol processing will be eliminated from the body faster: the very substances that make a hangover morning so unbearable.
If you still can’t have a gentle snack, a simple trick can make the situation easier: accompany the libation with taking (according to the instructions!) an enzyme preparation mezim-forte. It is sold in any pharmacy and is inexpensive. Taking enzymes will help digest heavy snacks, which means reducing the load on the liver and pancreas, which are already busy with the complex process of processing alcohol.
Note! Mezim, not festal. Festal contains bovine bile and therefore leads to a decrease in the synthesis of our own bile acids, and during libations we need the synthesis of our own bile with its good separation.
Mezim forte can be replaced by taking enzyme preparations Wobenzym or Creon. However, they are significantly more expensive, and in this particular case they do not have any advantages.
Please note that in this article we rely only on scientific evidence. Beware of advice on other sites if you are not sure that it is given by a scientist or specialist. You should not trust your body to charlatans, because only science gives verifiable and reliable results. On the Internet, anyone can write anything on any topic, but we remain the only site in our niche that does not save effort in searching and checking information, and orders articles from real experts.
Here are some examples of correct and incorrect snacks. Read the article to the end - and you will be able to set a decent holiday table. The snack on this table will be such that your liver and pancreas will thank you for treating them well. Because if you drink alcohol and eat everything in three mouths, then it is likely that right during the holiday you will be overcome by an attack of severe pain in your side.
First: instead of Olivier, make a vinaigrette. Vinaigrette is a very smart appetizer, as long as you don't eat bowls of it. Let's figure out why. The salad, as you know, consists of beets, potatoes, carrots and onions. And also sauerkraut, canned peas and pickled cucumber.
Please note: the cucumbers should be salted, not pickled. Sauerkraut and pickled cucumbers contain succinic acid: it will help speed up metabolism and make the liver’s work a little easier. The marinade also contains vinegar, which will prevent you from processing alcohol. Cabbage and cucumbers also contain micro- and macroelements that we lose due to the diuretic effect of alcohol. Fiber in vegetables will also not be superfluous.
If you want to make the vinaigrette an even better appetizer, don’t put green peas in it. Peas are not your friend. It is also better to put onions to a minimum. And in general, the snack should be moderate. Cut seven times, eat once.
Appetizer number two: jellied meat. Frozen jellied jelly contains the substance glycine, which helps neutralize the toxic products of alcohol processing: in particular, acetaldehyde, which is the reason why you feel so bad in the morning. In addition, glycine normalizes the functioning of the nervous system and improves sleep.
However, to ensure only benefits from jellied meat, do not overeat. Meat itself is a heavy product, it is better to avoid it and eat only jelly. In addition, hot seasonings are usually added to this dish; try to use them to a minimum.
Third. It’s even smarter to replace jellied meat with jellied fish. It will also contain glycine, and compared to meat, fish is easier to digest. Choose low-fat fish: bream, pike perch, carp, pollock, carp. Mackerel is delicious, but make it another time. Do not add eggs to the aspic, but be sure to add a slice of lemon.
Meat and potato pie, beef stroganoff, meat stew with mashed potatoes, sandwich with butter and sausage - all this is prohibited! Well, that is, you can, but there is a rule: “If you start eating, don’t drink. If you start drinking, don’t eat.”
Boiled potatoes are a completely normal snack, but meat is too heavy. How about a combination of the two? Doctors say unequivocally: such a snack is harmful. The fact is that meat must be digested under the action of the enzyme pepsin, which is active in an acidic environment, and potatoes are processed by amylase, which is active in an alkaline environment. Opposite requirements for digestion conditions lead to the fact that both components are poorly digested. And underdigested food will poison your body.
Proper snack number four. Of course, we can’t help but talk separately about sauerkraut. As they say, the appetizer is excellent: it’s not a shame to put it on the table, and it’s not a shame to eat it. Sauerkraut contains succinic acid and essential micro- and macroelements. And it's also very tasty.
We’ll also suggest a couple more life hacks: you can chop onions and herring into cabbage. Add a spoonful of vegetable oil and leave to marinate for 20 minutes. This is not very good for the drinking body, but in moderation it will not matter. For beauty, you can add a little beetroot to the cabbage; it will color the whole thing a rich red color. And then, believe me, at your table no one will sigh for barbecue and sausage.
