The essential guide to chubritsa: A Bulgarian culinary secret revealed

Anyone who has vacationed in Bulgaria has likely encountered chubritsa. Bulgarians use it frequently. However, you don't need to leave home to try it. You can buy it at any grocery store.

True chubritsa is simply mountain savoury. Sometimes, it is substituted with garden savoury, which is much less intense. Therefore, when buying chubritsa, it's worth noting this distinction. Mountain savoury is almost as sharp as pepper and has an intense aroma. It is a well-known plant in the Mediterranean region from the mint family, and it is related to the garden savoury. Garden savoury contains significantly fewer tannins and essential oils, making it milder. Garden savoury is also cultivated in Canada and can be planted in a pot on a balcony. When labelled as cubits, it might not always be just savoury. Sometimes, it's a mix of herbs.

Stores offer dried savoury or mixes with other spices. The popular mixes are green chubritsa and red chubritsa. The former is milder and contains savory, garlic, green pepper, sea salt, and loveage. It's suitable for sandwiches, cucumbers, tomatoes, cottage cheese, butter, and salads, especially those with feta, raw salads, and sauces, as well as scrambled eggs, chicken soup, casseroles, and pizza.

Red chubritsa gives dishes a bold, spicy flavour. It contains savoury garlic, pepper, chilli, sweet paprika, onion, rosemary, and sea salt. It works well with meats, tomatoes and cucumbers, ratatouille, various vegetarian dishes, stews and sauces, sandwiches, toast, cottage cheese, and eggs with mayonnaise.

Less famous is yellow chubritsa, which owes its colour to turmeric and curry. It also contains fenugreek, sea salt, parsley root, and garlic. This spice is primarily recommended for vegetables – raw and baked, other vegetarian dishes, cottage cheese and cheeses, soups, meats, and sauces.

Other mixes of chubritsa can also be found in stores, such as white or grey. However, if you have savoury, you can easily create your mix. Add paprika, rosemary, black pepper, chilli, fenugreek, granulated garlic, or salt.

Chubritsa improves flavour. It has anti-inflammatory and antiseptic properties and aids digestion, which is why it is used in natural medicine. It stimulates the production of gastric juice, benefiting digestion and easing bloating. Thus, it's worth adding it to fatty meat dishes and those with legumes. Importantly, it also supports liver function.