80 Best Amish Recipes (2024)

FAQs

What do the Amish eat for breakfast? ›

Moist breads, heartwarming casseroles, sweet bakes, and more delicious goodies fill the Amish breakfast table. So we rounded up 13 of our favorites, from Amish Friendship Bread to Herman Biscuits to Mennonite Fritters, to showcase the sweet, tangy, and savory recipes our home cooks love.

Shoofly pie is a traditional sweet breakfast dish in Amish communities. It's made from molasses combined with water, baking soda, and flour poured into a pie shell and topped with a layer of crumb comprising flour, butter, sugar, and spices like nutmeg and cinnamon.

The beauty of Amish dishes lies in their simplicity. There are no long lists of exotic ingredients and no intricate culinary techniques. Instead, there's a focus on freshness and quality. Butter is churned at home, bread is baked fresh every morning, and vegetables are plucked straight from the garden.

Traditional Amish food includes dishes like tasty roasted chicken, creamy mashed potatoes & gravy, seasoned vegetables, fresh bread, and homemade jam. The Amish are also known for excellent baked goods, especially pies, cookies, breads, cakes, and fry pies.

The Amish Have No Dietary Restrictions

Having no dietary restrictions means they can eat whatever their heart desires. While many Amish stick to a traditional Pennsylvania Dutch diet, we've seen Amish dine at Olive Garden and take their buggies through the Burger King drive thru line.

All the ingredients they use to make a meal are locally sourced and free from preservatives and additives. Amish recipes are simple yet flavorful, making them perfect for a home-cooked meal.

That said, some Amish, especially New Order, like Gloria and family, tend towards healthier diets where soda pop of any kind is a rarity. But among certain Old Order groups, “pop” has become a mainstay. This recipe comes to us from a Mennonite in Canada. You can bake the chicken in the recipe or baste it and grill it .

It's no surprise that outsiders are often curious about Amish everyday life, and their eating habits. Do the Amish drink coffee? The answer is yes, they certainly do! However, they don't use electric kettles or coffee machines as we do.

An Amish meal is usually served with water to drink. If you're from a different culture you may be used to having a variety of things to drink with your meal from ice tea to milk to coffee. Its water for the Amish. But don't forget to have a cup of coffee after dessert while you sit around to chat.

Do Amish eat potatoes? ›

Homegrown produce is often a staple and features vegetables such as corn, beets, peas, and more. Many Amish families compliment their meals with cabbage and potatoes, using sauerkraut–a type of pickled cabbage–as a staple in many dishes.

As part of their Ordnung, Old Order Amish forbid owning automobiles; tapping electricity from public utility lines; owning televisions, radios, or personal computers; attending high school or college; joining the military; and initiating divorce. All Amish groups expect men and women to wear prescribed clothing.

But how long do Amish people live? The average life expectancy of the Amish is similar to the national average, with many living into their 70s and 80s. Research on the Old Order Amish of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, revealed an average lifespan of 70.7 years.

After the snack break, the children carry on with their daily chores and it is about this time that the Amish quilter must prepare for the evening meal. Supper is usually served around 5:00 p.m. once the husband and older children have all arrived home after their workday.

In the mornings, children immediately get to work on their morning chores, such as milking the cows, feeding their livestock, gathering eggs, and cleaning up the animal pens. After the morning chores are complete, most Amish families eat breakfast together and take some time to pray and do Bible readings.

Are the Amish Allowed to Eat Pork? Because there are no food restrictions, or notions of pigs being unclean, the Amish can eat pork.

The Amish sometimes boil coffee in a pot, but also may use a french press to brew their coffee. Then toast two slices of homemade bread fresh out of the bread-serving basket until they're golden brown. Place the toast into a large bowl and then pour the coffee over it.

Many Amish people enjoy beer or wine at feasts or even at home, and some even produce their beers. It's a part of their Germanic heritage and as such is seen as part of their culture. Therefore, it's not unusual for Amish men to turn one of their barns into a space for creating community craft beers.