Yummy German Food

Jo I like German food, love sauerkraut and potatoes, , love red cabbage, love liverwurst and dark bread and onions, ,and although I have never had the dish you describe with the potatoes and eggs, it sounds very good to me, not awful at all( I am one of those people who love sour cream and any excuse to eat it).
I have only had one type of schnitzel,, which I had without sauce but with lemon instead,, which I really liked.

I love German food. It is comfort food for me because it is all very similar what what my grandparents would make. When we were in Germany, I definitely ate my fare share of Schnitzel with onion sauce or mushroom sauce - YUM! My husband ate every variation of weiner there was and they were all good, not to mention the quality of the mustards that came with them. But the thing that I really crave...that you just can't get find very easily in the US....Spatzel. Oh and I should mention that on one of the last days of our trip, my husband got the Pork Knuckel. We were a little scared of, but it was fantastic. Just a really good ham. The one thing we didn't try was one of those White Bratwurst thingys. Those did scare me to much to buck up and try. Otherwise, it was a culinary delight!!

Several years ago we were in Rothenburg and had the best smoked trout served with dark brown bread.

"But the thing that I really crave...that you just can't get find very easily in the US....Spatzel."

The one place where you can always find spaetzel, as well as knodel, are military comissaries. I've never seen a comissary that doesn't have a small section of German food. If you know someone in the military, ask them to grab you some.

Back on topic... my favorites are jaegerschnitzel (that's the schnitzel with the mushroom sauce), Westphalian ham, weisswurst, spargelzup, and the trout roasted on a stick.

I have to be honest, I got tired of German food really quickly when I was there earlier this month. I didn't hate it, but It was a little too heavy and bland for my taste. However, one thing that was a pleasant surprise was the salads. I think the Germans do a great job with them -- lots of different vegetables with a vinegary coleslaw type dressing. They were excellent.

My son's girlfriend who was on the trip with us felt the same way. And when I started talking about German food to a friend of mine who we stayed with in Stockholm (and who lived in Munich for two years), she said she wasn't crazy about German food, but loved the salads. I'm wondering why I've never heard anything about this before.

Oh boy! All of these German dishes you've mentioned bring back lots of memories. My mother's family originated in the Pfalz region near Landau and I can remember eating a lot of these dishes in my grandparent's home. Sauerbraten with bits of Lebkuchen (gingerbread) crumbled on top, brats grilled with peppers & onions and served with spicy or sweet mustards, Sauerkraut cooked with pork and served over boiled potatoes, Gedadschde (fried potato pancakes), and a meat & vegetable dumpling soup - YUM! I'm hungry.

I spent half my childhood in Germany (plus a German mom) and half in the South, so my comfort foods are German and Southern foods!

Schnitzel mit pommes frites, I am a schweine schnitzel girl...don't like veal. I love the wursts. Sauerbraten with spatzle or dumplings...yum (and I can get spatzle here in a couple of places.) My mom makes excellent rouladen. Leberknodel soup. Fresh pretzels. Brotchen with salami. Blackforest ham. Fleischsalat. My mom's german potato salad (like any other potato salads, everyone prefers their family's version!) German pancakes (basically crepes). The soft spreadable herb cheeses. Red sour cabbage and sauerkraut. Goulasch.

I could go on a couple more minutes, but my kids want breakfast for some strange reason!! ; )

I have spent about 16 weeks in Germany, lifetime, and I have really learned to enjoy their food. My favorite has been Zigeunerschnitzel - Schnitzel, Gypsy style, with onions and red, green, and yellow sweet peppers in a tomato based sauce with paprika and cayenne. One place in the Black Forest made it a little "pikant". My wife, who is from Pgh thought it was too spicy. I also had Zigeuner style Bratwurst in Boppard, on the Rhine.