Pea soup, canned beans, lentil salad and other legume dishes are the wrong snack. Outside of drinking, these are healthy products, a source of vegetable protein. But this most wonderful vegetable protein will not be absorbed if you snack on vodka beans. And undigested protein serves as the basis for the formation of intestinal poisons. With a hangover, you don’t even need poisons in your intestines.
Instead, prepare a “Greek salad”: cut 3 tomatoes, 1 fresh cucumber, 1 red onion, 1 bell pepper, add about 20 olives, cut feta cheese into cubes. The recipe calls for 200 grams of cheese, but you put less, purely symbolically. Mix everything. Add lettuce leaves. Salt, pepper, season with a tablespoon of sunflower oil and a tablespoon of lemon juice.
Citric acid, like succinic acid, speeds up our metabolism and helps the body neutralize alcohol faster. He who doesn't have a headache from a hangover laughs well. Dietary fiber found in vegetables is also your friend. But it is better to avoid fatty cheese. Let the owners be offended that you do not eat what they have prepared; but in the morning you won’t curse them for feeling sick and having a splitting headache.
You should definitely avoid barbecue, sausage and similar heavy dishes. Well, or drink no more than 100 grams per evening, if you don’t want to end up in the hospital with an attack of pancreatitis, as happens to many during the New Year holidays. As they say, you can’t buy health, your mind gives it.
Milkshakes, ice cream and just milk. What do you think is a good snack? You guessed wrong. Despite the fact that milk contains many useful substances, it is difficult to digest and puts a lot of stress on the pancreas. And the tryptophan contained in it also becomes a preparation for intestinal poisons.
What else is better not to put on the holiday table? Spicy seasonings and sauces. Garlic, horseradish, mustard, vinegar, hot pepper - all this slows down the oxidation of alcohol and makes the future hangover more severe.
Proper snack number six. Very beautiful and very thoughtful. It's called "Traffic Light". Take a wooden skewer: stick a strawberry, a piece of banana and a piece of kiwi onto the skewer. Fruits, like vegetables, contain dietary fiber and pectin, which help our body cope with alcohol.
Of course, fruit is not a very traditional snack in Russia. But, firstly, if your liver could talk, it would say: “Well, screw your traditions, let’s have strawberries instead.” Secondly, champagne and even some types of whiskey go well with berries. But cognac is not. If cognac could speak, it would demand respect and personal attention. Gluttony separately, cognac separately.
The seventh correct snack. What to do if you're a hipster? If you're a hipster, make a fruit smoothie with green tea: take banana, kiwi and apple. Peel the fruits, cut them into pieces and blend with a blender until pureed. Add a glass of green tea, a chopped piece of fresh ginger and a teaspoon of honey. Mix again until pureed.
Green tea has a diuretic effect, so harmful alcohol byproducts are eliminated from the body faster. But it’s important not to overdo it with tea: you don’t need a lot of caffeine.
Proper snack number eight: baked apples. Very good with vodka. Remove the cores from the apples, sprinkle with lemon juice, add nuts and raisins, pour in honey, grate lemon zest on top and sprinkle with cinnamon. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes. Yes, you need to bother. But cognac does not flow under a lying stone.
Honey is another useful component on the holiday table. It contains organic acids that speed up our metabolism (specifically, the tricarboxylic acid cycle), as well as fructose, which helps our body quickly restore reserves of enzymes that process alcohol. You don’t have to limit yourself with honey.
By the way, about fructose. There is such a plant: Jerusalem artichoke. It’s rare in stores, but if you get it, be sure to make a salad out of it for your holiday table. Jerusalem artichoke contains a polymer of fructose, fructose is released for hours and also improves metabolism for a long time, especially if you eat such a salad for several days in a row.
What else won’t a competent man snack on? Hamburger, fries and other fast food. Fatty fried foods take a long time to digest and create a lump in the intestines. This fatty lump prevents alcohol from quickly being absorbed, digested and exited from the body naturally.
It happens that a person has already slept, but is still drunk in the morning. Or gets drunk after the first sip of water. This happens because alcohol continues to enter the bloodstream from the intestines. If you eat a lot of fatty foods, you can even gain a lethal dose of alcohol without noticing: the alcohol is not absorbed, the person feels sober and continues to drink. As a result, the amount drunk may exceed the body's capabilities. All fatal cases of poisoning with high-quality alcohol that our expert observed were associated with such a rich snack. Even if it doesn’t come to this, remember: drinking + gluttony = severe hangover.
