German Delights
Gutten Tag!
Recently, I made a trip over to Deutschland and managed to savour some of the local treats. Bordering France, Switzerland and Denmark amongst other countries, this country with a population of over 82 million is well-known as a global technological and scientific leader in various fields. Having only spent a short duration in several cities, I managed to sample some of the local cuisine.
For starters, pastries. On the right, is an Apfel Streusel (German Apple Crumble) that I found throughout several bakeries. It is a large, flat bun that has been sugar coated and topped of with crumble and apple bits.
Bakery with Wide Varieties of Pastries and Breads
There is a region that is known as Schwarzwald (The Black Forest). It is commonly known for its highlands, woods, enchanting scenery and yes, you have guessed it, Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte (or more commonly known as Black Forest Gateau). A Black Forest cake typically consists of several layers of chocolate cake, whipped cream and cherries. The traditional cake would also add some Kirschwasser (a type of liquor) to give it more of a kick.
My quest for the Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte landed me in a little café in the town of Baden-Baden, Café Konig, which some say, is the birthplace of the Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte. This café opened approximately 250 years ago when licensed gambling started to draw visitors to the town.
The delightful Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte that is served in Baden-Baden is not the ordinary purple paste mixed with cherries, layered with spray-can whipped cream and chocolate sponge cake. Instead, what you get is the freshest ingredients used to blend the cream, layers of cake infused with the traditional Kirschwasser, held together by a biscuit base. Besides this, the drinks were served on silverware that made the experience just that much more classy.
Next on the menu, German Wurst (Sausages). Sausages are typically composed of grounded meat, animal fats and spices.
The Jagdwurst (Hunting Sausage) is a cooked sausage that is made of lean pork and beef. A very tender and juicy sausage which is seasoned with spices such as salt, pepper, mustard seed and cardamom.
Currywurst is a hot pork sausage that has been cut into slices and seasoned with curry sauce and curry powder. However, through my experience of having it, I did note that their definition of ‘hot’ was not really that spicy as compared to most of the Malaysian dishes. It tasted more like a sausage with a slight tinge of mild curry powder in a sweet sauce.
Weisswurst is a traditional Bavarian sausage that is made of pork bacon and finely minced veal. Typical seasoning includes parsely, lemon, onions, mace and cardamom. This one was from Oktoberfest which was served in a bun with some mustard sauce.
Another interesting dish that I had to try was their Schweinshaxe (pork knuckles). It comes with sauerkraut (finely shredded cabbage that has been fermented in lactic acid bacteria), which has a distinctive strong acidic taste from the vinegar, as well as some mustard sauce for dipping the meat.
The skin of the Schweinshaxe was perfectly crisped, however, the grilled meat itself was slightly on the dry side but it went well with a glass of freshly brewed Weissbier (literally translated as white beer), which is so-called due to its paler colour as compared to the Munich brown beer. It is a Bavarian speciality which is made with malted wheat and certain strains of yeast.
This covers just a slight portion of the local cuisine and there will definitely be another chance to wet my tastebuds.
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Tags: Germany, oktoberfest
hope your daughter has a fantastic birthday!
