Due to its centuries-old history as a major port town the cuisine of Hamburg is very diversified and sapid as ingredients' supply was safe. Until the 20th century, the cuisine of Hamburg was predominantly characterized by the extensive choice of different kinds of fish from the river Elbe and the nearby Baltic Sea. The region of Vierlande supplied Hamburg with fresh vegetables. Fruit came from the area Altes Land and until industrialization the neighbourhood of Wilhelmsburg was considered the ‘milk isle’ of Hamburg. International trade in the Port of Hamburg made spices and exotic nutrition items from India and South America available since the 16th century, which were soon incorporated into civic kitchens. On this basis, the cuisine of Hamburg developed which regrettably lost some of its characteristics nowadays due to the supraregional harmonization of the North German cuisine. But due to its high economic importance, Hamburg does feature many internationally recognized gourmet restaurants from which 11 were repeatedly awarded with a Michelin star in 2010. [1]
For much of its history Hamburg has been a major trading hub, resulting in both the development of a wealthy mercantile class, and a wide availability of goods from around the world. In the homes of wealthy residents, the kitchens were located in the back of the house, and divided into two parts. One part was the ‘splendor kitchen’, in which the tin and copper tableware was exhibited, and the other part was the real ‘work kitchen’, with a brick-built stove made of clay. The crockery and cutlery were kept in a cupboard called the ‘Schapp’ in the hallway, jars and bowls in the ‘Richtbank’, which was a table or low cupboard on which dishes and meals were prepared and arranged for serving. Since the 18th century there were also kitchens that were built into the cellars in the homes of tradesmen. [2] However many of the traditional dishes have their origins in the lower-class households of Hamburg's population. There were no separated kitchens in the domiciles and booths of the impecunious and poor and, as firewood was quite expensive, ovens were seldom used for cooking. This means that warm dishes were rare and if there was any cooking the dish was most commonly prepared as a stew. [3] A famous legend of the ‚Lachsessen‘ (lit.: salmon meal) hints to the nutritional differences between social classes. [4] According to it, Hamburg had such an abundant amount of salmon so even the poor did not want to eat it anymore. The council of Hamburg then enacted an edict saying that masters were not allowed to give salmon to their maidservants and minions more frequently than twice a week. Though this is only a legend it is indeed true that salmon were widely available since the 19th century.
Due to its location on the Elbe river and its proximity to the sea the regional cuisine does feature a lot of fish dishes. In addition to preserved herring dishes like Matjes or Bismarckhering, Green Herring ('green' meaning fresh, hence not marinated, fried or cured) is also very common. A fried herring becomes a Brathering if it is marinated in vinegar after frying. Another famous fish dish is Räucheraal, which is a smoked eel and was already featured by street vendors since the early 19th century and could be found on the dinner menus of many local restaurants. The dish Finkenwerder Scholle is another speciality which is considered typical for the cuisine of Hamburg as well as Pannfisch with baked potatoes, a dish that features fish leftovers in a mustard sauce. Carp is traditionally served for Christmas dinner or on New Year's Eve, and the omnipresent Fischbrötchen is a roll with raw or fried fish inside that is sold as street food.
One of the most popular soups in Hamburg, is the creamy lobster soup called Hamburger Hummersuppe which is served with a small amount of whipped cream and garnished with dill. A variation of this soup is the small shrimp soup Hamburg style, called Hamburger Krabbensuppe. Adding a dash of Cognac to both variations is optional but very common. The Hamburg variation on the Steckrübeneintopf which is popular all over North Germany is called 'Hamburger National'. Birnen, Bohnen und Speck, Labskaus, and the Hamburger Aalsuppe are further examples for the stews of Hamburg of which the latter is a vegetable stew with root, green vegetables and dried fruit which rose to supraregional popularity due to the controversy if it has to be served with or without eel. However, the preparation without eel is considered folk-etymological.
Like in any larger city, there is a great variety of snacks available in Hamburg. Apart from international products like Doner Kebab, Asian cuisine, or pizza, there are some snacks with a local or regional tradition. Next to the popular fish sandwiches which are called Fischbrötchen , toasted white bread with small, brown shrimps from the North Sea called Krabbentoast is very popular either for breakfast or as a snack at lunch time. Other popular snacks are Currywurst which comes in different styles made with different kind of sausages, or Knackwurst.
