Ammerländer Ham is made in Germany, in the Ammerland region between the Weser and Ems Rivers in the state of Lower Saxony. To be called Ammerländer Ham, it must be produced in that region. The ham is dry salted, and cured for 12 weeks, then hung to dry for 2 weeks. Then it is smoked…
German Food
Bavarian Beer Purity Law Day
The 23rd of April celebrates the Bavarian Beer Purity Law. The law governs what ingredients can be used for beer made in Germany. There are only 4 ingredients allowed.
Bavarian Beer Purity Laws
Bavarian Beer Purity Laws are not actually the oldest beer laws [1], but they are oldest still in effect today. In the 1500s, Bavaria was its own realm or dukedom within the Holy Roman Empire. On 23 April 1516, William IV, Duke of Bavaria, decreed purity laws for beer brewed in Bavaria — a set…
Bavarian Mustard
Bavarian Mustard is a dark, sweet and mild German mustard made with coarsely ground white mustard seeds with added honey and herbs. Its mildness makes it a typical accompaniment in Germany for lighter meats such as veal or poultry. It is also good on cheese sandwiches.
Bockwurst Sausage
Bockwurst is a relatively thin sausage (though thicker than a North American wiener) usually served warm with beer, a roll, and mustard. Bock in German literally means goat, but this fresh sausage did not get its name from the type of meat used in it. In fact, the meat used is usually ground veal and…
Bratwurst Sausage
Bratwurst is a big, thick German sausage, made of all meat with no other ingredients to act as filler. In Germany, the meat used is usually veal. Veal ones are the mildest-tasting. In North America, owing to high cost of veal, the meat used is usually all pork, or pork mixed with veal or beef….
Bread Dumplings
Bread dumplings are used for soups and stews in eastern Europe, particularly Austria. They are made from stale bread crumbs (but still fresh as opposed to dried), butter, egg, flour, milk and some herbs such as parsley, along with onion. The onion is sautéed, then all the ingredients mixed together, kneaded a little bit, and…
Cambozola Cheese
Cambozola Cheese is a cow’s milk blue cheese that is a cross between Gorgonzola and Camembert cheeses.
Currywurst
Currywurst is an inexpensive German fast-food dish consisting of sausage with curried sauce on it. It is a very popular street food.
Dampfwurst Sausages
Dampfwurst are German sausages made from beef and pork (lean pork, pork fat and pork lung.) They may also contain up to 10% connective tissue. They are less expensive than most other sausages in Germany. They can be used for Currywurst (as they sometimes are in Berlin), or served with mustard and bread. To make…
Dusseldorf Mustard
Düsseldorf mustards are somewhat like Dijon Mustard, but tend to be somewhat more pungent than Dijon, being made with vinegar instead of verjuice, and darker. The flavour can range from milder, to hotter than Dijon, to quite hot, depending on the mustard seed used. Either brown and white mustard seed, or decorticated black mustard seed…
Fadennudeln
Fadennudeln are thin German egg noodles used in soups. They are made from semolina wheat and eggs. Fadennudeln are often incorrectly said to be like vermicelli or capelli, but in fact they are more like Angel Hair pasta in thickness, though the strands are not as long. If the noodles do come in longer strands,…
Fürst-Pückler-Eis
This could be thought of as a German version of the French “Tranche Napolitaine.” It is an ice cream dessert. Ice cream is layered into a long spring-form pan, then frozen into layers. One layer is usually chocolate, with the other two layers usually being any two of the following: vanilla, pineapple, strawberry, maraschino, amaretto….
Gelbwurst Sausage
Gelbwurst Sausage is a sausage with a mild-taste traditionally made in Bavaria, Germany. The sausage is also made Württemberg. “Gelbwurst” means “yellow sausage”; it’s called this because the sausage is packed in a yellow casing. Originally, the casing was natural pork intestines, coloured yellow with saffron. Now, artificial (and artificially-coloured) casing is mostly used. Inside,…
German American Day
The 6th of October is German American Day. The day celebrates German heritage in the United States, and much of it is embedded deep in the food!
German Flours
In Germany, a wide variety of grain flours are sold and used. Unlike other Western countries, where anything other than a wheat flour is a “novelty” or “health” flour, rye and spelt flours are still used relatively commonly.
German Food
Food preferences in Germany aren’t universal. In areas closer to the French border, noodles are popular, as well as snails and quiche-like tarts. Wine is used instead of vinegar in sauces and marinades. In areas closer to the eastern Europe borders, people make more use of items such as caraway, paprika, vinegar, and dumplings. Schleswig-Holstein…
German Mustard
German Mustard © Denzil Green The Germans don’t have any mustard they refer to in particular as “German mustard”, in the way that the British do have and refer to an “English” mustard. Consequently, it’s best to think of the term as a grouping of mustards. Most German mustards are coarsely-ground, sweet and mild, though…
Gooseberries
Gooseberries © Denzil Green Most Gooseberries are, like rhubarb and cranberries, too tart to eat raw: they need to be cooked with sugar. There are native species of Gooseberries in Asia, Europe and North America. The berries vary in size from that of a black currant to the size of a large cherry. The skin…
Ice Wine
Ice Wine is a sweet dessert wine, usually made from white grapes, but now some are made from red grapes. It is made in Germany, Austria, Slovenia, Australia, New Zealand and Canada. German Ice Wines are considered the best, and are the most expensive by far. A 375 ml bottle of van Volexm Saar Riesling…
Jägermeister Bitters
Jägermeister are the most popular bitters in Germany. It is made from 56 ingredients that include rhubarb and saffron. It is 35% alcohol. Some find Jägermeister Bitters the most approachable of bitters, though for others it still tastes too much like cough medicine. It is highly marketed in North America, especially towards youth. In North…
Kassler
Kassler is German dry-cured, lightly cold-smoked pork loin. It come as roasts and chops, bone-in or boneless. Despite the curing and smoking, it still needs full cooking. It is often served with sauerkraut. Language Notes Some people spell it Kaessler, but not very many.
Krakauer Sausages
Krakauer sausages are long sausages made densely packed with finely-ground pork. They are smoked, and sold pre-cooked. The sausage can be served in many ways, including fried whole or sliced, or served cold, sliced. Street vendors in Germany sell them fried, with a roll and mustard on the side. The sausage originated in Poland. Language…
Kugelhopf Cakes
Kugelhopf cake is a yeast-risen cake made in Central Europe, and particularly in Alsace. The cake can be sweet or savoury. It is baked in special decorative tube moulds.