The last 5 years I wrote so much about all kind of foods throughout the world and forgot a bit my German home country’s delicious cuisine. Following some of the most well known dishes one should try. German food is rich, hearty and diverse. It’s comfort eating with high-quality, often locally sourced ingredients.

The cuisine of Germany has been shaped not only by the country’s agricultural traditions but by the many immigrants that have made the country home over the centuries. It’s definitely more than a mere mix of beer, sauerkraut and sausage. Germans appreciate well-prepared, well-served meals as much as they do a quick bite on the go.

Germany is a country of food markets, beer gardens, wine festivals, food museums and high-end restaurants. Check out the following most well known German dishes.

1. Königsberger Klopse.

Named after the former East Prussian capital of Königsberg (now Kaliningrad in Russia), this tasty dish of meatballs in a creamy white sauce with capers is beloved by grandmothers and chefs alike.
The meatballs are traditionally made with minced veal, onion, eggs, anchovies, pepper and other spices. The sauce’s capers and lemon juice give this filling comfort food a surprisingly elegant finish.
In the German Democratic Republic, officials renamed the dish Kochklopse (boiled meatballs) to avoid any reference to its namesake, which had been annexed by the Soviet Union. Today it’s possible to find Königsberger Klopse under their traditional name in most German restaurants, but they are especially popular in Berlin and Brandenburg.

2. Maultaschen.

Maultaschen from Swabia are a lot like ravioli but bigger. They are typically palm-sized, square pockets of dough with fillings that run the gamut from savory to sweet and meaty to vegetarian.
A traditional combination is minced meat, bread crumbs, onions and spinach — all seasoned with salt, pepper and parsley. They’re often simmered and served with broth instead of sauce for a tender, creamier treat, but are sometimes pan-fried and buttered for extra richness.

Today you can find Maultaschen all over Germany (even frozen in supermarkets) but they’re most common in the south.
Here the delicious dumplings have become so important that in 2009, the European Union recognized Maultaschen as a regional specialty and marked the dish as significant to the cultural heritage of the state of Baden-Württemberg.

3. Labskaus.

Labskaus is not the most visually appealing dish, but a delectable mess that represents the seafaring traditions of northern Germany like no other. In the 18th and 19th centuries, ship provisions were mostly preserved fare, and the pink slop of Labskaus was a delicious way of preparing them.
Salted beef, onions, potatoes and pickled beetroot are all mashed up like porridge and served with pickled gherkins and rollmops, plus a fried egg on top. It has long been a favorite of Baltic and North Sea sailors. The mash originated out of the fact that most sailors had no good teeth and were fed with soups, stews and other mashed dishes.
Today the dish is served all over northern Germany, but especially in Bremen, Kiel and Hamburg. And while on modern ships fridges have been installed, it remains popular as a hangover cure.

4. Sausages.

There is no Germany without sausages. There are countless cured, smoked and other varieties available across „Wurst“-loving Germany, so, for this article I will focus on some of the best German street food: Bratwurst, or fried sausages.
There are more than 40 varieties of German Bratwurst. Fried on a barbecue or in the pan, and then served in a white bread roll with mustard on the go, or with potato salad or/and Sauerkraut as the perfect accompaniment for German beer.

         An average butchers offer, typical German sausage offer, named Aufschnitt (sliced sausage) on the left and whole sausages on the right.

     Thüringer Rostbratwurst on the left and Nürnberger Rostbratwurst on the right with Sauerkraut – mostly served in batches of 6, 9 or 12, because they are very small.

    Erstes Deutsches Bratwurst Museum in Holzhausen. Click on pics to supersize.

Some of the most common Bratwurst are:
— Fränkische Bratwurst from Fraconia with marjoram as a characteristic ingredient.
— Nürnberger Rostbratwurst that is small in size and mostly comes from the grill.
— Thüringer Rostbratwurst from Thuringia, which is quite spicy. Holzhausen in Thuringia is also the home of the first German Bratwurst Museum, which opened in 2006.

5. Currywurst.

The most popular incarnation of bratwurst, however, is the Currywurst. Practically synonymous with German cuisine since 1945, Currywurst is commonly attributed to Herta Heuwer, a Berlin woman who in 1949 managed to obtain ketchup and curry powder from British soldiers, mixed them up and served the result over grilled sausage, instantly creating a German street food classic-hit.

  Click on pic to get appetite !

