Labskaus () is a culinary speciality from

northern Germany Northern Germany (, ) is a linguistic, geographic, socio-cultural and historic region in the northern part of Germany which includes the coastal states of Schleswig-Holstein, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and Lower Saxony and the two city-states Hambur ...

and in particular from the cities of

Bremen Bremen (Low German also: ''Breem'' or ''Bräm''), officially the City Municipality of Bremen (, ), is the capital of the States of Germany, German state of the Bremen (state), Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (), a two-city-state consisting of the c ...

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...

, and

Lübeck Lübeck (; or ; Latin: ), officially the Hanseatic League, Hanseatic City of Lübeck (), is a city in Northern Germany. With around 220,000 inhabitants, it is the second-largest city on the German Baltic Sea, Baltic coast and the second-larg ...

. The main ingredients are

salted meat Salting is the preservation of food with dry edible salt.

corned beef Corned beef, called salted beef in some Commonwealth countries, is a salt-cured brisket of beef. The term comes from the treatment of the meat with large-grained rock salt, also called "corns" of salt. Sometimes, sugar and spices are added to ...

potatoes The potato () is a starchy tuberous vegetable native to the Americas that is consumed as a staple food in many parts of the world. Potatoes are underground stem tubers of the plant ''Solanum tuberosum'', a perennial in the nightshade famil ...

, and

onion An onion (''Allium cepa'' , from Latin ), also known as the bulb onion or common onion, is a vegetable that is the most widely cultivated species of the genus '' Allium''. The shallot is a botanical variety of the onion which was classifie ...

. Some recipes put

beetroot The beetroot (British English) or beet (North American English) is the taproot portion of a ''Beta vulgaris'' subsp. ''vulgaris'' plant in the Conditiva Group. The plant is a root vegetable also known as the table beet, garden beet, dinner bee ...

, pickled

gherkin A pickled cucumber – commonly known as a pickle in the United States, Canada and Australia and a gherkin ( ) in Britain, Ireland, South Africa, and New Zealand – is a usually small or miniature cucumber that has been pickled in a brine, ...

, or even

herring Herring are various species of forage fish, belonging to the Order (biology), order Clupeiformes. Herring often move in large Shoaling and schooling, schools around fishing banks and near the coast, found particularly in shallow, temperate wate ...

into it, while others have these ingredients as side dishes.

Etymology

The origin of this word is uncertain. One possible source for the name could be Latvian ''labs kauss'', meaning 'good bowl' or hotpot, or Lithuanian ''labas káušas'', meaning the same. The dish became common among

sailors A sailor, seaman, mariner, or seafarer is a person who works aboard a watercraft as part of its crew, and may work in any one of a number of different fields that are related to the operation and maintenance of a ship. While the term ''sailor'' ...

during the time of the great ships. Potatoes and salted meats were standard fare and labskaus would stretch the meat supply. Labskaus is now commonly served in restaurants only on Germany's northern coast, as well as in traditional Danish restaurants. Compare with

scouse Scouse ( ), more formally known as Liverpool English or Merseyside English, is an Accent (dialect), accent and dialect of English language, English associated with the city of Liverpool and the surrounding Merseyside. The Scouse accent is h ...

Preparation

The meal is traditionally prepared by boiling the

beef Beef is the culinary name for meat from cattle (''Bos taurus''). Beef can be prepared in various ways; Cut of beef, cuts are often used for steak, which can be cooked to varying degrees of doneness, while trimmings are often Ground beef, grou ...

in broth and then mincing it with the beetroot, onions, boiled potatoes and herring (some recipes use

ham Ham is pork from a leg cut that has been preserved by wet or dry curing, with or without smoking."Bacon: Bacon and Ham Curing" in '' Chambers's Encyclopædia''. London: George Newnes, 1961, Vol. 2, p. 39. As a processed meat, the term '' ...

