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The potato - one of Austria's most consumed vegetables
My mother used to say, "I could do without bread, but not
without potatoes." Austria´s domestic cooking was based on what
grew in the ground and hence filled the stomach. When the potato
came to Europe in the 16th century, hunger haunted the land. It
took almost half a century for European rulers to discover that
they could feed their people by widespread cultivation of
potatoes.
Through experience and creativity, the potato became a main
ingredient in many Austrian recipes, not only as a side-dish,
but as the basis of doughs, croquets, mashes, cream soups, salad
dressings, and the popular warm potato salad, or its extension
the mayonnaise salad.
Potato
dough is ubiquitous in Austrian cuisine. It is used to
make potato dumplings, poppy seed noodles or wonderful apricot
dumplings. Also, minced smoked sausage or leftover roast are
mixed with sautéed onions, wrapped in potato dough and cooked as
dumplings. Another very popular dumpling, made of potato dough,
is called
Grammel Knoedel.
Grammeln
(
Grieben in Germany, crackling in England) are rendered
from pork fat. The raw fatty coat of the pig is skinned and then
cut into two-inch cubes. After hours of cooking on low heat,
occasionally stirred, the crunchy remains of the lard cubes have
separated from the liquid fat. The rendered crackling is cooled,
chopped,
seasoned with garlic, freshly-chopped parsley, salt and
pepper, and formed into little balls. These in turn are covered
with potato dough and cooked in salted water. Served with
sauerkraut and gravy, you have an incredibly delicious dish
which I invite you to try out.
The potato plant originates in South America. In the 16th
century the Spanish King Philip was presented with a casket from
a ship returning from South America. It contained an unknown
tuberous plant. Before the potato landed in the cooking pots it
was a popular plant for the garden, valued for its beautiful
blossom. Spanish seamen probably discovered the nutritional use
of the potato tuber. There was, of course, no manual to make it
known to European farmers, and it is absolutely inedible raw or
harvested before mature. But, with experience, the floodgates
opened and the triumph of the potato was assured to this day.
Returning to the question asking what Austria would be without
potatoes, I can hardly imagine. Thank Mother Nature for the
potato; without it, cooking and eating would only be half of
what they are today.
About the author:
Bernhard runs a website about Austrian cooking, featuring
traditional Austrian food, recipes with step-by-step guide and
lots of pictures.
More articles about Austrian food and unique recipes at
www.bernhards.at