A main dish of Hamburg cuisine which originates in the bourgeois cuisine owes its development to the intensive trade with Portugal. It features oxtail in Madeira wine and is nowadays rather used as soup course instead of the main dish. Other important dishes are Schwarzsauer (a sour kind of blood soup), Himmel, Erde und Hölle and poultry dishes using chicken, duck and goose. Especially 'Stubenküken' are considered a forgotten speciality and is a dish using young chicken which were bred in spring. As it holds true for the whole neighbouring area of North Germany the cuisine of Hamburg does feature a lot of kale in its dishes as well which is reflected in famous dishes e.g. Grünkohl or Kohlrouladen mit Wirsing.
Typical sweet dishes of the cuisine of Hamburg are Rote Grütze with milk, vanilla sauce, vanilla ice cream, or liquid cream, Fliederbeersuppe (elderberry soup), Großer Hans (a flour dumpling eaten with cherry compote and bread pudding with lemon sauce. [5]
The original bread roll of Hamburg is called "Rundstück" (lit.: round piece) and those that were not eaten for breakfast are plated with slices of roasted pork, smothered in sauce and are then called "Rundstück warm" for lunch (lit.: round piece warm). A famous bread is Schwarzbrot, a dark and fluffy whole wheat bread. For tea (or 'coffee and cake' as teatime is called in Germany) Kopenhagener are served which is filled with jam or marzipan. Another famous baked good for 'coffee and cake' is the traditional apple pie of Hamburg which is prepared by pan frying the apples and deglazing them with white wine before baking the actual cake. "Black and white cookies", either self-made or bought in local pastry shops, are popular in Hamburg, too. Franzbrötchen are also very popular: Despite the name contains the word Brötchen, it is not a roll but a kind of flaky pastry typical only for Hamburg and baked with much butter and cinnamon. Locals enjoy it for breakfast, too. In Christmas times, there's Klöben (also called 'Stollen' in other parts of Germany), a bread-shaped pastry made of yeast dough with raisins and succade. 'Braune Kuchen' (lit.: brown cakes) are crisp rectangular biscuits baked with molassess and gingerbread spice that are based on a recipe developed back in 1782 from the Konditorei Kemm. [6] 'Weiße Kuchen' (lit.: white cakes) however are a kind of fried dough foods. The so-called Heißwecken (lit.: hot rolls) are a yeast dough product with raisins that are dusted with confectioner's sugar and filled with cream and are traditionally eating during lent.
Hamburger Speck is a sort of candy made out of foamed sugar with various coatings. The color is often reminiscent of the colors of Hamburg, red-white-red. The name refers to the similarity with bacon (or speck). [7]
Beer has been brewed in Hamburg since the early 14th century. In the year 1375 there were 457 breweries, 270 of which also exported beer. The yearly production was about 170.000 hectoliters. In the centuries that followed beer exports increased due to quality enhancements because of production changes (more wheat beer was produced and the production of dark beer and red ale decreased). The recipe was guarded like a secret treasure and since the time of the Hanseatic League which opened the trade the export of beer formed the base of Hamburg's wealth, the city being considered the 'brewery of the Hanse'. [8] In the 16th century 600 breweries are noted in historical sources which exported the beer as far as Sweden and Russia and since the 17th century even bock beer was exported from Hamburg. In the 18th century both production and export decreased and the beer market did not recover until the fast growth of population in the late 19th century. In 1890 there were only 32 breweries and nowadays there are only two old breweries in existence, the Holsten Brewery and the Gröninger brewery. [9]
The predominant kinds of schnapps until the mid of the 20th century were Köm, the northern German version of Aquavit or Korn (distilled from rye or wheat). The small island of Neuwerk in the North Sea, which belongs to Hamburg, is famous for producing its own Aquavit. Especially the trade with South America brought Rum to the city and is featured in the Grog, a popular drink not only amongst seamen.
The main focus was laid on the import of wines from Médoc which were stored in barrels with little temperature variabilities in a humid and foggy climate to mature and incorporated the typical 'Rotspon' flavor.
