Postcards from Germany: Tasty Oddities

It might have been naïve of me, but I never expected food in Germany to be that dissimilar from ours in the States. With potatoes, pork and bread as staples, who would've guessed? My first trip to the grocery store was eye-opening. The shelves were lined with sausages and cheeses that had no known English names. Strange root vegetables crowded the produce section. Chicken became some elusive gem. Of course, there were tons of familiar things on the shelves, but my entire approach to cooking had to change. Luckily after being here for ten months, I've found my way around. There's okra at the Indian shop and tiny cans of corn at some supermarkets. I don't think I'll ever find squash or corn meal, but I finally stumbled upon plain popcorn, plain being the operative word. The popcorn sold at movie theatres is sweet. When you mention butter, salt and popcorn in the same sentence to most Germans, they shudder. Other snacks take on strange identities. Potato chips are flavored with paprika, for instance. Peanut butter is shunned, though Nutella, a mixture of chocolate and hazelnuts that is spread on bread, is eaten by the masses. Sometimes the unfamiliar turns out to be surprisingly satisfying. During the Euro2008, one café mixed up beer ice cream especially for the crowds. Another tasty oddity turns out to be pizza made with tuna fish and red onions. I suppose that being brave on the food front pays off in the end, then, but even when you're not feeling especially daring, you can still find all of the scrumptious things that Germany is famous for: bratwurst, schnitzel and fantastic potato salads. Questions, suggestions or comments: guymongirl1@gmail.com.

tags: germany  food