Ham is one of the most important meat products in Germany. There are generally two types of ham produced in Germany: raw hams and boiled hams. Raw ham has an intense flavour, a typical red color and a long shelf life. It is treated with curing salt to prevent it from spoiling and to remove the water so it will keep longer. After curing the ham is smoked and/or air-dried which extends its shelf life still further and improves the flavor. The quality and ultimately also the price depend on how long the ham has been smoked or dried in air. A distinction is then made between Knochenschinken (ham on the bone), Nussschinken (fillet ham), Rollschinken (rolled ham) and Schinkenspeck (fatty ham), depending on the way in which the ham is cut, spiced, smoked, dried or stored.
Boiled ham is pink in color unlike the distinctive red color of raw ham. The meat is salted, laid in a curing bath or injected with a mild curing solution and left in hot smoke. It is then packed in plastic film or shaped in ham formers to give it its typical rolled, block or loaf shape and then boiled.
There are many specialty hams in Germany and they differ according to what ingredients are added during the curing process (such as caraway seeds, coriander and juniper berries) and what types of wood are used to smoke the ham(such as beech, juniper or pinewood).
As with many food and beverage products in Germany, there are also regional differences when it comes to ham specialties. For example "Katenrauchschinken" is a speciality of Holstein in the far north and "Rauchfleisch" is typical of Hamburg. In addition, there are ham specialities made from other cuts of meat including beef, as well as lamb.
Black Forest ham is as important to Germans as Parma ham is to Italians. And these two specialities are also equally popular outside their native countries. Black Forest ham comes from Baden- Württemberg and owes its unmistakable smoky flavour and typical dark red appearance with the outer layer of fat to the fact that the ham is deboned before it is cured and then smoked over pine wood.
Westphalian ham is another unique regional German speciality from the "home of ham", as the region likes to call itself. Westphalian ham is made from hind leg of pork and is smoked over beech wood and juniper berries. It has been considered a delicacy in Westphalia for centuries and is also very popular in other regions and also abroad.
(Kochschinken)Dark smoked cooked ham. Ham off the bone, smoked over beechwood chips.
(Kochschinken)Light smoked ham. A real traditional German cooked ham. Smoked over beechwood and very mild.
(Fleischwurst)A mildly smoked sausage. Serve sliced or added to pasta, soups and salad.
(Thuringian Rotwurst)"Thuringian Rotwurst" is one of the most popular and most common types of cooked sausage. It originated in the eastern part of Germany and is also known as the "queen of blood sausages". Other well known examples of this group include "Beutelwurst" (literally: sausage in a bag) from northern Germany and the "Hausmacher Blutwurst" (made according to a traditional family recipe) which is also sold as an air-dried variety.
Air-Dried Smoked Ham ()Cured only with sea salt and matured for 10-12 months. This lean, air-dried ham is sold in wafer-thin slices. Very mild.
Beer Sausage (Bierwurst )Served with beer. It is flavored with a little garlic and spices.
Blood sausages ()Blood sausage is a sliceable cooked sausage and includes such products as "Rotwurst", "Grutzwurst", "Zungenwurst" or "Speckblutwurst", i.e. blood sausage varieties containing other meats, tongue, bacon or lard in varying proportions, as well as rind and fresh blood. Offal is also frequently used for these products, such as heart and tongue, while cloves, marjoram, thyme and cinnamon give them a spicy flavor. Many varieties of blood sausage additionally contain chunks of lean meat.
Bockwurst (Bockwurst)Made from finely minced and spiced pork and beef, then smoked.
Cooked Sausage (Kochwurst)Cooked sausages used to be luxury foods that would only be eaten on festive occasions in the past. All 350 varieties of cooked sausage have one thing in common: they are normally made from scalded or boiled meat and other raw materials. Many varieties also contain offal. "Blutwurst" (blood sausage) and "Leberwurst" (liverwurst) are the best-known varieties of cooked sausage.
