Black Forest Gateau (Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte)
The classic ultimate indulgence chocolate and cherry cake desert.

Paper Clip Asparagus
Delicious crayfish with asparagus parcels

Potato Cakes with Smoked Salmon
A perfect weekend breakfast, served with cream fraiche and salad leaf.

Franconian Sausages and Sauerkraut
What could be more typically German than delicious pickled cabbage and spicy sausage?

Germany is a country that has been central to Europe since its foundation some hundred and thirty years ago. And central to this country's experience has been food, yet this remains one of the world's great unsung cuisines, generally condemned as stodgy or boring, but there is much more to Germany than sausages and sauerkraut. There is a large variety of rich culinary traditions which have developed in the different regions of Germany. A North/South divide is apparent when it comes to German food and culture. The North is influenced by Scandinavia and its closeness to the sea, while those in the South prefer lighter food, influenced by nearby Italy and Austria.
Germany is a fertile land ideal for raising livestock, so pork, lamb, beef and dairy products are central to the German diet. In the days before modern refrigeration, Germans prolonged the shelf life of their meat by smoking, marinating and salting. And this led to the nation's predilection for sausages and preserved foods.

In Planet Food: Germany, Merrilees Parker visits the world famous Oktoberfest where she discovers the best of German beers, as well as the Weisswurst - Bavaria's very own sausage! Nursing a hangover, she heads off to uncover the history of the pretzel and tries her hand at making the delicious Black Forest Gateau from one of the best bakers in the country. She discovers the two sides of the capital Berlin, sampling its new and sophisticated cuisine as well as its nostalgic produce that originated from the former GDR.

FOODS

German Beer - the purest Monk's brew which epitomises world class ale

German Breads & Pretzels - with over 400 varieties, from light whites to black ryes

German Sausages - Frankfurters and hundreds of big spicy wurst

White Wines - Liebfraumilch and Riesling, Germany's highly underrated sweet whites

FESTIVALS

Oktoberfest - The world biggest and best Beer Festival for boozing, bawdy and plenty of oom-pah

Cabbage Days Festival - Join the Cabbage Queen for a gourmet cabbage fiesta!

SHOPPING

Hamburg Fish Market - A wake up breakfast or a comedown chill with the wet fish

Viktualienmarkt - Munich's elite and atmospheric food market

MORE INFORMATION

Listings of where to stay, where to eat, shops, visitor attractions, Tourist Office contacts and getting there and away as featured in Planet Food: Germany, including a Potato Hotel and Jewish Restaurants.