I also love Spätzle. If you are willing to get the dried version, it's not to hard to find. In Colorado, Albertson sell a small box of it for about $4 (too much). I found the same thing for less at Cost Plus Imports. There is a German deli on the otherside of town that sells it in bulk, but it takes too much gas to get there. I usually make it myself. It's not difficult, but a little messy to clean up.

Finally, on my trip to Germany (Franken) last year, I twice had Lendchen (pork tenderloin), once (Würzburg) in a brown gravy over Spätzle - Schmeckt!

We just returned from Austria and Germany and had many wonderful meals. I agree with all of you -- while the food can be heavy, it's generally very tasty, and the salads were great (my husband says there was too much dressing, though) !! We spent 2 weeks in the Tirols, and enjoyed many of their traditional dishes == kasspatzel (spatzel with melted cheese) with roased onions - yum, kasknodelen, grostl (fried potatoes with pieces of speck and wurst with a fried egg), fabulous breads, cheese and wurst, goulasch (everyone has a different recipe). We also had thin crust pizzas near the Italian border - very good. The one thing we craved, though, was fresh fruit and vegetables. While we could get salads, and some meals came with a side of gemuse (vegetables), we're used to a higher percentage of fruits/veg in our diet. Fortuneately grocery stores provided these extras.

We just had a very traditional German dinner last night: Sauerbraten, red cabbage and Knoedel. Dessert was "Herrencreme" which is a vanilla pudding mixed with loads of whipped cream, chocolate shavings and some rum.

The dessert is part of the traditional Westphalian wedding dinner that also features beef with a creamy onion sauce and a beaf broth that you get when cooking the beef for a couple of hours. I love "Markkloesse" in that broth but haven't had those in a long time.

btw all kids I know love these German meat dishes because they're marinated or cooked for so long that they become VERY tender and can be cut without a knife.

My absolute favourite dish is served in spring when it's asparagus season: it has to be white asparagus served with thinly sliced smoked Westphalian ham, new potatoes and melted butter.

I also like Rahmspinat, it's a version of spinach I've never been able to find on this side of the Atlantic.

Potatoe pancakes with apple sauce.

Matjes! Okay, they're Dutch but I grew up so close to the Dutch border that I consider them part of my German heritage. (for those who don't know those are young raw hering served with lots of onions)

And nothing, absolutely nothing can top my Oma's Black Forest Cake. She made it every single time I came to visit no matter what. When she died this summer even the church prayers had to include her famous cake ...

Yep, I also like to eat rouladen, but you do not see them on many restaurant menus. What is funny is that I was a vegetarian for about 7 years, and I use to order vegetable platters. They would be so gorgeous, that other people at the table would be jealous. It is delightful when aparagus season arrives and all the restaurants have lots of dishes with asparagus. (or strawberry season) I adore pfifferlinge mushrooms too. The seasonal mushrooms here are fantastic. All German regions have their own specialties too, so as you travel around, you shouldn't get bored. Ask in each city what the specialties are and which restaurant serves the best ones. People are so proud of not only their towns and cities, but also their food specialties. They won't tell you wrong.

If you want to make spätzle, I have seen some recipes online and I don't think they are hard to make, though I have never made them. We did see some for sale in Meijers in Columbus last week when we were in Ohio. Knödel too.

Yes, the Spätzle is very good. Living in Stuttgart the last couple of months, I prefer mine with the Beefsteak and fried onions on top.... yumm! The traditional Swabian meal. Nobody does it better than the Schwabengarten in Steinenbronn.

When I was a student south of Stuttgart we all adored the nights that Herr Woern gave us "schnitz and fritz" as we use to call it. We also always had fantastic potato salad. It wasn't hot with bacon, but was wonderful. We also got lettuce with the wonderful dressing that someone mentioned. Then there were the broetchen and of course the yogurt. It was the 1970's and good yogurt was a revelation. Of course we loved the spaetzle and the many wursts. I love weisswurst. Lastly, I loved wurst salad which we got late night at the Gasthof Wolf. Pam

What a timely topic. We just drove 2 hours Friday night up to Vancouver, BC to eat Schnitzel at the Alpenclub restaurant. I love Wiener Schnitzel and Jaeger Schnitzel, but did order Spaetzle even though it isn't traditionally served with it.

