Vegetarian Oktoberfest: a special vegan menu based on traditional German fare - includes recipes and a German beer primer

A special vegan menu based on traditional German fare.

Americans may think of the Oktoberfest celebration in Germany as an abundance of flowing beer, Bavarian music and good cheer. Indeed, more than a million gallons of beer are consumed in Munich during the 16-day autumn festival, but no celebration is complete without food, and least of all, this one.

The Oktoberfest tradition all started in 1810, when Crown Prince Ludwig hosted a gala to celebrate his marriage to Princess Theresa. It was so much fun that it evolved into an annual celebration of German food, drink and culture.

Having traveled to Germany many times to compete in the International Culinary Olympics with the American Natural Foods Team, I couldn't help but notice how much Germans value their traditional foods and attempt to maintain their cultural culinary identity. Although their diet is animal-based, there is an openness to creating healthier versions of their classic cuisine.

In September 1996, while in Berlin for the Culinary Olympics, I had the privilege of serving this meal to our German hosts at St. Elisabeth Stiftung, a retirement home in the former East Berlin. We were so thankful for the use of their kitchen during the competition (and overjoyed at winning gold and bronze medals for our efforts) that we created a vegan dinner based on Oktoberfest fare. Our German dinner guests were delighted and inspired by the food that we served, and we celebrated well into the night. As Germany continues to develop a vegetarian cuisine, I am sure Oktoberfest menus will start to include dishes like the Seitan Pepper "Steak" and Smoked Tofu "Schnitzle" featured here.

Menu

Greens with Tangerine Ginger Vinaigrette Mashed Potatoes Seitan Pepper `Steak' Smoked Tofu `Schnitzel' with Braised Cabbage No-Bake Chocolate Cream Cake

Greens with Tangerine-Ginger Vinaigrette

8 SERVINGS VEGAN

My teammate from the International Culinary Olympics, Jorge Czechura, created this tangy citrus dressing for the Berlin dinner celebration. For best results, plan ahead and make the dressing with Orange Vinegar (see note), which has to age for two weeks.

6 Tbs. fresh tangerine or orange
  juice
3 Tbs. Orange Vinegar (see note), or
  sherry vinegar
1 tsp. chopped fresh chives
1 tsp. grated orange zest
1/4 tsp. ground ginger
1/4 tsp. ground anise or ground
  fennel seeds
Salt to taste
1/2 cup canola or olive oil
1 tangerine or orange, peeled and
  segmented
About 1 lb. mesclun greens (see
  glossary)

PER SERVING 383 CAL; 8G PROT.; 13G TOTAL FAT (5G SAT. FAT); 60G cARs.; 4MG CHOL.; 56MG SOD.; 2G FIBER.

Reprinted with permission from Friendly Foods by Ron Pickarski (Ten Speed Press, 1991).

RELATED ARTICLE: German Beer Primer

In 1516, the Duke of Bavaria proclaimed that beer could only be brewed from barley malt, hops and water--100 percent natural ingredients. (Yeast had not been, introduced to beer making and was not included in the law.) Still in effect today, this now famous purity law called Reinheitsgebot, is one of the main reasons that German beers have long been considered superior and the standard by which all others are judged.

In Germany today, there are over 5,000 varieties of beer brewed by over 1,200 breweries. Distinguished as light (helles) or dark (dunkles), German beers are further classified by their hop content, how they are, fermented, how long they are stored, and by their alcohol content (2.5 percent to 7 percent). Check with breweries or distributors to find out if their beer is processed without animal products.

Ron Pickarski is a professional vegan chef and seven-time medal winner at the International Culinary Olympics. He is also the author of Eco-Cuisine (Ten Speed Press, 1995) and Friendly Foods (Ten Speed Press, 1991).

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