Skip to content

Food Culture and Tradition

Resources for world's food, people and culture.

German Regional Food Specialties

REGIONAL SPECIALTIES

While the various regions of Germany were independent and autonomous communities until relatively recently, it is not surprising that they also developed special regional foods. There is a common factor: almost everywhere, these regional foods are based on the country’s favorite staples of beer, pork, potatoes, and cabbage, yet they are different in the technique of cooking, seasoning, or the way they are served. In general, there are three main divisions of German cuisine: Central, Northern, and Southern.

CENTRAL REGION

The Central region also includes hearty meals and foods, especially the famed Westphalian ham and dark heavy pumpernickel bread. Pork is important here and many dishes favor a heavy touch with freshly ground black pepper. Gravies are thickened with dried bread crumbs more often than with flour. Pannhas is a thick, simmered porridge made from buckwheat and may be eaten hot or cold and sometimes sliced and fried. Pannhas may have been the origin of New England “scrapple,” with cornmeal rather than buckwheat used in the United States. Frankfurt is known for a special herb-flavored green sauce, grune sosse, which is similar to the pesto alla genovese based on basil.

One cannot think of Thuringia without images of fluffy round dumplings, for here is the home of the feathery klosse, made only from potatoes and flour – the best made even without the leavening help of eggs. The foods in Saxony are similar but they take even more pleasure in sweets: schnitten, stollen, and fruit kuchen in delicious variety. Apple cider in different alcoholic potencies is a familiar drink throughout this region.

NORTHERN REGION

The Northern region, influenced by its proximity to the Scandinavian countries and the Netherlands as well as by the damp, cold climate, is characterized by thick soups, pickled and smoked meats and fish, dried fruits, smoked bacon, sour cream, and many dishes with goose and eels. Most interesting is the traditional North German meal of labskaus: a one-dish meal of meat and fish plus vegetables which became a sailor’s specialty and earned the name lobscouse. Schlachtplatte or slaughter plate is also a Northern specialty of a variety of meats and sausages – the byproducts of a slaughtering day – served with bread and pickles.

Berlin, considered part of the Northern cuisine district, is famed for its ground meat dishes: strammer max, a snack of buttered rye bread with a thick slice of ham and two fried eggs resting on top; Berliner pfannkuchen, luscious plump jam-filled doughnuts (the inspiration of those in other countries); and baumkuchen, rich eggy Christmas layered logs glazed and browned with chocolate. Here too, kummel (caraway) as a flavoring and as a liqueur is important and beer is taken with schnapps to accompany most foods. Occasionally beer mit schuss indicates a shot of raspberry syrup in the beer for a change. Every Berlin bar carries a good supply of Kurfurstlicher Magenbitter, a bitter potent cordial said to do wonders for the stomach.

SOUTHERN REGION

Southern German cuisine has a characteristically lighter touch. Wine is more prevalent than beer, due to the grape cuttings planted by the Romans almost 2,000 years ago. Here, dumplings are called knodel, and some very special potato dishes are prepared: puddings, pancakes, diced potatoes and bacon and the famed himmel und erde: equal amounts of pan-fried sliced apples and potatoes with crisply fried slices of blood sausage, aptly translated as “heaven and earth.”

Recent Posts

  • Ukrainian Traditional Desserts
  • Ukrainian Traditional Dish – Varenyky, Kholodets, Nalysnyky, and Forshmak
  • Ukrainian Traditional Food
  • Ancient Egyptian Food
  • African Dishes – Explore the World’s Cooking History
  • Evolution of African Food and Beverage
  • African Traditional Dishes
  • African History & Literature
  • The Horn of Africa – Somali
  • The Horn of Africa – Ethiopia

Countries

Copyright © www.Food-Links.com - All Rights Reserved. All trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Disclaimer
This website is using cookies. More. CLOSE
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Non-necessary
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
SAVE & ACCEPT