Cooked Sausage (Kochwurst)The best known cooked sausages – liver sausage and blood sausage – used to be luxury foods that would only be eaten on festive occasions in the past. All 350 varieties of cooked sausage have one thing in common: they are normally made from scalded or boiled meat and other raw materials. Many varieties also contain offal. "Blutwurst" (blood sausage) and "Leberwurst" (liver sausage) are the best-known varieties of cooked sausage.
Blood sausage and other specialties
Blood sausage is a sliceable cooked sausage and includes such products as "Rotwurst", "Grutzwurst", "Zungenwurst" or "Speckblutwurst", i.e. blood sausage varieties containing other meats, tongue, bacon or lard in varying proportions, as well as rind and fresh blood. Offal is also frequently used for these products, such as heart and tongue, while cloves, marjoram, thyme and cinnamon give them a spicy flavor. Many varieties of blood sausage additionally contain chunks of lean meat.
"Thuringian Rotwurst" is one of the most popular and most common types of cooked sausage. It originated in the eastern part of Germany and is also known as the "queen of blood sausages". Other well known examples of this group include "Beutelwurst" (literally: sausage in a bag) from northern Germany and the "Hausmacher Blutwurst" (made according to a traditional family recipe) which is also sold as an air-dried variety.
Liverwurst
Liverwurst (liver sausage) is available in a whole variety of forms and flavors but all varieties must contain at least 10 percent liver – the best varieties contain over 25 percent liver. The large range includes veal liver sausage, traditional Palatinate liver sausage (Pfälzer Hausmacher Leberwurst), "Plunze" (a mixture of liver sausage and blood sausage) and Pomeranian goose liver sausage with walnut-sized chunks of goose liver. Liver sausages flavored with herbs, anchovies, shallots or tomato are additional specialities.
Fresh Sausage (Rohwurst)There are around 600 different varieties of fresh sausage in Germany. These sausage products are made from raw meat, specifically from lean beef or pork, firm bacon, salt and spices. Fresh sausages have a very distinctive taste and are be stored hanging in airy, slightly cool rooms. There are two major categories: sliceable fresh sausages and fresh sausage spreads.
Fresh sausage for slicing
The firm, sliceable fresh sausage products include German salami, cervelat sausage, Mettwurst (coarsely minced pork sausage) and garlic sausage. Salami and cervelat sausage are the absolute favorites in their category.
Spreadable fresh sausage
The spreads in this group include "Teewurst" (very fine sausage), "Pfeffersäckchen" (literally: little pepper sacks), minced ham sausage and onion-flavored minced pork sausage. The best known variety is a spread made according to a traditional Brunswick recipe ("Streichmettwurst nach Braunschweiger Art"). These products contain more fat than their firmer counterparts for slicing, which makes them spreadable.
Fresh sausage for slicing ()The firm, sliceable fresh sausage products include German salami, cervelat sausage, Mettwurst (coarsely minced pork sausage) and garlic sausage. Salami and cervelat sausage are the absolute favorites in their category.
Ham (Schinken)Ham is one of the most important meat products in Germany. There are generally two types of ham produced in Germany: raw hams and boiled hams. Raw ham has an intense flavor, a typical red color and a long shelf life. It is treated with curing salt to prevent it from spoiling and to remove the water so it will keep longer. After curing the ham is smoked and/or air-dried which extends its shelf life still further and improves the flavor. The quality and ultimately also the price depend on how long the ham has been smoked or dried in air. A distinction is then made between Knochenschinken (ham on the bone), Nussschinken (fillet ham), Rollschinken (rolled ham) and Schinkenspeck (fatty ham), depending on the way in which the ham is cut, spiced, smoked, dried or stored.
Boiled ham is pink in color unlike the distinctive red color of raw ham. The meat is salted, laid in a curing bath or injected with a mild curing solution and left in hot smoke. It is then packed in plastic film or shaped in ham formers to give it its typical rolled, block or loaf shape and then boiled.
Ham specialties from Germany
There's a large variety of hams in Germany and they differ according to what ingredients are added during the curing process such as caraway seeds, coriander and juniper berries and what types of wood (such as beech, juniper or pinewood) are used to smoke the ham.