). Finally the base is fried in

lard Lard is a Quasi-solid, semi-solid white fat product obtained by rendering (animal products), rendering the adipose tissue, fatty tissue of a domestic pig, pig.

, condiments such as

nutmeg Nutmeg is the seed, or the ground spice derived from the seed, of several tree species of the genus '' Myristica''; fragrant nutmeg or true nutmeg ('' M. fragrans'') is a dark-leaved evergreen tree cultivated for two spices derived from its fru ...

pepper Pepper(s) may refer to: Food and spice * Piperaceae or the pepper family, a large family of flowering plants ** Black pepper ** Long pepper ** Kampot pepper * ''Capsicum'' or pepper, a genus of flowering plants in the nightshade family Solanacea ...

coriander Coriander (), whose leaves are known as cilantro () in the U.S. and parts of Canada, and dhania in parts of South Asia and Africa, is an annual plant, annual herb (''Coriandrum sativum'') in the family Apiaceae. Most people perceive the ...

, or

allspice Allspice, also known as Jamaica pepper, myrtle pepper, pimenta, or pimento, is the dried unripe berry of ''Pimenta dioica'', a midcanopy tree native to the Greater Antilles, southern Mexico, and Central America, now cultivated in many warm par ...

are added. The dish is similar to the British

hash Hash, hashes, hash mark, or hashing may refer to: Substances * Hash (food), a coarse mixture of ingredients, often based on minced meat * Hash (stew), a pork and onion-based gravy found in South Carolina * Hash, a nickname for hashish, a canna ...

. Countless variations of the dish exist. For example, in

, away from Hamburg, Labskaus usually is a preparation of fried

, onions and mashed

potato The potato () is a starchy tuberous vegetable native to the Americas that is consumed as a staple food in many parts of the world. Potatoes are underground stem tubers of the plant ''Solanum tuberosum'', a perennial in the nightshade famil ...

es with the beetroot and ''

Rollmops Rollmops () are pickled herring fillets, rolled into a cylindrical shape, often around a savoury filling. Presentation The filling usually consists of onion and sliced pickled gherkin. Rollmops are often skewered with a cocktail skewer. Rollmo ...

'' being served as a side dish. Variations of the dish are also to be found in

Scandinavia Scandinavia is a subregion#Europe, subregion of northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. It can sometimes also ...

, generally without the use of herring. In

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

, the dish is similar to the Bremen version, but without the herring and some times with added

gravy Gravy is a sauce made from the juices of meats and vegetables that run naturally during cooking and often thickened with thickeners for added texture. The gravy may be further coloured and flavoured with gravy salt (a mix of salt and caramel food ...

. In

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

, ''Lapskojs'' is a stew made with beef and mashed potatoes. In

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

, the word ''lapskaus'' ( nor) more often refers to a variation of

beef stew A stew is a combination of solid food ingredients that have been cooked in liquid and served in the resultant gravy. Ingredients can include any combination of vegetables and may include meat, especially tougher meats suitable for slow-cooking, ...

often made with gravy, or in some cases other types of stew.

Similarly named dishes

Lobby Lobby may refer to: * Lobby (room), an entranceway or foyer in a building * Lobbying, the action or the group used to influence a viewpoint to politicians * Lobby (food), a thick stew made in Leigh, Greater Manchester and North Staffordshire, like ...

Lobscouse Lobscouse is a thick stew made of meat and potatoes common to multiple Northern European maritime countries. It is particularly well known in a nautical context in the age of sail, when a long voyage might require the sailors to eat and drink w ...

Scouse Scouse ( ), more formally known as Liverpool English or Merseyside English, is an Accent (dialect), accent and dialect of English language, English associated with the city of Liverpool and the surrounding Merseyside. The Scouse accent is h ...

References

External links

*{{Wiktionary-inline, Labskaus Beef dishes North German cuisine Danish cuisine German beef dishes

Etymology

Preparation

Similarly named dishes

See also

References

External links