Proper snack number 9: Norimaki rolls. Cook 400 grams of short grain rice. Cut 70 grams of lightly salted salmon and fresh cucumber into thin strips. Place a sushi mat on the table, place a sheet of nori on it, roll it tightly and cut into rolls.
Well, or don’t fool yourself and order rolls for delivery. Rice with seafood and vegetables goes well with many drinks, including spicy and rich island scotches. And if there is Japanese whiskey on the table, then it will be a Japanese themed evening. The main disadvantage of such rolls is hot spices and seasonings, which slow down the oxidation of alcohol and increase the vulnerability of the pancreas. If you give up wasabi, you will feel better the next morning.
Rice will slow down the absorption of alcohol. This will help smooth out the blow to the liver, because the slower the alcohol enters the liver, the less toxic the blow. Well, or just don’t partake in toast.
Appetizer number 10: salted fish. It goes well with beer, and not only in taste. The fact is that if you plan to drink several liters of beer, then sodium will be washed out of your body. And table salt is sodium chloride.
What else do we NOT advise you to do? Salted mushrooms, mushroom pate, fried mushrooms and so on. Just in case, remove mushroom appetizers from the holiday table. Do you know why doctors call some mushrooms conditionally edible? Because sometimes they are edible, and sometimes they can poison you to death. Alcohol just increases the chances that these mushrooms will be the last thing you eat in this life. Even if they are harmless champignons.
It happens that you have had too much alcohol, but suddenly you need to temporarily regain your sobriety of thinking (in order to make a responsible decision or to act correctly in a critical situation). In this case, take advantage of the effective advice of a toxicologist from our special article on how to quickly sober up at home.
This article was last updated: 02/24/2020
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Vodka in Russia was and remains the most popular alcohol; neither large feasts nor friendly gatherings can do without it.
So that the morning after a pleasant evening is not overshadowed by a hangover, you need not only to choose high-quality alcohol, but also to make sure that there is something to eat with a strong drink.
A good appetizer to go with vodka is needed so that no one at the table gets drunk too quickly and the fun does not turn into a spontaneous revelry with unpredictable development.
Vodka goes well with hearty meat and fish dishes, cold and hot appetizers, but there are some limitations that you need to be aware of.
The art of drinking is not as simple as inexperienced consumers think. Remember how Professor Preobrazhensky from Bulgakov’s “Heart of a Dog” enlightened Ivan Arnoldovich Bormental?
“Only landowners who were undercut by the Bolsheviks eat cold appetizers and soup. A more or less self-respecting person handles hot snacks.”
Probably, the snacks at the Slavic Bazaar were beyond praise, but we will try to get closer to reality. First, let's exclude dishes and products that should be crossed off from the menu from the very beginning.
Some housewives are sure that the table should be full of snacks, otherwise the guests will remain hungry. As a result, the overloaded stomach goes on strike, refuses to work, and memories of the generosity of the owners are mixed with an unpleasant feeling of heaviness and even indigestion.
Remember to have a sense of proportion - hungry times, fortunately, are in the distant past. A hearty snack does not cancel intoxication, but delays the time of its onset. A false sense of sobriety can lead to tragedy - many deaths occur after an overdose of alcohol during lavish feasts.
Spicy foods potentiate the effect of alcohol, so neither vodka nor tequila is recommended to be eaten with scalding dishes with red pepper and other hot spices.
If you eat something spicy, you will get drunk very quickly, and in addition, you can get a burn to the esophagus and gastric mucosa. Native Russian mustard, horseradish, onions, and garlic are usually accepted without unpleasant consequences, but they increase the period of alcohol removal from the body, which is harmful to the heart and liver. 
Such food in itself becomes a test for the liver, and in combination with vodka, the load increases many times over. The meat snack should be baked in the oven, boiled, stewed and low-fat, then it will be healthy.
During the long digestion of animal protein, the body will gradually bind and eliminate alcohol without harming health. Don’t forget to count the amount you drink—it doesn’t take long for you to become intoxicated when eating meat snacks, but this doesn’t reduce the load on the body.
These foods are high in protein. A few mushrooms or a couple of spoons of beans will not do any harm, but heavy portions will stop digestion - intoxication with a severe hangover is almost guaranteed.
Attention! Some forest mushrooms (pigs, strings, morels, etc.) react with alcohol to release poison, destroy red blood cells, and provoke hallucinations.