One of the things I miss most here is no local Metzgerei (butcher shop) to get all the varieties of wurst and real bratwurst (not the American attempt one finds here).

We call the dish you described 'Quark', and will have it without eggs, or on Gruener Donnerstag (Holy Thursday) with creamed spinach, eggs, and potatoes.

Also love Zwiebelkuchen-basically like pizza, no tomato sauce, just loaded with sauteed onions topped with a bit of sour cream.

Leberknoedelsuppe(liver dumpling soup)...Bauern Brot...Bretzen, Hoernchen...Deutsches Butter...ooh, and all the Torte...still need to lose those extra pounds from this summer.

I could go on and on but dinner's ready. Mahlzeit!

Christina, I don't know if you know that there is a German deli on Mercer Island- it's a bit of a trek for you, but it might be worth it. ; ) Also, there is one in Lakewood, WA that has some German cold cuts and some wursts. They also have a small bakery and a cafe with German cakes. It's probably way too far for you, though, but if you are ever down south...

Christina - Quark is simply quark and has nothing in common with Grüne Sosse. In fact in many restaurants here, you will get quark with your baked potato instead of sour cream. Or you may get quark with fruit in it for a dessert, or it may be part of your salad dressing. It is mainly a sour cream substitute, but with a bit of a different flavor and texture. I have never seen it in the states, though I am sure it must be available somewhere.

I like zwiebelkuchen too. But have had some really bad ones along with some good ones. It is a funny thing about the "german" potato salad. I have never had it over here like they serve it in the states. I am from Columbus, which even has a German Village with lots of German restaurants and they don't even serve anything like it. I have never seen egg in it, seldom bacon, never green onions, and not even served warm. I guess it is like German chocolate cake. Have never seen one of those over here either, and my ex m-i-l is a fabulous baker.

Hi Jo-I also enjoy German food as well-I'm not sure if this falls under traditional German food or not but in Munich and Bacharach I had two of the best steaks of my life! One was with fried onions and a delicious sauce-the other was with some wonderful potatoes and had a great flavor. I've also taken a liking to Weissbier (sp?) but I'm sure beer is its own separate topic!

Maureen,

I'm with you...I love rouladen...and since you are in Atlanta, you might have heard of a great German restaurant in Deluth GA called Vreni's Biergarten (4225 River Green Parkway)...authentic German food at reasonable prices...

As for Spaetzle, we get it here (dried like pasta)...I boil it for about 12 - 15 minutes, then drain...let it rest a few minutes, then saute in butter (to taste)...

Hi! My boyfriend and I are currently living in Graz, Austria and doing our best to eat, make and enjoy German cuisine!
Some of our favorites: pumpkin seed oil as a dressing (YUM), lebkuechen (gingerbread), Berner Wuerstel (really good frankfurter infused with cheese, and wrapped in bacon) served with mustard and pomme frites, Topfen- Apfelstruedel, spaetzle, ueberbackene kaesespaetzle (like mac and cheese but REALLY GOOD!!), Puten Cordon Bleu (Turkey cordon bleu)... and on and on and on...
My boyfriend LOVES all the Wurst and really loves Wienerschnitzel (although I'm not much a fan, since I don't care for veal...), Sachertorte
OH and the chocolates here- European chocolate is sooooooooo much better than American. WOW