As with many food and beverage products in Germany, there are many regional differences when it comes to ham specialties. For example "Katenrauchschinken" is a specialty of Holstein in the far north and "Rauchfleisch" is typical of Hamburg. In addition, there are ham specialties made from other cuts of meat including beef, as well as lamb.
Black Forest hams are famous everywhere
Black Forest ham is as important to Germans as Parma ham is to Italians. And these two specialties are also equally popular outside their native countries. Black Forest ham comes from Baden- Württemberg and owes its unmistakable smoky flavor and typical dark red appearance with the outer layer of fat to the fact that the ham is deboned before it is cured and then smoked over pine wood.
Westphalia – the home of ham
Westphalian ham is another unique regional German specialty from the "home of ham", as the region likes to call itself. Westphalian ham is made from hind leg of pork and is smoked over beech wood and juniper berries. It has been considered a delicacy in Westphalia for centuries and is also very popular in other regions and also abroad.
Katenspeck (Katenspeck)Katen means "barn" in German, indicating that this ham is made farmhouse-style. It is cured, smoked and cooked.
Liverwurst (Liverwurst)Liverwurst (liver sausage) is available in a whole variety of forms and flavors but all varieties must contain at least 10 percent liver – the best varieties contain over 25 percent liver. The large range includes veal liver sausage, traditional Palatinate liver sausage (Pfälzer Hausmacher Leberwurst), "Plunze" (a mixture of liver sausage and blood sausage) and Pomeranian goose liver sausage with walnut-sized chunks of goose liver. Liver sausages flavored with herbs, anchovies, shallots or tomato are additional specialities.
Poultry Sausage (Geflügelwurst )Poultry sausage is low in fat and high in protein.
Salami ()Finely minced beef, pork and bacon, seasoned with spices and smoked.
Scalded Sausage (Brühwurst)With almost 800 different varieties, scalded sausage is one of the most common types of sausage in Central Europe. In Germany 60 percent of all sausages manufactured are scalded sausages. Scalded sausage is made from raw pork or beef, bacon and finely crushed ice. These ingredients are finely minced and mixed with salt, pepper and other spices, such as coriander, paprika, nutmeg, ginger or cardamom, depending on the type of sausage. The name "scalded sausage" (Brühwurst) comes from the fact that these sausages are scalded in hot water or steam. All scalded sausage varieties are fresh sausage products. They should be refrigerated and eaten as soon as possible. The most common types of scalded sausage are: Fleischwurst, Bierwurst, Jagdwurst, Bierschinken, Paprikawurst, and Zigeunerwurst (literally, "gypsy sausage").
The most famous of Germany's sausages are the "Würstchen." Würstchen can be eaten any time and anywhere; they are filling, taste great and are good not only as a between-meal snack. One could say they are the original convenience food. There's a huge variety of würstchen – such as "Bockwurst", "Frankfurter" or "Vienna" sausage, "Nurnberger" or "Thuringian" sausage -- and they're eaten hot or cold, singly or in pairs, grilled or fried. And what would Munich's annual Oktoberfest be without the world-famous "Weisswurst?" Real Bavarians eat this scalded sausage variety, which contains lots of fresh parsley, before noon, with sweet mustard and fresh pretzels and, of course, a real Bavarian beer.
Spreadable fresh sausage ()The spreads in this group include "Teewurst" (very fine sausage), "Pfeffersäckchen" (literally: little pepper sacks), minced ham sausage and onion-flavored minced pork sausage. The best known variety is a spread made according to a traditional Brunswick recipe ("Streichmettwurst nach Braunschweiger Art"). These products contain more fat than their firmer counterparts for slicing, which makes them spreadable.
Summer Sausage (Sommerwurst)A mildly seasoned salami specialty, dried and matured and smoked over beechwood.
Westfalian Ham (Westfaelischer Schinken)Westphalian smoked ham. A gently flavored ham smoked over juniper wood and left to mature for several weeks.
