Königsberger Klopse

If you were to choose just one dish that embodies East Prussian cuisine, it would be klopse without a doubt! If there are any East Prussian specialties on the menu of German restaurants now, then in the "main courses" section it would certainly be them - Königsberg klopse ! New Year is just around the corner. So why not decorate your holiday table with Königsberg klopse?

Once upon a time, literally every housewife in East Prussia had her own recipe for this dish. Their main ingredient - minced pork and beef - remained unchanged. But there were endless debates about whether to use sour cream or cream, lemon or vinegar, add capers or anchovies or not.

We offer below a recipe with a set of products that can be purchased at any supermarket.

So, to cook Königsberg klopsy, we will need 2 - 2.5 hours.

 

 

Ground meat

pork - 0.5 kg

beef - 0.5 kg

medium onion - 2 pcs.

stale white bread - 0.2 kg

egg - 2 pcs

anchovies - several pcs.

parsley greens

black pepper

mustard 1 tbsp.

 

 

Soak the bread in cold water, squeeze it out well after a while. Mince the meat, adding bread, onion and anchovies. Add eggs and chopped parsley. Season with pepper and a spoonful of mustard. Important: anchovies may not be available for sale, so Baltic sprat fillets or a few pieces of herring fillets will do just fine instead. It is important not to overdo it with the anchovies. You want a slight fish aroma, but it should not overpower the taste of the meat. You need to salt the mince, taking into account that salted fish is added to it! Rumor has it that the name "klopsy" comes from the word klopfen - to beat, knock, pound. So beat the mince well, this will make it more tender.

Then form the klopsy themselves. Their size can vary from a chicken egg to a tennis ball (but this is too big, in our opinion).

 

 

Next, you need to put the klopsy in boiling meat broth (it should just barely cover the klopsy) and cook for 10-15 minutes (the larger the klopsy, the longer it takes to cook) over low heat. Then remove them from the broth, which will become the basis for the sauce.

 

 

Sauce

Meat broth - 2 cups

Butter - 0.1 kg

Flour - 2 tbsp.

Cream (15%) - 1 glass

Capers

 

Melt the butter, fry the flour in it, add the meat broth. Cook for 3-4 minutes, add the cream, and after another 5 minutes add the capers. Since capers, like anchovies, have a pronounced taste, you should add them without fanaticism. It is better to add a few more pieces later than to overdo it right away. Do not forget that capers are very salty, and will not give up their salt right away. Therefore, salt the sauce at the very end, 10 minutes after the capers. If someone likes a sour sauce, you can add lemon juice to taste.

 

 

Add the klopsy to the prepared sauce and cook them for another 10-15 minutes. The klopsy are ready!

Boiled potatoes or mashed potatoes can be served as a side dish.

 

 

 

Bon appetit!