O.K. I cannot pass this topic up!
We love the seasonal foods that really mark the coming of each season. Fasching (Carnival) is when fresh Krapfen are sold (jelly filled donuts). You know spring has arrived when the roadside stands are selling Spargl (white asperagus). Soon thereafter, the floor of the Vienna Woods is carpeted with Baerlauch (a kind of wild garlic-like plant). For a few weeks all the restaurants are selling Baerlauch suppe. Then comes apricot season and my favorite food in all the world: Apricot dumplings. Summer also offers plum dumplings, plum cakes, and all manner of fruit torts. Autumn arrives with mushrooms and Steinpilz are sold at the roadside stands. Then comes Wildwoche when all the restaurants are offering venison, wild boar, pheasant and rabit. October also brings the opening of the chestnut roasters on many street corners. November means the Feast of St. Martin: when everyone eats roast goose with red cabbage and dumplings. And finally there is Christmas, with hot spiced wine sold at outdoor markets and all manner of sweets. I just love the seasonality of it all and the way that local ingediants are celebrated. And I'm not even mentioning the local beer and wine! (Can you tell that I'm a bit of a geek about this stuff?) Great topic! Happy travels!

OK Jo, now you have done it. Here I sit in Nashville waiting for the Titans and Colts football game tonight and now very hungry. We have a place in Nashville called The Gerst Haus and they have a good menu of good German Food but do not have all the special things listed on this post. I love the little cakes with the strawberries on top, and always a schnitzel mit kartoffel fan. Jo, Can you recommend a good place to eat in Frankfurt close to the train station for evening meal. Will be there in 09 and have not been to Frankfurt in many years.

I'm SO lucky to have married a man with a German mother. She makes the best sauerbraten and rouladen! And she taught me how to make German potato salad.

When we're staying overnight in Frankfurt for our morning flight back, we stay at the Mercure Wings hotel, and they have a great schnitzel place down the road. Any kind of schnitzel you can dream of, they've got it.

Jo, German chocolate cake is most certainly NOT German. ; ) My mom has had a fit about that all my life. LOL. I read somewhere that the reason it is called German was because of the actual chocolate originally used in the recipe- not the coconuts. My mom's potato salad is warm, and it's the recipe she grew up with. My step-Oma made two potato salads one year we were there (both warm)- one with beef in it and one with fish in it. (Had to pass on both.) I think it's like American potato salad with many variations. My mom makes my American grandma's potato salad, too (minus the egg), and it's the only American one I will eat.

Krapfen...mmmmmm... Our German bakery makes them, and my mom tries to get them for New Year's Eve, but they have lines out the door for them on that day.

Thomas hits it right on the head. It is the extra specialness of having a seasonal treat when it is at its peak. I guess that is one of the great things over here. Yeah, I can get everything in the grocery stores all year round, but it isn't the same as walking down the street to our neighborhood open market and seeing those piles of produce as they come into season. I like to take photos there, as every photo comes out so colorful and pretty. Great to enlarge and hang on your kitchen walls (think gifts for the holidays!)

I often recommend the Paulaner restaurant that sits right behind the Frankfurt Dom. It is great for eating outside and their menu items taste pretty good. If you want to go a bit farther, go to Malepartus in the neighborhood of Bornheim. (10 min. ride on the U-4 from the Main train station and another 5 min. walk.) They are the absolute best. Or for an unusual place, go to the Friedberger Warte. (take bus #30 from the Konstablerwache. 8-10 min. busride and the bus stops right next to the tower) This is one of the old watch towers that used to be outside of the city walls in the 1400's. They have a good reputation, but I haven't eaten there yet.

I would definitely say that chocolate cake with coconut is not a German recipe. There used to be a German deli in Arvada, Co. I was in there one day and the owner, an ethnic German, offered me some "German chocolate cake". I declined, saying I didn't like coconut. She looked very insulted and said she never uses coconut in her cake. It was slivered almonds. Chocolate cake with coconut is a cheap American imitation.

Oh no my favorite topic!

German ice wines. German wines.

Kasspatzel (spatzel with melted cheese). I had this in St. Goar and it was wonderful. Make this at home instead of Mac & cheese. Use different cheeses. I am using muenster and Dubliner cheese.

