German Style Gulasch

 German Style Gulasch 

  the easy way

Ingredients:

Servings:4

• 1 lb onion diced
• 3 cloves fresh garlic  peeled and finely chopped
• 1/4 lb thick bacon, finely chopped
• 2 1/8 lbs beef shoulder, cut into bite-sized chunks as for stew (trim any visible fat)
• 2 tablespoons butter or 2 tablespoons bacon grease or 2 tablespoons lard
• 2 teaspoons sweet red paprika 
• 3 tablespoons tomato paste or can of crushed tomato 
• 5 1/4 cups beef broth 
• 1 red bell pepper , cut into bite-sized chunks
• 1 orange bell pepper, cut into bite-sized chunks
• 1 bunch fresh herbs ,oregano ,basil ,marjoram , stemmed and finely chopped
•  salt to taste
•   pepper to taste
• fresh cooked egg noodles or spaetzle  to serve over

Directions:

Prep Time: 15 mins
Total Time: 2 1/4 hrs {3 1/2 hrs}optional

1. 1 In a large stewpot, heat the butter (or bacon grease or lard) until melted.
2. 2 Add the beef chunks in small portions and brown on all sides (but not cook all the way through yet);remove each batch as it browns to a covered dish and set aside for now.
3. 3 In the same pan, add the bacon, onion, and garlic and saute a few minutes until they begin to wilt and brown, maybe 5-10 minutes or so.
4. 4 Return the meat to the pan, and sprinkle with paprika.
5. 5 Whisk in the tomato paste until blended,stirring the whole time.
6. 6 Add just a little of the broth and bring to a boil,stirring.
7. 7 Repeat with a little more broth, after it boils, add the rest of the broth along with the lemon zest.
8. 8 Reduce the heat to low, cover, and let stew about 80 minutes.
9. 9 In the last 5 minutes of cooking time, add the diced peppers and the marjoram.
10. 10 Test for flavor now- adding as much salt& pepper as you prefer.
11. 11 TIP: If you like your peppers to be a little softer, just let it cook a little longer or add them a little sooner.
12. 12 Serve ladled over bowls of hot, buttered egg noodles or spaetzle.

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I do let Mine cook /simmer for about 3 and a half hours and then I add cream cheese to the sauce and sweet corn  or a can of chilli beans ..My aunt adds sauerkraut and chilli peppers ..each family member had their unique way to cook it.
gulasch is an old German traditional food for the colder days .
I do believe to that each country has there own gulasch recipes in one way or the other.

 Chicken Soup /My Mom's recipe !

Ingredients

• 1 (3 pound) whole chicken
• 4 carrots, halved
• 4 stalks celery, halved
• 1 large onion, halved
• water to cover
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 teaspoon chicken bouillon granules (optional)

Directions

1. Put the chicken, carrots, celery and onion in a large soup pot and cover with cold water. Heat and simmer, uncovered, until the chicken meat falls off of the bones (skim off foam every so often).
2. Take everything out of the pot. Strain the broth. Pick the meat off of the bones and chop the carrots, celery and onion. Season the broth with salt, pepper and chicken bouillon to taste, if desired. Return the chicken, carrots, celery and onion to the pot, stir together, and serve

 I do also use any fresh vegetables that I have in the house and at times I add after is all done cooking some frozen vegetables to the soup.you can shop leg quarters or chicken tights on sale and pre cook the soup and freeze some of it.

 you can add any kind of noodles or a cup of rice to the soup .

 

Hühnersuppe!

kräftigende Suppe

Zutaten: (für 4 Personen)	1 l Wasser 1/2 kg Hühnerklein 1 Suppengrün ½ Zwiebel mit Schale 3 Knoblauchzehen 2 Lorbeerblätter etwas Kümmel ¼ TL Rosmarin 1 TL Majoran 1 TL Liebstöckel 3 TL Salz Petersilie Pfeffer eventuell Fadennudeln, Eierschöberln, o.ä. als Suppeneinlage
Zubereitung:
Hühnerklein kalt abspülen, Pürzeln entfernen (wird sonst zu fett und bekommt einen unangenehmen Beigeschmack) und im Wasser aufkochen lassen. Schaum mit einem Schaumlöffel abschöpfen. Wenn sich kein Schaum mehr bildet: das geputzte Wurzelgemüse, die ½ Zwiebel (mit Schale), die geschälten Knoblauchzehen, Lorbeerblätter, Kümmel, Rosmarin, Majoran, Liebstöckel und das Salz zufügen. Zugedeckt ca. 1 Stunde köcheln lassen. Die Suppe durch ein großes Sieb in einen zweiten Topf seihen. Aufkochen lassen (jetzt eventuell Fadennudeln einkochen). Das gekochte Wurzelgemüse (außer der Petersilienwurzel) kleinschneiden, Fleischstückchen ablösen und beides mit der gehackten Petersilie in der Suppe erwärmen. Nicht mehr kochen! Die fertige Hühnersuppe mit Salz und Pfeffer abschmecken und servieren. Anstatt der eingekochten Fadennudeln, die Suppe z.B. mit Eierschöberln servieren. - eine nahrhafte, gesunde, schmackhafte und kräftigende Sparkost - Für ein ganzes Suppenhuhn werden je nach Größe 2-3 Liter Wasser verwendet und die Menge der anderen Zutaten wird entsprechend erhöht (längere Kochzeit - je nach Huhn).