The different varieties of coffee and tea became popular in Hamburg in the 17th century. It was widely consumed and several coffee houses developed of which the first one is documented in the year 1677. [10]
Even nowadays, the majority of the coffee and tea import of Germany is managed by the port of Hamburg. The varieties are also mixed (and in case of coffee beans roasted) in Hamburg and are then distributed all over Germany and other parts of continental Europe.
The cuisine of Germany consists of many different local or regional cuisines, reflecting the country's federal history. Germany itself is part of the larger cultural region of Central Europe, sharing many culinary traditions with neighbouring countries such as Poland and the Czech Republic. In Northern Europe, in Denmark more specifically, the traditional Danish cuisine had also been influenced by German cuisine in the past, hence several dishes being common between the two countries.
The cuisine of the American Midwest draws its culinary roots most significantly from the cuisines of Central, Northern and Eastern Europe, and Indigenous cuisine of the Americas, and is influenced by regionally and locally grown foodstuffs and cultural diversity.
Swedish cuisine is the traditional food of Sweden. Due to Sweden's large north-to-south expanse, there are regional differences between the cuisine of North and South Sweden.
Finnish cuisine is notable for generally combining traditional country fare and haute cuisine with contemporary continental-style cooking. Fish and meat play a prominent role in traditional Finnish dishes in some parts of the country, while the dishes elsewhere have traditionally included various vegetables and mushrooms. Evacuees from Karelia contributed to foods in other parts of Finland in the aftermath of the Continuation War.
Polish cuisine is a style of food preparation originating in and widely popular in Poland. Due to Poland's history, Polish cuisine has evolved over the centuries to be very eclectic, and shares many similarities with other national cuisines. Polish cooking in other cultures is often referred to as à la polonaise.
Danish cuisine originated from the peasant population's own local produce and was enhanced by cooking techniques developed in the late 19th century and the wider availability of goods during and after the Industrial Revolution. Open sandwiches, known as smørrebrød, which in their basic form are the usual fare for lunch, can be considered a national speciality when prepared and garnished with a variety of ingredients. Hot meals are typically prepared with meat or fish. Substantial meat and fish dishes includes flæskesteg and kogt torsk with mustard sauce and trimmings. Ground meats became widespread during the industrial revolution and traditional dishes that are still popular include frikadeller, karbonader and medisterpølse. Denmark is known for its Carlsberg and Tuborg beers and for its akvavit and bitters, but amongst the Danes themselves imported wine has gained steadily in popularity since the 1960s.
Jamaican cuisine includes a mixture of cooking techniques, flavours and spices influenced by Amerindian, West African, Irish, English, French, Portuguese, Spanish, Indian, Chinese and Middle Eastern people who have inhabited the island. It is also influenced by the crops introduced into the island from tropical Southeast Asia, many of which are now grown locally. A wide variety of seafood, tropical fruits and meats are available.
Dutch cuisine is formed from the cooking traditions and practices of the Netherlands. The country's cuisine is shaped by its location on the fertile Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta at the North Sea, giving rise to fishing, farming, and overseas trade. Due to the availability of water and flat grassland, the Dutch diet contains many dairy products such as butter and cheese. The court of the Burgundian Netherlands enriched the cuisine of the elite in the Low Countries in the 15th and 16th century, so did in the 17th and 18th century colonial trade, when the Dutch ruled the spice trade, played a pivotal role in the global spread of coffee, and started the modern era of chocolate, by developing the Dutch process chocolate.
Lithuanian cuisine features products suited to the cool and moist northern climate of Lithuania: barley, potatoes, rye, beets, greens, berries, and mushrooms are locally grown, and dairy products are one of its specialties. Various ways of pickling were used to preserve food for winter. Soups are extremely popular, and are widely regarded as the key to good health. Since it shares its climate and agricultural practices with Northern Europe, Lithuanian cuisine has much in common with its Baltic neighbors and, in general, northern countries.
Ukrainian cuisine is the collection of the various cooking traditions of the people of Ukraine, one of the largest and most populous European countries. It is heavily influenced by the rich dark soil from which its ingredients come, and often involves many components. Traditional Ukrainian dishes often experience a complex heating process – "at first they are fried or boiled, and then stewed or baked. This is the most distinctive feature of Ukrainian cuisine".