White asparagus soup.

Dumplings, stuffing, dressing (whatever one wishes to call it). In Munich it was called dumplings. It was wonderful!

Desserts, Desserts and Desserts followed by more ice wine.

I crave a store packaged cookie (perhaps Llackers?) that mini bite size pieces in a sack. The pieces are orange and dipped in dark chocolate. I cannot find them anywhere.

Sorry, but I have to say it. This is the wurst topic I have ever seen.

Jäger Schnitzel, Spanferkel, Hasenkeule mit Preiselbeeren, Schweine Schnitzel, Pomme Frites, Gemischtessalat, Leberknödel Suppe, Ratsherrentopf, Kalbgeschnetzeltes in Rahm, Schnecken in Kreuterbutter, Schlachtplatte, Forelle Müllerinart, Schnitzel ala Holstein, Limandesfilet Doria, Spargel Karte, Mandelhörnchen mit Kaffee...

It is like a song that starts playing in the brain; one that will not go away. The favorite is the one sitting in front you.

Regards, Gary

I've been to that biergarten, Bill, although it's been years. We live on the other side of Atlanta, so it's about an hour drive there. And since it's only 15 minutes to my German mother-in-law's house, I'll go there instead!

I'm very glad that we do have an excellent German bakery and butcher on this end of town. Getting brats from the grocery store just doesn't cut it.

Grilled schweinshaxe was easily my favorite, along with knödel. But a couple things that haven't been mentioned:

döner kebaps -- couldn't get enough

currywurst -- I got it every chance I could

Austrian hot dogs -- served with a bun that completely sealed the wurst (except the top) so no mustard would drip out

beer -- I know this is probably another thread altogether, but you can't mention German cuisine without the beer. I can't go back to my old favorites anymore; I live off the Paulaner and Hofbräu imports I can find at home.
We've managed to make knödel at home (albeit from a dried mix) along with currywurst on a regular basis since returning.

The food was much better in Bavaria than northern Germany (especially Berlin), and the beer didn't even compare. We loved Chinesischer Turm so much we went back twice.

Craig,

Doener Kebabs might not have been mentioned because they are Turkish :-)

The döner was created by Turks, yes, but Germany has something of its own version (made by Turkish immigrants). I still think of them as synonymous with Germany because of how ubiquitous they are there.

My husband is German, and his favorite spatzle recipe is from my daughter's Hungarian mother in law, who lived in Germany for years. For every 2 persons, break an egg into the bowl. Mix it really well, then add a pinch of salt. Mix in enough flour that it's like biscuit dough. Roll it into long skinny ropes, cut it with a sharp knife into boiling water. Cooks really fast. I have a real spatzle maker but never use it. I bring back lots of those sauce envelopes and boxes whenever I visit, and this helps us not be homesick for German food.

I am having to smile at your responses and also that Austrian cuisine is being mixed up with German cuisine ;-)))
One thing is very true:
we eat with the seasons. Right now venison is on all the menues, and mushrooms and dumplings and pumpkin soup, to name a few. Of course also everything made from apples, nuts and pears.

Austrian cuisine is different from the German in many ways, ours is more exotic and varied, simply because of the trade routes since ancient times, from the South to the Asian steppes, and of course, because of the Balkan influences during the Habsburg empire.

By no means do I want to belittle the German cooking, please do not misunderstand!
I, myself, find it a little heavy on Kraut and pork and potatoes myself, but I have also ate very well while in Germany.

Like I said, Austrian cuisine is just different, a little spicier, a little more exotic and varied.
Once you look beyond the Schnitzel on the menue, you'll find a whole world of delights beyond :-))

Mahlzeit!

I guess that means American cuisine is FAR superior, because we are a melting pot. Just in the town I work in, I can find American, Lebanese, Indian, Greek, Thai, Mexican, Italian, Vietnamese, Chinese, Japanese, and so on for lunch in a 5 minute drive radius. (Yes, I am being sarcastic.)

