The history of German cuisine

History of German cuisine is one that links diet with culture and region: food ever follows function in the history of the Germanic people. Whether due to region, custom, or contact with others, the German culture has seen a distinct cuisine emerge from its heritage and history. Historical events are responsible for bringing about certain fare. For instance, because of the scarcity of cream in Germany in the Middle Ages, bread was used as a binding ingredient in sauces, and baking itself served a culture significance for Germans throughout the centuries (from the use of bread in Christianity to the pagan heritage use of bread) culminating in the special decorative braiding and twisting of the dough (as seen in Bavarian pretzels) designed as a special treat. In other cases, geography is important in the cuisine that developed in particular regions (the ales in the North for example). This paper will discuss the history of German cuisine and show how it evolved over the centuries.

Beginning with the Roman historian Tacitus, the West's first real look at German cuisine begins in the 1st century AD. The Roman's condescending report on the Germans makes their meals of game meat and wild fruit seem barbarously simple and their appetite for drink enormous. Some 800 years later, however, by the time Charlemagne comes to rule Germany, the German diet switches from a mostly meat-based (roasted meat) diet to a grains and cereals diet, in a national move away from dairy and meat to bread (Heinzelmann 21). Rye, because it did not require much attention, flourished as a crop and through to the 16th century, it was Germany's most important. Thus, the bread most popularly associated with German cuisine is that which required the least labor from the people who tended the land.

The Rhine Valley was responsible for producing excellent grapes for wine, which Germany exported. In the north of Germany, however, more beer and ale was produced as the conditions for grapes were not as practical. Because water was not always safe to drink, beer was the popular beverage of choice as well, and today German beers are renowned around the world -- both light and crisp and dunkel biers. In the northern regions, monastic life was also supplemented by the brewing of ales. Trappist ales became part of German cuisine as a result, and so did other simple fare, such as vegetables and fruits, which were grown -- although sweet fruits were cultivated only for and by the well-to-do, as were "roasted choicer cuts" of meat (Henizelmann 25).

One aspect of Germany's culinary arts actually came from St. Benedict's monastic rule: Benedict preserved the ancient medicinal recipes in Italy and passed them along to the other monasteries throughout Europe, and in Germany these medicines were used as recipes and incorporated into main dishes -- thus "culinary recipes developed out of medicinal prescriptions [and] the German word for both is still Rezept" (Henizelmann 28). Thus, certain preparatory methods and combinations of herbs and particular dietary foods served to cultivate the German's health and cuisine.

Spices from Italian trade with Arabian merchants made their way into Germany in the High Middle Ages and members of the Church dined on such fare as "egg soup with saffron, peppercorns and honey -- mutton with onions -- roast chicken with plums -- stockfish with oil and raisins" and much more game meat and fish (Henizelmann 51). Such hearty servings were part of feasts and celebrations, and varied according to region. There was never any real national cuisine in Germany because the various regions were composed of different customs and peoples with various options available as far as food preparation.

However, roasted sausages have been popular in Germany for centuries and the two oldest bratwurst eateries in Germany can be found in Regensburg and Nuremburg. These eateries were popular with workers and in the 15th century. They were so popular that Regensburg even passed an edict that dictated how sausages were to be prepared -- clean casings with only pork and chopped pork fat fillings (Henizelmann 61). The "rostbratwurst" began in Nuremburg, where sausage was roasted on a griddle for the first time in 1313.

Almond milk made from soaking almonds in water was a dairy alternative and stemmed from a medicinal recipe that was incorporated into the Germanic diet, and by the 14th century, almonds were essential in well-to-do German cuisine.

In the Hanse cities, herring was important in German dishes and would be fried after marinating in vinegar or it would be served lightly salted. Vinegar had been imported by Germans prior to its local production in the 18th century. Zossen's first wine vinegar factory was established in 1777 and by the end of the 18th century, there were eleven such factories in Berlin. With the rise of industrialization, a national mood for nostalgic fare emerged, and stockfish, plaice, haddock, smelt, salmon, carp -- and many other varieties of fish played invaluable roles in German cuisine and were sent up and down the Rhine (Metzger 23).

In Thuringia, herbs and vegetables are essential to the regional cuisine. Because the area has always been mainly forested, it has also provided game meats for generations. But its vegetable fare is popular today too, from wild mushrooms to cabbage and cauliflower. Thuringian sausage is a popular culinary delight.

The unusual combination, however, of "spices, sweetness, fruit and acidity still found in contemporary German dishes such as Sauerbraten" stems from the 14th and 15th century love of diversity within cuisine (Heinzelmann 128). But with the Thirty Years War that resulted in Germany from the disputes between Protestants and Catholics, a more pragmatic lifestyle and diet proceeded.