We live in Bavaria, and here, the Biergarten is a big deal. We’ve written about how and when this tradition developed in our article on beer radish.
There’s a whole range of traditional foods that are either served in beer gardens or brought along by visitors. Besides beer radish, we’ve already shared recipes for “Obazda”, “Fleischpflanzerl”, and Bavarian coleslaw.
Throughout Germany — but especially in the south — people enjoy a “Brotzeit” (literally “bread-time”), also known as a “Vesper” (from Latin vespera) in the southwest. Naturally, it includes bread (and there’s no shortage of types in Germany), along with sausage and cheese. But on a hot summer day, bringing sausage and cheese to a picnic or beer garden isn’t always ideal. So both are transformed into preparations that are more heat-tolerant, better preserved, and perfectly match with beer and pretzels.
As for the exact ingredients — that’s up to you and what’s seasonally or regionally available. Here’s the idea and our favourite way to do it.
Let’s start with the cheese. To bring in a rich umami flavour, we candy small, ripe cherry tomatoes. For this, you’ll need salt, powdered sugar, and olive oil infused with finely chopped rosemary and garlic.
Line a baking tray with baking paper. A little tip: if you crumple the paper first and then flatten it out again, it will stay in place better. Alternatively, sprinkle a few drops of water on the tray and press the paper onto it — the moisture helps it stick.
Place halved cherry tomatoes, cut side up, on the tray. Dust with salt and powdered sugar, then drizzle with the seasoned oil.
Bake at 100 °C (no fan) for 2 hours — done.
The other ingredients are apple, shallots, fresh chili, white wine vinegar, and olive oil. And of course: cheese. You want something sliceable but not necessarily hard. Anything from mild but rather boring butter cheese to a moderately aged Gruyère works. You want flavour, but probably not to use your most exquisite cheese here — its delicate notes would be overwhelmed. In southern Germany, a generic “Bergkäse” (Alpine cheese) is the go-to — a term that covers a wide range of firm or semi-firm cheeses. Emmental also always works.
Cut cheese (rind removed) and apple (skin on) into medium-sized cubes. Add some chili — it cuts through the fat nicely. We halve the chili and remove the seeds to keep the heat controllable. Finely chop the shallots. Toss everything together with white wine vinegar, olive oil, and a few turns of freshly ground black pepper. Let it marinate in the fridge for at least an hour. Stir again before serving, and gently fold in the candied tomatoes at the end.
For the sausage salad, what English speakers call “Bologna sausage” or “Balony” (which is not from Bologna at all but from Lyon, why in German it is called “Lyoner”) is most commonly used — or any other firm, fine boiled sausage. Here in Munich, we like “Regensburger” sausages, which bring a subtle smokiness to the dish.
You’ll also want red onion, pickled gherkins, and chives. We also like to add small, crunchy radishes — thinly sliced larger radish varieties would work well too. For the dressing, combine vinegar and oil in a jar. Add both medium and sweet mustard, a little honey, salt, and pepper. Screw the lid on tight and shake vigorously — this gives you a perfectly emulsified vinaigrette.
In Munich, Regensburger is traditionally sliced into rounds for sausage salad, but thin strips are more common elsewhere — and they’re easier to pick up with a fork. Sometimes, cheese strips are added too, but we’re serving cheese separately here. Finely dice the onion, slice the radishes and gherkins thinly, and chop the chives into tiny rings.
The key here is striking the right balance between sweetness and acidity. If you can’t find sweet mustard, you’ll need more honey or another sweetener. Once the dressing tastes right, pour it over the salad and mix thoroughly. It should marinate for at least an hour in the fridge. Before serving, taste again — add salt and freshly ground black pepper to finish.
Enjoy.
And may the taste be with you.
Ingredients (for 4 people):
Candied Cherry Tomatoes:
150 g cherry tomatoes
½ tsp salt
2 tsp icing sugar
4 tbsp olive oil
2 tsp rosemary, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
Pickled Alpine Cheese:
400 g Alpine cheese or other semi-firm cheese (e.g. Emmental)
1 green apple (firm and tart)
Fresh chili to taste
2 shallots
40 ml white wine vinegar (or light balsamic)
60 ml olive oil
Optional: freshly ground black pepper
Bavarian Sausage “Salad”:
500 g Bologna sausage (or similar)
1 red onion
Approx. 80 g pickled gherkins
Optional: some radish
50 g chives
80 ml white wine vinegar (or light balsamic)
80 ml rapeseed oil (or sunflower or other neutral oil)
40 ml pickling liquid (from the gherkins)
1 tbsp medium mustard
1 tbsp sweet mustard
1 tsp honey (or other sweetener like agave syrup)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
