Of course everybody will push lángos, goulash and chicken paprikás on you.
Lángos is a round, deep-fried flatbread. Get yours at a local market. Every market has its own lángos maker, and it's usually more authentic and better than what the touristy places serve.
As for goulash, good luck finding “the best one”. It's a dish people make at home, each in their own way, and most Hungarians would struggle to name a restaurant that makes it best.
Chicken paprikás is Hungary on a plate: a little spicy, loaded with paprika and finished with sour cream. It tastes like home.
Túró, a fresh curd cheese much like cottage cheese, shows up everywhere in Hungarian cooking, from sweet to savory and everything in between. In winter, I highly recommend túrós csusza: pasta with túró, sour cream and crispy pork belly on top. It's fantastic.
Hungarian salami is also one of the best in the world, objectively. There's winter salami (téliszalámi) and paprika salami, and the best-known brands are Pick and Herz. Ask for just a few slices at the grocery store and enjoy them with a roll as a snack.
Winter salami even wears a coat of noble mold. We Hungarians seem to have a weakness for pickles, molds and noble rot.
If you like spicy sausages, Hungary is a great place to find excellent ones, usually spicier than in the neighboring countries.
Hungarian foie gras, from duck or goose liver, is also world famous. Hungary is one of the world's biggest producers, and a good share of it is processed in France. Many people are put off because the ducks and geese are force-fed to produce a large liver. Nevertheless, it's incredibly tender and delicious, served hot or cold as a pâté.
In summer and fall, Hungary has excellent fruit and vegetables, so head to a market and buy whatever is in season. Cherries, sour cherries, plums, apricots, peaches, nectarines, apples and pears are all fantastic and bursting with flavor. In winter, of course, it's mostly imported oranges and tropical fruit.
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