I love food, and I think different cuisines have different things to offer.

Harry's at it again...Corinna didn't say Austrian cuisine was SUPERIOR - she said it was DIFFERENT because of varying influences.

Someone really needs to get off his high horse.

German food is the best around. Other than the staples of kraut and dumplings. I would rank liver dumpling soup up there as an amazing experience. I can't get enough of it. You cant go wrong with any response to this question.

Hey everyone, I wanted to have just ONE thread where people were all kind to each other, were no one dissed anyone for anything at all, where no ones opinion would be slammed, where there was no place for being judgmental and where everyone could just enjoy the responses. So, please post only kind and friendly responses. This is about food for goodness sakes! Our natures bounty and how we enjoy it.

Now, play nice.

Dearest Harry,

hmmmm . . I cannot remember that I've said that Germany is/has not been not traversed by international trade-routes,
nor have I claimed that Austrian cuisine is superior to German cuisine.

I DID say that Austrian cuisine is very much influenced by all of the above, and that it tends to lean quickly towards the exotic, once you look beyond the Schnitzel, maybe more so than German cooking. No more, no less.
Am I prejudiced?
Jaaa . . after all, I AM Austrian.

Dearest Jo,
you are too sweet :-))
I read your responses in many different places, and you have a special place in my heart :-)))
Way to go! :-)))

I am rather sweet myself,
but I can also play hardball, as you Americans are fond of saying ;-))

For many forthnights I have read in this forum, and post here and there. You all know me by now. I post and read because I truly believe in furthering understanding between our cultures, I am interested in building bridges, above all.

Every once in a while, I will write something out of frustration, and hiss a bit,
but it means everything to me that you come over here to Europe and have a grand time.
I am a tour-guide to my native Wachau Valley,
I still have children and good friends in the USA, and have lived over there very long myself.

I am in contact with Americans nearly every day, and I continue to be enchanted and puzzled by you all ;-))

Oh, fine, Jo. You start this thread about wonderful food, we all get hungry and a bit cranky, and you're the only one in Germany who can go eat!

Here in the Midwest we've had a lot of German influence in our food. Someone described a dumpling, maybe spaetzle, made with egg, salt and flour, and cut coarsely into broth. We call that "rivels" or "rivvels" and it's often added to potato soup.

My personal favorite, seems German in origin, is a sort of Midwestern soul food. Beef (or chicken) and noodles, in a thick gravy, over mashed potatoes. With butter on top. You eat that and you're ready to plow the back 40 acres. After a nice long nap.

Thanks Corinna. I have to say I haven't had much Austrian food as have only been there once to go white-water rafting. What is interesting to me, is that the food changes all over Germany. What passes for sauerbraten up north, is different than down south. Funnily enough, I think I have had sauerkraut at a restaurant only a few times. I tend to go more towards the spätzle or fried potatoes.

One of the things I like about Frankfurt so much is that because we have almost 30% foreigners here, we have tons of ethnic restaurants. So, we have a hard choice to make every time we go out to eat. I tend more towards Indian or Thai or even a Turkish pizza, and my husband goes for Italian or our favorite German place for the BEST schnitzel. I would go there in a heartbeat too. I especially like the fresh apple juice that is out now, sort of like a cider. Or fresh pear juice at the market.

I too like to just be helpful. I have lived here for 22 years now and enjoy answering questions here on the forum. I just don't enjoy getting slammed or watching other people get slammed. There is no reason for it.

for Harry:

copied from the very link you provided us with ;-))

The Austrian Cuisine is therefore one of, if not the most, multi- and transcultural one in Europe.