Kuchen, the German word for cake, is used in other languages as the name for several different types of savory or sweet desserts, pastries, and gateaux. Most Kuchen have eggs, flour and sugar as common ingredients while also, but not always, including some fat. In the Germanosphere it is a common tradition to invite friends over to one's house or to a cafe between noon and evening to drink coffee and eat Kuchen.
Norwegian cuisine in its traditional form is based largely on the raw materials readily available in Norway and its mountains, wilderness, and coast. It differs in many respects from continental cuisine through the stronger focus on game and fish. Many of the traditional dishes are the result of using conserved materials, necessary because of the long winters.
Czech cuisine has both influenced and been influenced by the cuisines of surrounding countries and nations. Many of the cakes and pastries that are popular in Central Europe originated within the Czech lands. Contemporary Czech cuisine is more meat-based than in previous periods; the current abundance of farmable meat has enriched its presence in regional cuisine. Traditionally, meat has been reserved for once-weekly consumption, typically on weekends.
Chilean cuisine stems mainly from the combination of traditional Spanish cuisine, Chilean Mapuche culture and local ingredients, with later important influences from other European cuisines, particularly from Germany, the United Kingdom and France. The food tradition and recipes in Chile are notable for the variety of flavours and ingredients, with the country's diverse geography and climate hosting a wide range of agricultural produce, fruits and vegetables. The long coastline and the peoples' relationship with the Pacific Ocean add an immense array of seafood to Chilean cuisine, with the country's waters home to unique species of fish, molluscs, crustaceans and algae, thanks to the oxygen-rich water carried in by the Humboldt Current. Chile is also one of the world's largest producers of wine and many Chilean recipes are enhanced and accompanied by local wines. The confection dulce de leche was invented in Chile and is one of the country's most notable contributions to world cuisine.
Saxon cuisine encompasses regional cooking traditions of Saxony. In general the cuisine is very hearty and features many peculiarities of Mid-Germany such as a great variety of sauces which accompany the main dish and the fashion to serve Klöße/Knödel as a side dish instead of potatoes, pasta or rice. Also much freshwater fish is used in Saxon cuisine, particularly carp and trout as is the case throughout Eastern Europe.
Franconian cuisine is an umbrella term for all dishes with a specific regional identity belonging to the region of Franconia. It is a subtype of German cuisine with many similarities to Bavarian cuisine and Swabian cuisine. It is often included in the Bavarian cuisine, since most parts of Franconia belong to Bavaria today. There are several Franconian food items that are also famous beyond the borders of Franconia, such as Nürnberger Lebkuchen, Bratwurst and the wines of Franconia. Franconia is also famous for its beer and harbours the highest density of breweries in the world.
Swabian cuisine is native to Swabia, a region in southwestern Germany comprising great parts of Württemberg and the Bavarian part of Swabia. Swabian cuisine has a reputation for being rustic, but rich and hearty. Fresh egg pastas, soups, and sausages are among Swabia's best-known types of dishes, and Swabian cuisine tends to require broths or sauces; dishes are rarely "dry".
Bahamian cuisine refers to the foods and beverages of The Bahamas. It includes seafood such as fish, shellfish, lobster, crab, and conch, as well as tropical fruits, rice, peas, pigeon peas, and pork. Popular seasonings commonly used in dishes include chilies, lime, tomatoes, onions, garlic, allspice, ginger, cinnamon, rum, and coconut. Rum-based beverages are popular on the islands. Since the Bahamas consist of a multitude of islands, notable culinary variations exist.
Betawi cuisine is rich, diverse and eclectic, in part because the Betawi people that create them were composed from numbers of regional immigrants that came from various places in the Indonesian archipelago, as well as Chinese, Indian, Arab, and European traders, visitors and immigrants that were attracted to the port city of Batavia since centuries ago.
Mennonite cuisine is food that is unique to and/or commonly associated with Mennonites, a Christian denomination that came out of sixteenth-century Protestant Reformation in Switzerland and the Netherlands. Because of persecution, they lived in community and fled to Prussia, Russia, North America, and Latin America. Groups like the Russian Mennonites developed a sense of ethnicity, which included cuisine adapted from the countries where they lived; thus, the term "Mennonite cuisine" does not apply to all, or even most Mennonites today, especially those outside of the traditional ethnic Mennonite groups. Nor is the food necessarily unique to Mennonites, most of the dishes being variations on recipes common to the countries where they reside or resided in the past.