One of my basic German lessons contains an exercise about reading a german menu in a restaurant. Last week I did this lesson once again with a new client of mine and it made me think about names of german dishes.
What is a Jägerschnitzel? First, a Jäger is a hunter. So now you might think “Ah, I got it. It’s a Schnitzel made out of wild boar or deer or something you hunt in the german forest!”.
No, infact it is a slice of porc meat covered with a brown sauce that contains mushrooms. Mushrooms grow in the forest, so it is obvious to call the dish Jägerschnitzel, right?
You might know Maggi. Very famous brand in the german speaking part of the world and although a swiss company very popular in Germany, too. They are selling this famous instant Jägersosse for decades. Here is a picture of it.
Next example. Helgoland. No, not Legoland, Helgoland. You don’t know it? Well, it must be very important because we Germans exchanged it in 1890 to the Brits against Zanzibar, right?
If we have a look on the related article we learn that Helgoland is a rock an island in the North Sea. Around a square kilometer small big. But this island brought so many dishes to the German cuisine as if it was big like the British Islands. Basically most about every dish that contains crawfish or fish can be called “Helgoländer something”.
But now it is getting really tricky. Let’s have a look at Zigeunerklösse. Gypsy Meatballs.
Zigeunerklöse
Let’s get back to “German kitchen logic”. What do we know about gypsies? Well, not much. They travel through Europe and come somewhere from the eastern parts of the continent. But wait! Isn’t there this famous opera, called “der Zigeunerbaron” – the Gipsy Baron – of Johann Strauss?
Now everything is clear! Gypsies come from Hungary. And what do we know about their cuisine? Well, they stew everything in a red sauce with lots of red bell peppers and onions. Therefore, Zigeunerklösse are meat loafs in a red sauce of red bell peppers. And why only stew meat loafs in this sauce? What about Zigeunerschnitzel and Zigeunerspieße?
But as you can see, the name seems to be a bit political incorrect as it is based on a very plain prejudice. And there is change! Lately, most of those dishes are called “Puszta something” after the great hungarian plain.
I will do another post about political correctness in German food names. It’s very interesting.
So, last but not least the recipe for this dish. Very easy to cook.
For the meat loafs you can take the kind of meat you like. Traditionally it’s porc meat, I prefer beef (organic if available). Mix it in a bowl with onions, garlic, salt, pepper, a whole egg, some old bread and sweet paprika spice.
Fry the meat loafs in a pan but keep them raw in the inside. Add sliced red bell pepper and onions some tomato puree, again sweet paprika spice and some ketchup. If you like you can add some cherry tomatoes, too.
Let it fry a bit, then cover the meat loafs and the rest with water and let it cook gently for about one hour. That’s it.
I prefer the Zigeunerklösse with rice but you can eat pasta or potatoes with it, too.
