Harry Houdini's Favorite Dinner Was A Lavish Meal

Possibly the most famous illusionist of all time, Harry Houdini was renowned for his ability to escape from entrapments like underwater boxes and straitjackets. In addition to the mental gymnastics required to pull off such elaborate feats, Houdini's tricks required quite a bit of physical prowess as well. It's no surprise that he loved chowing down on lavish meals to power himself through his performances, although one in particular was his favorite.

Houdini's preferred dinner was allegedly Hungarian chicken and spaetzle. Hungarian chicken, also known as chicken paprikash, generally consists of the seared poultry cooked in a stew with sliced onions, peppers, canned tomatoes, flour, chicken broth, and garlic. Of course, a healthy dose of paprika is also thrown into the pan, as it's an important part of Hungarian cuisine. It's possible that the specific recipe Houdini ate also incorporated a little sugar and basil in a coating for the chicken, as well as a splash of white wine in the pan for cooking the protein. He was thought to enjoy this dish served over a bed of spaetzle, also known as German egg noodles.

The menu for Houdini's favorite dinner likely has to do with his roots, which can be traced back to Budapest. Although his family moved to the U.S. when he was only four years old, they brought their cultural traditions and religion with them, as his father established himself as a rabbi in their new location. His mother made chicken paprikash for him as a child, and later his wife Bess, who was known to be a good cook, continued to do so.

To top off his rich, savory dinners, Houdini loved digging into custard bread pudding with Bing cherries for dessert. Even if you've never heard of this specific variety of cherry, you've likely tried it before, as it's the most popular type in the U.S. The pudding, however, was a rarer dessert. According to a recipe from Marie H. Blood, Houdini's niece, it consisted of buttered white bread in a pie dish. A custard made with eggs, sugar, vanilla, nutmeg, and whole milk was poured on top, and the dish was baked in the oven, after which the pitted Bing cherries would be added on top. Houdini loved this treat so much that Bess eventually purchased a cherry pitting machine for the kitchen.