Two Czech-style foods feature in ranking of world's best deep-fried desserts

Czechia has two of the world’s best deep-fried desserts, according to online food guide TasteAtlas. In a new ranking based on user ratings, the company revealed that Czechia’s koblihy and vdolky are among the globe’s 20 tastiest fried desserts, ranking highly among a list of 100 dishes.

Koblihy, a type of donut highly popular in Czechia, rank seventh in the TasteAtlas ranking. The Czech style of this dessert is believed to have first originated in Moravia in early modern times and was originally made with pastry dough, yeast, and lard. Koblihy are typically filled with jam or a sweet cream filling and dusted with powdered sugar.

Over time, other ingredients such as eggs and milk were added to create a richer and fluffier pastry. Popular across central and eastern Europe, they are known as krofi in Slovenia, krapfen in Austria, fánk in Hungary, and šišky in Slovakia. 

In 20th position are Czechia’s vdolky. These are a type of soft, tender donut made with a yeasted dough that may be infused with lemon zest for added flavor. These round pastries have a small indentation on the top to hold a filling. While they can be baked, they are typically fried to a golden brown. They are traditionally served warm, with a variety of fillings such as jams and whipped cream, or topped with crumbled tvaroh.

Interestingly, TasteAtlas says that Prague’s Café Louvre is the country’s “most legendary” dessert spot.

Czech cuisine often performs well on TasteAtlas rankings. At the end of last year, the company featured Czechia’s česnečka (garlic soup, typically served with potatoes or croutons) in a ranking of the world’s top 100 dishes overall. In a separate ranking, it also classed česnečka as Czechia’s best dish. 

Pečená kachna, or roasted duck, is Czechia’s second-best dish overall, according to TasteAtlas. Valašský frgál (a sweet cake with diverse toppings) rounds off the top three; this dessert is also ranked the world’s 22nd best, according to a separate ranking from the company. 

In sharp contrast, a ranking last year found that rybí polévka (fish soup) was one of the world’s 25 worst dishes.

Overall, the food guide also says that Czechia has the 35th-best cuisine in the world, with Prague standing as the 50th-best city for food globally.