Name: Lynn Meins
Class Year: 1970
Country of Residence: Germany
Why is this recipe great? What’s its backstory?
This is a traditional North Germany dish. It was supposedly created by a ship’s cook in the 19th century using what he happened to have on hand. It is very popular and tastes better than it looks!
Labskaus
Serves 4-6. Takes approx. 30 minutes
Ingredients:
- 600 g corned beef
- 4 large onions
- 100 g lard or margarine
- 1 kg potatoes, mashed
- 5 – 9 TS liquid from a jar of pickles
- Salt, nutmeg to taste
Instructions:
Boil and mash the potatoes.
Put the corned beef and the onions through a food grinder, or mince the onions and mix them thoroughly with the meat. Sauté the mixture in the fat for about 5 minutes, using a large frying pan. Add the mashed potatoes and 5 TS of the pickle juice and cook well, stirring constantly (about another 5 minutes. Add the rest of the pickle juice, salt and nutmeg.
Serve with fried eggs, pickles and a salad (usually a pickled red beet salad). It is also often served with pickled herring or Rollmops.
Source:
Dr. Oetker Schulkochbuch Cookbook, 1971