Today boiled and fried sausages are used, and Currywurst remains one of the most popular sausage-based street foods in Germany, especially in Berlin, Cologne and the Rhine-Ruhr, where it’s usually served with chips and ketchup or mayonnaise (even with ketch-mayo mix, called red-white) or a bread roll. Some 800 million are consumed a year.

6. Döner Kebab.

Döner Kebab was introduced to Germany by Turkish immigrant workers coming here in the 1960s and ’70s. One of the earliest street sellers was Kadir Nurman, who started offering Döner Kebab sandwiches at West Berlin’s Zoo Station in 1972, from where the dish first took both, West and East Berlin by storm and then the rest of Germany.

  The typical Döner meat slicing.

From its humble Berlin beginnings when a Döner Kebab only contained meat, onions and a bit of salad, it developed into a dish with abundant salad, vegetables (sometimes grilled), and a selection of sauces from which to choose.
Veal and chicken spits are widely used as is the ever-popular lamb, while vegetarian and vegan versions are becoming increasingly common. In 2011, there were more than 16,000 establishments selling Döner Kebabs in Germany, with yearly sales of 3.5 billion Euro’s.

7. Schnitzel.

Some might argue that Schnitzel is Austrian and not German, but its origins are actually Italian. The term is most commonly used to refer to meats coated with flour, beaten eggs, and bread crumbs, and then fried (see above).
This controversy hasn’t stopped the breaded and fried meat cutlets to become popular everywhere in Germany, however. While the Austrian or Vienna schnitzel is by law only made with veal, the German version is made with tenderized pork, chicken or turkey and has become a staple of most traditional restaurants.

Whereas Vienna Schnitzel is served plain, Germans love to ladle a variety of sauces over their Schnitzel. By example.
— Jägerschnitzel (hunter’s schnitzel) comes with a mushroom sauce (above left),
— Zigeunerschnitzel (gypsy schnitzel) with a red paprika and onion sauce (above right),
— Rahmschnitzel (cream schnitzel) is served with a creamy sauce.
All go well with fried potatoes a cold beer or a Franconian apple wine.

8. Käsespätzle.

Spätzle originally come from Baden-Württemberg. Essentially a sort of pasta, the noodles are a simple combination of eggs, flour, salt and often a splash of fizzy water to fluff up the dough. Traditionally served as a side to meat dishes or dropped into soups.
If spiced up by adding cheese, we earn the Käsespätzle. This variant is an extremely popular dish in southern Germany, especially Swabia, Bavaria and the Allgäu region.
Hot Spätzle and grated granular cheese are layered alternately and are finally decorated with fried onions. After adding each layer, the Käsespätzle will be put into the oven to avoid cooling off and to ensure melting of cheese. Käsespätzle with a fresh green salad is a popular menu item in beer gardens in summer and cozy Munich pubs in winter.

9. Rouladen.

Rouladen is a delicious blend of bacon, onions, mustard and pickles wrapped together in sliced beef or veal. Vegetarian and other meat options are also now widely available but the real deal is Rinderrouladen (beef rouladen), a popular dish in western Germany and the Rhine region.

       German Rouladen with mash potatoes and red cabbage.       If you like to have a recipe click on my post:
https://myuytips.com/2018/06/08/german-rouladen/

This is a staple of family dinners and special occasions. They are usually served with potato dumplings, mashed potatoes and pickled red cabbage. A red wine gravy is an absolute requirement to round off the dish.

10. Sauerbraten.

Sauerbraten is regarded as one Germany’s national dishes and there are several regional variations in Franconia, Thuringia, Rhineland, Saarland, Silesia and Swabia.
This pot roast takes quite a while to prepare, but the results, often served as Sunday family dinner, are truly worth the work. Sauerbraten (literally „sour roast“) is traditionally prepared with horse meat, but these days beef and venison are increasingly used.

Before cooking, the meat is marinated for several days in a mixture of red wine vinegar, herbs and spices. Drowned in a dark gravy made with beetroot sugar sauce and rye bread to balance the sour taste of the vinegar, Sauerbraten is then traditionally served with red cabbage, potato dumplings or boiled potatoes. The secret for a real good Sauerbraten is the soft, tender meat and lots of delicious hefty sauce.
Improve this mouthwatering meal with a heavy red wine like a Shiraz or Tannat.

These are the first 10 of my German Specials. Stay tuned to the Part 2 of this post.