Fresh tomatoes contain organic acids. In combination with ethyl alcohol, the effect of these substances is enhanced so much that the gastric mucosa is severely irritated. The result is pain, burning, bloating, and indigestion.
The marinade necessarily contains vinegar, and it is a test for the kidneys and liver.
Pickled cucumbers and tomatoes, on the contrary, help restore water-alkaline balance.
The body always needs glucose and strives to make reserves at every opportunity. If you suddenly want to eat a shot of vodka with a piece of cake or pastry, the first thing that will be processed is glucose, and “stray” alcohol will reward you with a severe hangover and intoxication.
Alcohol, especially strong alcohol, is completely incompatible with chocolate. The combination, which is deadly for the pancreas, provokes a spasm of the ducts, and this is fraught with an attack of pancreatitis.
Vodka sharpens the sense of taste and stimulates the appetite, so the snack should not be random, but well thought out, balanced and not create unnecessary stress on the liver.
The gradual onset of intoxication can be controlled and it will be wonderful if the fun is complemented by gastronomic pleasure. The festive dinner scenario consists of several “appearances” and strong alcohol, presumably vodka.
Every housewife has many recipes in her arsenal; the choice depends only on the level of reception, time and tastes of the hosts and guests. Cold appetizers are distinguished by the absence of a side dish - they are a separate dish. This category includes sandwiches, salads, salted and canned fish, caviar, meat products, etc.
Cold appetizers are served on common plates and dishes, in salad bowls and herring bowls, decorated with herbs and beautifully chopped vegetables. Jellied meat, jellied tongue, lard and pickles, which are loved by most, also belong to the category of cold appetizers.
You need to eat vodka with nourishing and flavorful food that can overcome the taste of alcohol. The bright taste has brought vodka snacks to the forefront pickled cucumbers, sauerkraut and herring, but what is suitable for “emergency situations” is not suitable for ceremonial feasts.
Strong alcohol is the right accompaniment for a delicious lunch; there are dishes that we usually associate with drinking alcohol.
If guests are on the way and there is no time to prepare even the simplest dishes, quick recipes using ingredients that are in the refrigerator are a lifesaver.
There is always bread and a basic set of products in the house; you can make delicious sandwiches with a minimum of ingredients. There are practically no restrictions on preparation; cheese, sausage, boiled or smoked meat, boiled eggs, fish, vegetables are suitable:
Raznosols are traditional Russian snacks. They neutralize alcohol and dampen the taste of vodka:
Culinary guru William Pokhlebkin argued that vodka can only be enjoyed with Russian cuisine. Many national recipes were created as an appetizer, so they are ideal with vodka.
Herring with onions and sunflower oil, smoked omul, pink salmon and smelt with a glass of cold vodka. Maybe this is not the ultimate dream, but somewhere close.
The choice of appetizers depends entirely on your culinary experience and occasion.
Of course, a wedding or anniversary menu differs from a set of dishes for intimate gatherings with friends, but you still need to snack on vodka.
In Ukraine, lard is a national product; there are no fewer ways to prepare it than there are recipes for borscht. But a snack for strong alcohol made from lard is known and loved in Russia, Poland, the Czech Republic, Germany and other European countries.
We can say that lard occupies a strong position in the cuisines of all countries where there are at least a couple of dozen people who have tasted the divine taste and aroma. In order not to be disappointed in the product, learn how to choose and prepare it. Peculiarities:
If you have good lard at your disposal, you are guaranteed a satisfying and tasty snack. Here are a few very simple recipes:
A classic of the genre - vodka with crispy pickles, fragrant garlic and currant leaf. Every self-respecting housewife once had homemade preparations, but now selected gherkins can be bought in any store.
Cut the cucumbers into longitudinal strips or circles - a matter of taste. Place on a dish along with sauerkraut and apples, sprinkle with pickled or just finely chopped onions. You can snack on a glass of fresh black bread and delicious cucumbers, but this snack is not enough for long feasts.
This is a serious snack for serious people. The frozen meat broth contains everything you need when drinking alcohol. The cartilage from which jellied meat is made contains a lot of useful glycine, and animal proteins bind and remove toxins from the body.
But the universal love for jellied meat is explained not by its usefulness, but by its taste - congealed pork, beef or chicken broth with meat and pepper, seasoned with mustard or horseradish, never stagnates on the table.