Quick Lunch Cornbread {not your average }

 ......you know the ready mix cornbread ,fix it as the box says but add fresh garlic ,butter and ham and your fav cheese {cut into not to small squares} to the dough.
I did fixed it once with spinach and mozzarella .
Bake as usual.makes a great lunch with a salad.

Variety: use left over fried bacon stripes ,crumbled add into dough...

Frikadellen /big meatballs filled with cheese

Frikadellen :

3 pounds almost fat free ground beef,
breadcrumbs,salt/pepper,3 eggs,fresh garlic,
fresh or canned mushrooms {optional},
grated Parmesan cheese, filling of your choice,
{i use cheese melt} 1 small sweet onion {optional},
mix ground beef with eggs in bowl add salt/pepper and the small cut onions,garlic ,mushrooms,breadcrumbs..
mix well together,it shouldn't be to wet ,if so add grated Parmesan cheese till its so that you can easily form
huge meatballs.cut your cheese {any cheese or other filling you prefer}for the filling in flat squares
and fill each with it.fry in pan till each side is brown then transfer to the oven on a deep dish or cookie sheet.
bake for 10 more min {up to how thick they are}add the Parmesan on top and bake another 5 min {or till melted} by 400 in the oven.great with rolls or cold with mustard.


 Variety :
Form the mixture  to a  meatloaf in layers with the cheese layers in between.bake 400 for ca.25 mi

Potato Pancakes/ kartoffel pfankuchen

Potato Pancakes
I have already mentioned, that potato is a staple diet in Germany.

Ingredients

• 6 medium size Potatoes
• ⅓ cup Wheat Flour
• 1 medium sized Onion
• 2 Eggs
• ½ teaspoon Salt
• Cooking Oil

Method

• Peel the potatoes and grate them.
• Grate the onion in the same bowl as well.
• Beat the eggs lightly and keep aside.
• Add flour and salt to the grated potato and onion mixture.
• Then pour in beaten eggs to make pancake batter.
• Heat a frying pan and grease it with cooking oil.
• Take a ladle of the batter and spread it in a circle to make a thin pancake.
• Let the pancake cook for a couple of minutes, till the edges are crispy and golden brown in color.
• Then flip it over to the other side and let it cook, till golden brown in color.
• Remove the pancake from the frying pan and serve immediately.

I only fry them just till brown each side then move them to a cookie sheet and bake them in the oven till crispy ..less oily and fat

German ways with Food 'a introduction

Breakfast
Germans prefer breakfast menu consisting of bread, toast, and bread rolls supplemented with jam, honey, marmalade, eggs over a cup of strong coffee or tea. For children, usually milk or cocoa is preferred. Delicacies like deli meats, such as ham, salami are also common on breakfast menu.

Lunch and Dinner
Traditionally, Lunch has been the main meal of the day which is usually eaten around noon. In comparison, Dinner is always a smaller meal which is made of sandwiches sometimes. But, last 50 years have seen a quite radical shift in those eating habits. Of late, most of the people prefer a small lunch around noon and like to enjoy a hot relaxed dinner in the evening. Breakfast is still a very elaborated, popular concept and can be perfect occasions to invite friends and guests.
 

Side Dishes
Noodles make the important part of German side dishes. They, especially Spätzle contain large amount of egg yolk. Besides noodles, potatoes and dumplings are very common. Potatoes entered late in German cuisine (18th century) and were the most ubiquitous in the 19th and 20th centuries.Generally, Potatoes are often served boiled in salt water, but mashed and fried potatoes also are traditional, and french fries have now become very common part of side dishes.