;-))

Dear Jo,

I am truly lucky: my area, the Wachau valley, is especially known for its culinary delights, but I can also hop on the train and be in Vienna in 50 minutes.
Vienna, like you are describing Frankfurt, is a wonderland of exotic restaurants. My personal favorite is the Yak & Yeti in the 6th district, a Nepalese restaurant with devine food and an equally beautiful atmosphere. My friends and I celebrate New Years Eve there, I am already looking forward to it :-))

Actually I have read both links pretty carefully, Harry.
I even appreciated you sending them.

Since you already purport to know what I am about, and what I mean to say, I suppose I can spare myself any further commentary.

Just one piece of advice:
read the posts carefully yourself, and never assume anything about anybody.

Who is Conny?

Many cakes, tortes and special desserts - more so in Austria than elsewhere (the French cribbed some of those recipes for sure and then made everything bite-sized).

German chocolate cake is called that because the American firm providing chocolate was named German. My favorite cake is Pischinger Torte - layers of waffles interspersed with chocolate butter cream. Second probably is Dobos Torte.

You can find some of these favorite foods in your area if you look hard enough. In Seattle, we have Jan's Sausage Haus in Shoreline (smoked meats and sausages), and the Feierabend Restaurant just down the street from REI serves outstanding Schweinshaxn and has an exceptional beer list.

Spätzle can be made quite easily at home - just need the basic ingredients and a potato ricer or even a colander will do. After all, it's just flour, egg, and salt. Otherwise, buy pretty good dried spätzle at Cost Plus (German brand) or better groceries.

Gulyás (goulash)really needs to be given its due as an all-time simple but rewarding dish; there are many variations, and in the prep it's a bit like making chili (minus cumin and - dare I say it - beans). Now that you can buy gnocchi in the supermarkets, you have the makings of galuska (haluska) that go so well with gulyás AND Italian dishes.

http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,3577789,00.html

Saw this article on Deutsche Welle, which is an English language website with news, etc. that I enjoy reading on occasion. The article is about how the EU defines which foods are allowed to be called which names. For example, Champagne is only allowed to be called champagne if it comes from Champagne, otherwise it is called Sekt. The most popular item to be "registered" is cheese. One of my favorite foods! Especially goats cheese. yummmmmm

Anyway, enjoy, and have a pleasant Sunday with that extra hour of sleep you all got in the States. (we changed our clocks last weekend)

Hi

am looking for a restaurant that prepares Spannferkel in the "old country" manner (columbus ohio) any ideas?

Danke
Hatty

Wow, this is an old thread! Perhaps you could just start a new thread with your question? Are you looking for a restaurant in Columbus or here in Germany? Columbus does have German Village which has some great restaurants.

Thought it was time to revive this thread again since we have so many new people on the Helpline. Some people have left, the ones that were causing problems, so for anyone reading this the first time, some posts were deleted by the webmaster for being inappropriate. Anyway, it is a fun food thread. Anyone have some new additions?

Haha, Jo, it's so funny that you should revive this thread with a comment just under the one where you talk about the thread being an old one! It's even older now, but still a good topic. Happy New Year!

I love any dish with white asparagus. But steamed with butter on the side is my favorite.

My mom used to cook much more German food when I was little but then she got on the 'casserole' band wagon of the 70's and she left the meat/potatoes behind for a couple of decades.

Some of my favorites to cook/bake:

Rouladen

Cabbage Rolls

Wiener wuerstchen

Potato salad (mom prefers it cold with homemade mayo; I like to make the hot version with vinegar, sugar, and bacon)

German pancakes (served with cinnamon sugar, rolled up and served w/chilled canned peaches)

German apple cake (Gedeckte Apfelkuchen)

Pflaumenkuchen (plum cake)

German cheesecake

Christmas Eve is always at my parents' house with German food: wieners & potato salad, fleischsalat, broetchen, butter cheese, Tilsit cheese, Jagdwurst, Gelbwurst, Schinken, salamis, etc... (the nearest German deli is 2 hours away, which is why this is a once a year thing).