Not a single feast is complete without potatoes. You can prepare a side dish in the form mashed, fried or boiled potatoes, bake tubers or cook French fries - all options are win-win.
Boiled potatoes with butter and herbs go well with meat, fish, lard, and vegetables. Potatoes are a sorbent that absorbs the breakdown products of ethyl alcohol.
Some edible mushrooms, such as morels, dung beetles, yellow oiler, polypores and scales, when combined with alcohol, cause poisoning. But it’s usually people who are well acquainted who pickle honey mushrooms, boletus, chanterelles and white, and they don't give surprises.
You can season pickled mushrooms with sunflower oil and onions, but you shouldn’t get carried away with this dish, mushrooms are a difficult product to digest. 
Peeled and neatly chopped herring goes well with vodka as an independent product and as part of other dishes. Well-salted fish is eaten with boiled potatoes, eggs, onions, and black bread.
The herring flesh should be evenly colored; when cutting, the ripe fillet can be easily separated from the bones. How to submit:
You can eat red caviar with spoons or give up the lordship and experience all the shades of taste. Pairs well with caviar:
Products accompanying red caviar should not have their own strong taste. For example, spices, hot seasonings and fruits are completely unsuitable.
Vodka in a steamed decanter and red caviar is a classic Russian combination; Europeans use this product with champagne.
Salted or pickled tomatoes are an example of a simple and affordable snack for vodka.
They are better than pickled ones, which always contain vinegar, and brine will be very useful in the morning if you haven’t quite figured out the alcohol. Tomatoes only need to be fished out of a jar or barrel and lightly rinsed with cold water.
Initially, kebab was prepared only from marinated lamb, but now any meat is fried on skewers over coals - poultry, fish, eggplant, mushrooms, etc.
The secret to success is the composition of the marinade and the choice of the main product. All dishes cooked on fire healthier than fried, barbecue can also be included in this category.
Let's immediately note dumplings with cherries, plums and other fruits, but stuffing with potatoes and boiled meat very good option.
Dumplings and white food are a combination that is obvious to the point of banality, but no less attractive for that reason. Homemade dumplings with mixed minced pork and beef, seasoned with pepper, always meet with strong approval. Rules:
It’s difficult to call the taste of vodka pleasant, which is why it’s customary to drink bitter vodka. Lemon is one of the products that creates its own aftertaste.
Vodka is often eaten with a slice of lemon or orange, but this is practiced when you need to wash away the alcoholic taste from one glass. 
It would seem that there is no dish more native than sauerkraut, but it came to us when the vegetable had already been mastered both in the east and in the west. However, nowhere else is cabbage treated with such adoration as in Russia - it is fermented, salted, boiled and steamed. Cabbage soup is our national dish, but cabbage soup is fermented in many countries - in all Slavic countries, as well as in Germany, Austria, and France.
As a snack for vodka, sauerkraut can be stewed with pork, smoked meats or vegetable oil, or you can simply rinse under cold water and season with onions and sunflower oil.
Smoking changes the color and taste of the fish, and turns it into a delicacy. Healthy protein and fish oil, which speed up metabolism, are preserved, and everyone knows about the benefits of Omega 3.
Smoked fish is always tasty, it’s difficult to give it up, but you shouldn’t eat it in unlimited quantities because of the high salt content and carcinogens. Buy this snack only from reputable stores and check the expiration date.
Fruits go well with wine, champagne and other drinks with a strength of up to 30% vol. It is extremely undesirable to consume foods rich in glucose with strong alcohol. The body primarily processes glucose, alcohol is active at this time and intoxication occurs very quickly.
Melon and watermelon are a different story. Under the influence of alcohol, they begin to ferment right in the intestines and boiling and diarrhea are added to intoxication.
World culinary expert William Pokhlebkin believed that the only possible companions for vodka were dishes of national Russian cuisine. The traditions of the snack table in Russia finally took shape by the 18th century - just during the heyday of home distillation, so vodka and numerous snack options were literally created for each other.
Nitrub/depositphotos.comMeat, meat and flour and fish dishes are ideal, fatty, spicy and salty are welcome. Pokhlebkin noted that vodka promotes the absorption of such heavy food, producing a kind of refreshing effect: you will not overeat and will not break down ahead of time.
From meat dishes, it makes sense to choose dumplings, jellied meat, boiled tongue, jellied veal, salted lard or ham. Among soups, it seems that you cannot find a better companion for vodka than Solyanka.
