Waterzooi appears as a signature dish in 2 Belgium cities. See each city's local variant and where to eat it.
Waterzooi · Bruges
A creamy Flemish stew of chicken or fish poached with leek, carrot and celery in a broth enriched with cream and egg yolk. A gentle, comforting plate from the Ghent and Bruges hinterland.
Waterzooi began in Ghent as a fish stew built on the rivers' catch, the name from an old Flemish phrase for boiling water. As the rivers silted and polluted during industrialisation, fish grew scarce and the cheaper chicken version took over, which is now the more common form. The dish spread across Flanders, including the Bruges countryside, as a creamy, vegetable-rich comfort stew. It appears on classic Flemish menus in Bruges and is a signature day-trip dish in nearby Ghent.
Where to eat in Bruges:
- Den Amand
- Pieter Pourbus
- Cambrinus
Waterzooi · Brussels
Flemish cream-and-broth stew with chicken (or fish, the older version), root vegetables and an egg-yolk liaison. Light, comforting, served with bread to mop the bowl.
Waterzooi originated in Flanders in the 18th century as a fish stew, with the name 'zooien' meaning to simmer. As fish became scarce in the inland rivers, the dish evolved through the 16th and 17th centuries into the chicken-based version that became the standard. The Brussels brasseries serve it as waterzooi de poulet, with the chicken poached then bound into an egg-yolk cream broth with leeks and carrots.
Where to eat in Brussels:
- Aux Armes de Bruxelles
- Chez Leon
- Brasserie Ploegmans
- Volle Gas