We all know Thanksgiving is right around the corner. If you plan on hosting or attending an American Thanksgiving celebration, you’ll definitely want to know the top German Thanksgiving foods!
This article will explore some dishes popular with Germans across Germany.
One dish may surprise you, and other German Thanksgiving foods will surely make your stomach growl!
Let’s get started!
1. Bratkartoffeln
Bratkartoffeln is a staple at any German Thanksgiving celebration. They’re also called Pommes Frites or fried potatoes.
The most common way to make Bratkartoffeln is to cut potatoes into even-sized cubes.
After, place them in a pot of cold water and bring the pot to a boil for about 20 minutes.
Then drain the potatoes and fry them in hot oil or butter until golden brown.
When the potatoes are too hot from frying, sprinkle salt over them and eat them while they’re still piping hot and crispy!
One of my favorite ways to eat one of these German Thanksgiving foods, Bratkartoffeln, is with Ketchup.
2. Tomato Soup
Tomato soup may sound different from traditional German Thanksgiving foods. But it’s one of the most popular and iconic dishes in Germany.
Tomato soup is called Tomatensuppe or Gemüsesuppe, which translates to tomato soup or vegetable soup.
A traditional recipe for tomato soup typically includes onions, carrots, celery, garlic, and tomatoes. To make it heartier, you can also add potatoes.
The result is a hearty and flavorful dish that warms up your insides on those cold winter days.
3. German Yeast Dumplings
Yeast dumplings are a great alternative to bread or potatoes. They are typically served as a side dish with gravy, but they can also be turned into a main dish by adding meat and vegetables.
Meanwhile, these dumplings are made by mixing flour, yeast, warm water, and salt. Then, knead the dough until smooth.
After letting the dough rise for about 30 minutes, it’s divided into pieces.
These pieces are rolled out into long ropes before being cut into sections about an inch in diameter.
The ends of the ropes are pinched together to form rings before being boiled in salted water for about 20 minutes.
They’re ready to serve with your favorite dipping sauce or as part of your meal. These are also German Thanksgiving foods.
4. Red Cabbage
Red cabbage is a popular dish for any occasion, especially with holidays.
The shredded cabbage’s bright red and tart flavor will bring life to your dinner table.
Roasting the cabbage gives it a sweeter taste and beautiful golden-brown edges.
Here are four ways you can prepare this one of the German Thanksgiving foods:
- Combine water, finely chopped red cabbage, salt, and sugar in a large saucepan over high heat. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat so the liquid simmer.
- Cover and cook for 15 minutes or until tender (the longer it cooks, the more tender it becomes).
- Uncover and continue cooking until all the liquid has evaporated (this could take up to 40 minutes).
- Serve warm or cold on its own or mix into other dishes.
5. Beef Roast With Gravy
On this list of German Thanksgiving foods, roast beef with gravy is also a traditional one.
This roast beef dish is usually served with potatoes, rice, carrots, other vegetables, and gravy.
The gravy bumps the meat in a pan before adding flour, salt, and pepper to make a roux sauce.
Once all the ingredients are combined and the meat has been covered in the sauce for about 30 minutes, it becomes ready to be served.
6. Red Berry Compote with Vanilla sauce
One of the most popular desserts to serve as one of the traditional German Thanksgiving foods is red berry compote with vanilla sauce.
The berries are cooked in sugar and water and thickened with cornstarch or arrowroot starch.
It’s traditionally served warm but can also be chilled or frozen. If you’re serving it as a side dish or dessert, you can add some powdered sugar for a little extra sweetness.
7. Black Forest Cake
Black Forest Cake is a common dessert on many holiday tables. It consists of layers of chocolate cake, ganache, and whipped cream.
Topping it all off, Cherry compote, maraschino cherries, and whipped cream are mixed.
This cake might sound complex, but it is easy to make at home. The best part is that it’s so good you won’t want to share it with anyone else.
We aren’t finished with this German Thanksgiving food list; let’s surge!
