EUROPE'S BEST-KEPT SECRET APPETIZERS, SALADS, AND SMALL PLATES A cool herring salad at a summer picnic, a slice of deeply flavored pork liver pate with prunes on a winter's eve, creamy country cheese packed with garden-fresh herbs anytime-these are just a few of the dishes that serve as starters for a lingering evening meal or snacks for a lazy Sunday afternoon. SOUPS Today, as they have for centuries, hearty broths simmer through the night over wood-burning stoves in deep rural Belgium. Come morning, they'll find their way into soups respendant with the season's bounty: tangy potato buttermilk soup, heady with freshly grated nutmeg, bold tomato soup laden with tiny delicately spiced meatballs, and deep green spinach soup laced with sorrel. FISH AND SHELLFISH No matter where you are in Belgium, the sea is never far. And in this fish-lover's paradise, seafood is celebrated-from the national dish, steamed tender mussels served with crispy Belgian fries to juicy eels basking in a luxurious lemony cream sauce to firm fresh herring baked en papillote with herbed butter. POULTRY AND GAME In days gone by, a humble stewed hen was the centerpiece of the frugal Belgian farmer's Sunday meal, while extravagant city dwellers dined lavishly on crisp roast chickens. At either table, it was a feast. Some other notable bird preparations: partridge and red cabbage simmered in rich, dark ale and poached chicken blanketed in a lemon veloute sauce.

MEAT Long a mainstay of the national cuisine, meat is still king of the Belgian kitchen. In a manner befitting royalty, robust, succulent cuts of beef, pork, lamb, and venison are stewed in hearty red wine, pungent mustard, and sauteed with piquant gin and juniper berries. COOKING WITH BEER Belgian beer has all the nuances and nobility of its Gallic counterpart, wine. When paired with luscious honey-toned fruits or intense caramelized onions, beer lends a bittersweet quality to soul-warming dishes: comforting tender meatballs braised with endives in blond beer, rabbit sauteed with cherry beer and tart dried cherries, beef stewed in red currant jelly and dark beer. VEGETABLE AND FRUIT SIDE DISHES Honest, homey techniques celebrate fresh fruits and vegetables-with pleasingly complex results: sweet young Brussels sprouts are bathed in a simple sugar butter. The noble Belgian endive is braised with lemon and sugar. And crisp autumn apples are simmered in the ultimate comfort food: applesauce. POTATOES Whether they're fried, baked, boiled, pureed, stuffed, or gratineed, potatoes are a staple of any Belgian meal, be it casual or formal.

Here are crisp Belgian fries-the national snack-and golden potato croquettes. Also, the Belgian variation on the universal favorites-mashed potatoes and stuffed baked potatoes. WAFFLES, PANCAKES, AND BREADS In Belgium, any celebration calls for crunchy, freshly baked, feather-light waffles-dusted with plenty of powdered sugar. And during the coldest stretches of winter, pancake festivals soothe with the promise of the coming sun. Here are waffles filled with sour-cherry compote, buckwheat pancakes topped with bubbling Gruyere, and yeasty bread with a crunchy sugar topping for afternoon tea. DESSERTS Light, lacy, butter cookies from Brugge, dense, nutty, spiced beer cake, a tart overflowing with summer's ripest fruits-and, of course, chocolate in all its splendor. Rooted in medieval times, these traditional Belgian desserts-perhaps the most beloved aspect of Belgian cuisine-indulge the national sweet tooth. BASICS Fresh Tomato Sauce, Bechamel Sauce, Homemade Mayonnaise, Spiced Vinegar, and more.

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