For all these types of appetizers, vodka, mustard and horseradish are required as components that enhance their gastronomic appeal and highlight their taste properties.
V. V. Pokhlebkin, “The History of Vodka”
Fish appetizers are, of course, traditional herring with sunflower oil and onions, caviar (if also with , then it’s absolutely beautiful), jellied sturgeon and smoked smelt, muksun, omul and pink salmon.
With vegetables, everything is obvious: pickled cucumbers and tomatoes, sauerkraut and mushrooms - salted or pickled. A vinaigrette goes well with vodka (Pokhlebkin suggested a version with a chopped egg and a small amount of herring) and even boiled potatoes if it is accompanied by herring with onions and butter.
Snacks for vodka: dumplings, solyanka, herring with sunflower oil and onions, smoked fish, pickles, vinaigrette.
White goes with fish, goes with meat: this ironclad rule is usually followed when choosing wine for a meal. In fact, everything is much more interesting.
The main thing you should know: the subtler the taste and aroma of the wine, the simpler, more neutral and delicate the appetizer should be.
Accordingly, leave hearty dishes with spices and sauces for wines, the taste of which cannot be easily forgotten. For example, cabernet sauvignon, zinfandel or merlot will make excellent friends with a spicy meat stew, but sauvignon blanc will seem rather pale against its background, but with fish it’s just right.
Another interesting and not the most obvious piece of advice - when choosing wine, focus on the texture of the dish: if it is clearly expressed, then the wine should have character. So, for grilled beef, more tart wines are suitable than for tender veal or stewed meat.
belchonock/depositphotos.com In a situation where you want to limit yourself to a light snack, there is no competition. It goes best with white wines, but you can also pair it with red wines. Camembert and Brie are good with both Riesling and Beaujolais or Pinot Noir, cheddar and Gouda are suitable for Chardonnay, Zinfandel and Shiraz. Mozzarella, feta and goat cheese make an excellent company with Chablis, Chardonnay, Pinot Gris and Chianti.
Wine and fruit are quite a suitable combination when it comes to wines whose taste and aroma have distinct fruity notes: nutmeg or gewürztraminer. If you want to experiment, try the same Gewürztraminer or Riesling with Asian dishes - the combination promises to be interesting.
As for sparkling wines, brut and semi-dry wines are good with chicken, fish, and seafood. These are not the best companions for fatty meats and spicy dishes, although drinking brut steak is not forbidden. Save semi-sweet sparkling wine for dessert, but remember that it should not be too sugary. For example, oriental sweets are definitely not suitable; good wine against their background will seem sour.
As a last resort, there is a cheat trick: choose dishes related to the cuisine of the region where your wine comes from. It will be quite difficult to miss.
Snacks for wine: meat dishes, cheese, fruits, moderately sweet desserts.
It would seem, why invent something when the world has salted fish, braided cheese and chips? You don’t have to show off and drink beer with crackers, but in this approach to choosing a snack there is no inspiration or flight of thought. Good beer means good food.
Shaiith79/depositphotos.com For example, light lager is light and refreshing, which is perfect for spicy dishes with a rich taste. Anything from Italian, Spanish or Mexican cuisine is an ideal choice. If contrasts don't appeal, you can choose from chicken, seafood or typical bar snacks - cheese balls, French fries and all that. A very simple option is cheese; it is better to choose soft or semi-hard varieties.
A worthy companion to unfiltered wheat beer will be light vegetable salads (sounds strange, but it’s true), seafood dishes (including sushi and rolls) and Bavarian sausages.
With ales, everything is simple - choose meat, you won’t go wrong. Burgers, steaks, chicken wings with hot sauces, pizza - food without any special pretensions, which best complements the taste of beer.
Stout and porter are created for people who equally love to drink and eat heartily. This is where the big artillery comes in: stews, goulash, potato casseroles and grilled meats. From the unexpected - chocolate, pastries based on it and desserts with coffee and caramel. Yes, beer is friends not only with pig ears and dried bream. The simplest brownie will make a very good company with a glass of porter.
Lambic is good with light desserts - cheesecakes, ice cream and fruits, and they can be presented in any form: either on their own or as a component of fruit salads. If you want to eat more thoroughly, meat with fruit or berry sauces will be very appropriate.
Beer snacks: cheese, meat and poultry dishes, seafood, desserts with chocolate, caramel and coffee, fruit.
denisk999/depositphotos.com Attention, let's break the covers: cognac, in principle, does not need an appetizer. A good drink is wonderful in itself, but nothing can help a lousy cognac.