8. Roasted Turkey
One of the most popular German Thanksgiving foods is roasted turkey.
If you don’t want to order one, you can use your own or buy a packaged one.
Serve it with cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes, and green beans.
9. Stuffing
Stuffing is a dish of seasoned bread cubes or crumbs, often with onions and various flavorings.
These are moistened by liquid (usually stock) to form a thick paste. The stuffing is then used to fill the cavity in a large bird.
Stuffed poultry can be roasted in ovens or cooked on the stovetop. Stuffing is typically made from bread cubes or crumbs.
Moreover, it could be based on rice, pasta, herbs, vegetables, cheese, and more! Wouldn’t you like to treat your taste buds to these sumptuous German Thanksgiving foods?
10. Mashed Potatoes
Mashed potatoes are a traditional dish served as a side to roasted meats.
So it’s only natural that mashed potatoes would appear at the German Thanksgiving table. The Germans call them Kartoffelpüree.
Furthermore, they season them with butter or cream, salt, pepper, and sometimes some fresh herbs like parsley or chives.
The best part about mashed potatoes? They’re so easy to make from scratch.
Here’s the recipe for this specialty of German Thanksgiving foods, which you can try this holiday season: In a pot, cover peeled and diced potato with water and bring to a boil.
Then, lower the heat until the water is barely simmering. Finally, cook for 15 minutes or until the potatoes can be easily pierced by a knife when pierced with a fork.
11. Cranberry Sauce
Cranberry sauce is a staple at most American Thanksgiving celebrations, but what about Germany? The Germans have a version of cranberry sauce that is a bit different from what we’re used to.
It’s called Rosenkohl, and it is made with red cabbage, apple cider vinegar, sugar, bay leaves, and salt.
What’s more? The dish gets its red color from the cabbage and has a more tart flavor than traditional cranberries.
This dish can be served as an appetizer or added to turkey or mashed potatoes.
This cranberry sauce, one of the German Thanksgiving foods, adds a flavorful twist to your traditional Thanksgiving plate.
12. Forked Oven-Roasted Potatoes
Forked Oven-Roasted Potatoes are the perfect German Thanksgiving food to serve at your dinner.
They have a rich, buttery flavor and crispy edges that contrast nicely with the soft, creamy centers.
Plus, they’re really easy to make—you need three ingredients: potatoes, butter, and salt.
First, boil the potatoes until tender but not mushy; peel them while warm. Then, slice them in half lengthwise, put them on a baking sheet, and cut side up.
Next, dot with chunks of cold unsalted butter and sprinkle with kosher or sea salt.
Lastly, bake in a preheated oven set to 425°F for about 30 minutes or until crusty and brown.
13. Baked Gingerbread Apples
A popular dessert at the traditional German dinner is Baked Gingerbread Apples. The apples are peeled, cored, and cut in half.
They are then dipped in a batter of flour, brown sugar, butter, and eggs. They are then baked in a hot oven until golden brown on top.
These treats can be served with whipped or vanilla ice cream for a special touch. They aren’t left out of this list of German Thanksgiving foods.
14. Pfeffernüsse Cookies
Traditional German Thanksgiving foods include Pfeffernüsse Cookies. The recipe includes ground ginger, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, allspice, and peppermint extract.
This comes with confectioners’ sugar and flour, forming a dough shaped into balls, which are then rolled in additional confectioners’ sugar.
15. Herrings With Cream Cheese Sauce
Herrings with Cream Cheese Sauce are among the most popular traditional German Thanksgiving foods.
The dish has herrings, cream cheese, sour cream, and chives. It’s often served on bread or a rye crisp cracker.
To begin with, Melt butter in a pan over medium-high heat. Next, add sour and heavy whipping cream and cook until the mixture becomes thick and creamy (about 4 minutes).
Turn off the heat and mix in finely chopped chives or parsley. Finally, season to taste with salt and pepper. This winds up our German Thanksgiving foods!
