Cuisine of Hamburg

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Traditional and simple lunch in Hamburg: Bismarckhering, Bratkartoffeln, and Spiegelei

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

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
Michelin star in 2010.[1]

Historical aspects

The fish market of Hamburg in 1973 (courtesy of the Bundesarchiv, B 145, Bild-F041596-0009)

For much of its history Hamburg has been a major trading hub, resulting in both the development of a wealthy

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.

Regional cuisine

Fish dishes

Fried plaice with bacon, Finkenwerder style

Due to its location on the

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
.

Soups and stews

Hamburger Hummersuppe

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

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.

Snack food

Knackwurst as typically served as a snack in Hamburg, Germany, on classic dishware
Popular for breakfast or as a snack: Krabbentoast

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
.

Main dishes

Roast beef Hamburg style with all the goings

A main dish of Hamburg cuisine which originates in the bourgeois cuisine owes its development to the intensive trade with

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
.

Dessert

Rote Grütze with vanilla sauce

Typical sweet dishes of the cuisine of Hamburg are

elderberry soup), Großer Hans (a flour dumpling eaten with cherry compote and bread pudding with lemon sauce.[5]

Baked goods

A typical Franzbrötchen
Black and white cookies are popular along with Kaffee und Kuchen.

The original

fried dough foods
. The so-called
confectioner's sugar and filled with cream and are traditionally eating during lent
.

Candy and sweets

Cubes of Hamburger Speck

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]

Drinks

Beer

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]

Spirits

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.

Import of wine

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.

Import of coffee and tea

The different varieties of

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.

References

  1. ^ Hamburg wieder die Hochburg der Sterneköche Archived 2010-05-26 at the Wayback Machine; retrieved, 12 February 2010)
  2. ^ Ernst Finder: Hamburgisches Bürgertum in der Vergangenheit. Hamburg 1930, Seite 253
  3. ^ Rita Bake, Birgit Kiupel: Sach- und Gefühlslexikon in alphabetischer Reihenfolge von Abschied bis Zuckerbäcker. Hamburg 1987, Seite 75
  4. ^ Otto Benecke: Vom Lachs-Essen auf Wikisource
  5. ^ siehe Hamburgisches Kochbuch von 1798, zitiert nach Rita Bake, Birgit Kiupel: Sach- und Gefühlslexikon in alphabetischer Reihenfolge von Abschied bis Zuckerbäcker, Hamburg 1987, Seite 19
  6. ISBN 3-8319-0179-1
    , Seite 83
  7. ISBN 978-3-8319-0373-3
    , p. 295
  8. ^ Jörgen Bracker: Die wirtschaftliche Bedeutung des Bierexports. In: Hamburg. Von den Anfängen bis zur Gegenwart. Wendemarken einer Stadtgeschichte, Hamburg 1988, Seite 64 f.
  9. ^ Wir über uns Archived 2012-01-07 at the Wayback Machine
  10. ISBN 3-8319-0179-1
    , Seite 263

External links

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