Drinks
Association of German Cuisine with Beer is quite old one, with many local and regional breweries offering a wide variety of beers. In most of the country, Pils is most popular name today, whereas people in the South like Bavaria prefer Lager or wheat beer.Again a number of regions have a special kind of local beer.
Wine is also popular throughout the country. The principal source areas of German wine are the upper and middle Rhine and its tributaries. Riesling and Silvaner are among the best-known varieties. Traditionally, white wine is preferred over red or rosé, and sweet wine more popular than dry.

Desserts
A great variety of cakes and tarts made with fresh fruit are enjoyed throughout the country. Apples, plums, strawberries, and cherries are used regularly on cakes. Cheesecake, German doughnuts, Berliner or Krapfen are also very popular desserts. "Rote Grütze", red fruit pudding is another popular dessert in northern Germany. "Rhabarbergrütze" , a rhubarb pudding and "Grüne Grütze", a gooseberry pudding are some popular variations of the "Rote Grütze".

Ice cream and sorbets are also very popular. Italian-run ice cream parlours were the first large wave of foreign-run eateries in Germany, becoming widespread in the 1920s. A popular ice cream treat is called Spaghetti Eis.

Chief Constituents of German Food
Meat and Fish - Pork being the most preferred constituent of German food, although other main sources like beef and poultry are consumed. Among poultry products, chicken is the most popular, but goose, duck, and turkey are also well appreciated. Generally, you will find local pot-roasted meat and imported pan-fried dishes from France. Meat is often eaten in form of sausage throughout Germany. It is a trend for certain families here to make their own sausage for personal consumption.

Today many seafish like salmonTrout, fresh herring, mackerel, sardine, tuna are commonly served while common freshwater fishes on German menus are carp, pike, and European perch. Once, seafood was traditionally restricted to the northern coastal areas. Freshwater fish are often served grilled Fresh water fishes are more preferred in traditional German food than sea water fishes.

Vegetables
Vegetables are usually preferred in form of vegetable soups or stews. They also make good side dish. Cabbage, carrots, spinach, turnips, peas, beans, are very common. Fried onions are a common addition to many meat dishes throughout the country. Potatoes, while a major part of the diet, are usually not counted among vegetables by Germans. Asparagus, especially white asparagus known as spargel, is particularly enjoyed in Germany as a side dish or as a main meal.

Bread
The country boasts more than 6000 different types of bread, ranging from white wheat bread to grey bread and black rye bread. Most types of bread contain both wheat and rye flour. Bread is a big part of the German diet, and usually eaten for breakfast and as sandwiches in the evening, not as a side dish for the main meal. Bread is served with almost every meal.

Regional Specialities
Traditional German Cuisine is characterized by some famous, regional delicacies over the years.

1. Frankfurt am Main and Hessen offer specialities like Frankfurter sausage, a smoked sausage made from pure pork, Green Sauce made from minced and an abundant amount of seven fresh herbs, Handkäs mit Musik, a strong cheese made from curdled milk served in a dressing.

2. Bayern or Bavaria offers delicacies like Schweinsbraten, a pot-roasted pork, white sausage, a speciality from Munich, a wheat bear known as Weinzenbier and knodel, dumplings from white bread.

3. Hamburg region offers specialities like Aalsuppe, a sweet and sour soup of meat broth, dried fruits, vegetables, and herbs, Labskaus made from corned beef, andJükääg, a cabbage roll.

4. Rheinland has characteristic cuisines like Reibekuchen, Potato fritters with black bread, Rheinischer Sauerbraten, traditionally horse meat dish, Blood sausage, Halve Hahn, a cheese sandwich with onions.

5. Saxony region offers the delicacies like gingerbread known as Lebkuchen. Pulsnitz is the most popular Lebkuchen Saxony offering. Leipziger Allerlei is also another popular cuisine.

6. Saarland offers specialities like Geheirote, Potatoes and dumplings made of flour served with a creamy bacon sauce and Dibbelabbes, a potato hash prepared from raw grated potatoes, bacon and leeks, and baked in a Dibbe

A typical German meal consists of around six to seven courses. Starting from an appetizer (Vorspeise), a soup (Suppe), followed by a main course (Hauptspeise) with one or two either raw or cooked side dishes (Beilagen). "Nachspeise" are after-meal treats. During the whole day, they love to drink drip coffee with majestic "Torte" or "Kuchen" (cake). Any true German "Hausfrau" would never like to be so rude to not serve coffee and cake to her welcomed guests!

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