If you still want to have a snack, lean meat, hard cheese and dark chocolate will help out. Tartlets with caviar or sandwiches with pate will be very useful, as will fruits - pears or grapes, which can complement a cheese plate. Seafood and mushrooms are usually not considered as appetizers, but in vain - try, for example, pairing cognac and bruschetta with wild mushrooms.
Seating cognac with lemon is an extremely dubious idea, because it completely ruins the impression of the drink. In the case of bad cognac, this is even for the better, but why drink such a mess?
Snacks for cognac: chocolate, meat, cheese, fruit, seafood, mushrooms.
bhofack2/depositphotos.com Whiskey and melon are a strange combination at first glance, but it still has the right to life. Fruits and berries can be a good accompaniment for, so for the next feast, stock up on pears, apples, peaches and grapes.
Seafood is a nice option, as is red fish, such as lightly salted salmon or salmon. Meat will also be appropriate if it is presented in the form of steak, ham or roast.
Finally, cheese is the most versatile snack available. There are no strict restrictions here; both soft and hard varieties will do. No one will slap you on the wrist even for experimenting with whiskey and blue cheese - so what, looking for new combinations is a commendable thing.
Whiskey Snacks: fruits, seafood, meat, cheese.
Did we miss something? Share your favorite alcohol and food combinations in the comments.
Vodka
World culinary expert William Pokhlebkin believed that the only possible companions for vodka were dishes of national Russian cuisine. The traditions of the snack table in Russia finally took shape by the 18th century - just during the heyday of home distillation, so vodka and numerous snack options were literally created for each other.
Meat, meat and flour and fish dishes are ideal, fatty, spicy and salty are welcome. Pokhlebkin noted that vodka promotes the absorption of such heavy food, producing a kind of refreshing effect: you will not overeat and will not break down ahead of time.
From meat dishes, it makes sense to choose dumplings, jellied meat, boiled tongue, jellied veal, salted lard or ham. Among soups, it seems that you cannot find a better companion for vodka than Solyanka.
For all these types of appetizers, vodka, mustard and horseradish are required as components that enhance their gastronomic appeal and highlight their taste properties.
V. V. Pokhlebkin, “The History of Vodka”
Fish snacks are, of course, traditional herring with sunflower oil and onions, caviar (if also with pancakes, then it’s absolutely beautiful), jellied sturgeon and smoked smelt, muksun, omul and pink salmon.
With vegetables, everything is obvious: pickled cucumbers and tomatoes, sauerkraut and mushrooms - salted or pickled. A vinaigrette goes well with vodka (Pokhlebkin suggested a version with a chopped egg and a small amount of herring) and even boiled potatoes if it is accompanied by herring with onions and butter.
Snacks for vodka: dumplings, solyanka, herring with sunflower oil and onions, smoked fish, pickles, vinaigrette.
Wine
White goes with fish, red goes with meat: this ironclad rule is usually followed when choosing wine for a meal. In fact, everything is much more interesting.
The main thing you should know: the subtler the taste and aroma of the wine, the simpler, more neutral and delicate the appetizer should be.
Accordingly, leave hearty dishes with spices and sauces for wines, the taste of which cannot be easily forgotten. For example, cabernet sauvignon, zinfandel or merlot will make excellent friends with a spicy meat stew, but sauvignon blanc will seem rather pale against its background, but with fish it’s just right.
Another interesting and not the most obvious piece of advice - when choosing wine, focus on the texture of the dish: if it is clearly expressed, then the wine should have character. So, for grilled beef, more tart wines are suitable than for tender veal or stewed meat.
In a situation where you want to limit yourself to a light snack, cheese has no competition. It goes best with white wines, but you can also pair it with red wines. Camembert and Brie are good with both Riesling and Beaujolais or Pinot Noir, cheddar and Gouda are suitable for Chardonnay, Zinfandel and Shiraz. Mozzarella, feta and goat cheese make an excellent company with Chablis, Chardonnay, Pinot Gris and Chianti.
Wine and fruit are quite a suitable combination when it comes to wines whose taste and aroma have distinct fruity notes: nutmeg or gewürztraminer. If you want to experiment, try the same Gewürztraminer or Riesling with Asian dishes - the combination promises to be interesting.