When I'm in Germany I love to eat the wonderful pastries, tortes, and cakes. The gelato is wonderful too (ice cream shops usually owned by Italians, I guess). Love the wonderful ice cream creations that include liqueurs.

**Why is it that the fondest travel memories are usually centered around where we ate or where we shopped??

I haven't seen this mentioned yet, but one of my favorite German street foods is a nice currywurst, with the sweet curry ketchup. Had one in Aachen a few weeks ago and I am longing for my next.

Thanks again, Jo, for another great post about German food!! We love it. Frankfurt Grune Sosse is definitely one of our favorites! One thing I don't think anyone posted is the availibility of so many nice fresh sandwiches at bakeries, train stations, etc. Such a nice change from fast food! Guten appetit!

Yeah, I am not fond of curry wurst either. Take a nice grilled bratwurst, pour a bunch of ketchup on top and then dump a pile of curry powder on it. Sorry, but this just does not taste great to me. I have even had sort of "gourmet" curry wursts, but it just doesn't do it for me.

I like all the sandwiches too, especially the ones made with ciabatta, focaccia, or dark German bread. I know those are Italian, but there are so many Italian delis and restaurant here, they are hard to pass up.

My newest favorite dessert is battered apple slices with cinnamon and vanilla sauce. They have this at the applewine restaurants.

Just back from yet another trip to Germany and of course we had to ask ourselves this question again. Especially since you do get to try different foods around Christmas time.

My kids mainly mentioned sweets. Black licorice is the number one there followed closely by Hanuta (or Knoppers at Aldi). Those we always take back. But the one we always indulge till we feel nauseous are "Schokokuesse" also called "Negerkuesse" or "Mohrenkoepfe". I'd describe them as melted marshmellow over a wafer and then covered in chocolate. Unfortunately, they are very difficult to ship as they don't like the wrong temperature and definitely cannot be squished.

New this time was curry wurst since we went to Berlin. My kids really loved it. The first one we got from a vendor outside the Reichstag. Touristy of course which meant the portion was tiny and the kids insisted on another curry wurst meal only a few hours later to get their fill.

Jo,

This is fun...I first responded to this thread back in October 2008. I love curry wurst...just not like they served on the street...I always order mine mit senf, try it you may like it better...and I loved the fish sandwiches...pickeled herring on a brochen.

As for battered apple slices...you can batter anything and it will taste good...we had some battered fried vegetables at a local Sri Lankan restaurant on Saturday night..I couldn't get enough of it.

It's been a long time since I was in Germany, but the food memories live on with me...hope to get back soon.

Bill

Warm up with some asparagus soup... then roasted Schweinehaxe with boiled potatoes and pea puree... washed down with beer (whole other thread)... kniekuchle for dessert (spelling? fried dough) with a nice schnaps....

Do they really still call them 'Negerkuesse'? My mom remembers them from the 50's and she loved them too, but that term would be so NOT PC today.

Tom....If you liked the curry wurst in Aachen, you'll rave over having one in Berlin, the place most famous in Germany for its curry wurst. I never had it in Aachen the two times I was there, but the curry wurst in Berlin is a definite must-have. That's another reason for going to Berlin: the cuisine and the beer.

No doubt the Berliners would prefer that over the Vienna sausages.

Hello from Austria everyone!
I haven't been on in a long while, because unfortunately I had a very bad experience here, but I am ready to give it another whirl, already I am delighting in seeing familiar names :-))

How funny to trip over my own posts from long ago, with the first click back on :-))

As already mentioned, we eat with the seasons here, a simply wonderful and satisfying way to shop, cook and eat. It's a way of life I enjoy very much.
Tonight I am having a few girlfriends over, I am making pheasant breasts with sauteed cabbage with apples and grapes, and savory toasted bread cubes, a traditional winter dish from my Wachau region.

Guten Appetit everyone,
or as we say in Austria: Mahlzeit

Has anyone mentioned white asparagus soup?