As for sparkling wines, brut and semi-dry wines are good with chicken, fish, and seafood. These are not the best companions for fatty meats and spicy dishes, although drinking brut steak is not forbidden. Save semi-sweet sparkling wine for dessert, but remember that it should not be too sugary. For example, oriental sweets are definitely not suitable; good wine against their background will seem sour.
As a last resort, there is a cheat trick: choose dishes related to the cuisine of the region where your wine comes from. It will be quite difficult to miss.
Snacks for wine: meat dishes, cheese, fruits, moderately sweet desserts.
Beer
It would seem, why invent something when the world has salted fish, braided cheese and chips? You don’t have to show off and drink beer with crackers, but in this approach to choosing a snack there is no inspiration or flight of thought. Good beer means good food.
For example, light lager is a light and refreshing beer that is perfect for spicy dishes with a rich taste. Anything from Italian, Spanish or Mexican cuisine is an ideal choice. If contrasts don't appeal, you can choose from chicken, seafood or typical bar snacks - cheese balls, French fries and all that. A very simple option is cheese; it is better to choose soft or semi-hard varieties.
A worthy companion to unfiltered wheat beer will be light vegetable salads (sounds strange, but it’s true), seafood dishes (including sushi and rolls) and Bavarian sausages.
With ales, everything is simple - choose meat, you won’t go wrong. Burgers, steaks, chicken wings with hot sauces, pizza - food without any special pretensions, which best complements the taste of beer.
Stout and porter are created for people who equally love to drink and eat heartily. This is where the big artillery comes in: stews, goulash, potato casseroles and grilled meats. From the unexpected - chocolate, pastries based on it and desserts with coffee and caramel. Yes, beer is friends not only with pig ears and dried bream. The simplest brownie will make a very good company with a glass of porter.
Lambic is good with light desserts - cheesecakes, ice cream and fruits, and they can be presented in any form: either on their own or as a component of fruit salads. If you want to eat more thoroughly, meat with fruit or berry sauces will be very appropriate.
Snacks for beer: cheese, meat and poultry dishes, seafood, desserts with chocolate, caramel and coffee, fruit.
Cognac
Attention, let's break the covers: cognac, in principle, does not need an appetizer. A good drink is wonderful in itself, but nothing can help a lousy cognac.
If you still want to have a snack, lean meat, hard cheese and dark chocolate will help out. Tartlets with caviar or sandwiches with pate will be very useful, as will fruits - pears or grapes, which can complement a cheese plate. Seafood and mushrooms are usually not considered as appetizers, but in vain - try, for example, pairing cognac and bruschetta with wild mushrooms.
Seating cognac with lemon is an extremely dubious idea, because it completely ruins the impression of the drink. In the case of bad cognac, this is even for the better, but why drink such a mess?
Snacks for cognac: chocolate, meat, cheese, fruit, seafood, mushrooms.
Whiskey
Whiskey and melon are a strange combination at first glance, but it still has the right to life. Fruits and berries can be a good accompaniment for whiskey, so stock up on pears, apples, peaches and grapes for your next feast.
Seafood is a nice option, as is red fish, such as lightly salted salmon or salmon. Meat will also be appropriate if it is presented in the form of steak, ham or roast.
Finally, cheese is the most versatile snack available. There are no strict restrictions here; both soft and hard varieties will do. No one will slap you on the wrist even for experimenting with whiskey and blue cheese - so what, looking for new combinations is a commendable thing.
Snacks for whiskey: fruits, seafood, meat, cheese.
Did we miss something? Share your favorite alcohol and food combinations in the comments.
It is believed that an appetizer can be anything - from an apple to oysters with caviar. However, there are products that do not go well with alcohol, spoil the taste of noble drinks and even harm your health.
A hangover is considered something harmless and a natural, natural side effect of a feast. However, in fact, these are the consequences of dehydration and intoxication of the body with the breakdown products of ethanol and other harmful substances contained in alcohol, so there is nothing natural about a hangover.
List of unwanted products:
In large quantities, this snack contributes to a hangover and poor health in the morning. In addition to the standard snacks sold in any bar or supermarket, there are other dangers. Don't drink alcohol:
Due to several components in the composition, cocktails are considered the most harmful in terms of a hangover; it is better to drink no more than 2-3 cocktails per evening Any brandy, including cognac, cannot be combined with lemon and chocolate, as it interferes with the organoleptic properties of the drink. Lemon complements the taste of bad cognac.
