German food has become such a part of Kansas heritage that many of those who cook it don’t realize where the meals originated.

“A lot of people eat pot roast, ham, chicken and dumplings,” says Bill Keel, chairman of the German department at Kansas University. “Those are German foods. We tend to think of wiener schnitzel and bratwurst as German, but if you’re from a farm family you probably grew up eating German food.”

Though many of those common foods originated in Germany, there are plenty of others that are prepared far less in Kansas kitchens, despite the fact that a fourth of the state’s residents claim German ancestry.

Schnitzel, peas and spaetzle are among the traditional German fare that will be served at St. John's Oktoberfest celebration on Saturday.

While schnitzel, sauerkraut and rouladen might take a back seat most of the year, they’ll take center stage next month around the world with Oktoberfest celebrations. Oktoberfest has been a tradition since 1810, when King Ludwig I of Bavaria and Princess Theresia invited the public to their wedding – creating a big reason to celebrate in Munich, Germany.

“It’s a big party,” says Mariele Berthold, a Lawrence resident who grew up in Germany. “It’s famous over the whole world.”

In Lawrence, the city’s largest Oktoberfest is from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday at St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church, 1234 Ky. The event will include polka music and children’s games. But it’s clear the focus is on the German menu, beer and spiced wine.

Ellen Shobe, who is head of the committee organizing St. John’s Oktoberfest, says she doesn’t know why more people don’t cook German food at home.

Ellen Shobe prepares schnitzel by first pounding pork chops thinner, then dipping them in an egg wash and smothering them with a bread crumb/vegetable mixture before frying them in oil.

“Schnitzel is really easy to prepare,” she says. “Kraut and potato salad are a little more advanced. I know some people cook occasionally. It just depends on what their heritage is.”

For those who are novices at cooking German cuisine, Berthold, a cook with the St. John’s event, suggests schnitzel – meat (usually pork chops) pounded flat and breaded. Like with most of her German cooking, Berthold says Vegeta – a German seasoning made with a mix of vegetables, herbs and spices – is a key ingredient.

“I personally use it almost in everything because I like it,” she says. “It’s the same thing but a little more spice than the bullion cubes.”

Another fairly simple cooking option is German potato salad – similar to its American cousin, but often made with bacon and vinegar.

And then there’s kraut. Most Americans just eat sauerkraut out of a can, but those planning St. John’s Oktoberfest prefer a sweet version. They rinse the canned cabbage, then add apples, brown sugar and other ingredients.

“We don’t want it so sour,” Berthold says. “It’s simple to make if you know how to make it, but it tastes completely different than if you just open the can.”

Shobe says she likes cooking spaetzle, a type of dumplings made primarily from flour and covered with gravy. She has a special kitchen device for forming the spaetzle, but Markus Hesse, a German exchange student staying with her, prefers to form the dumplings with a knife and cutting board.

Markus Hesse, 16, a foreign exchange student from Hessen, Germany, helps the Shobe family prepare German cuisine.

“It’s cheap and easy,” says Hesse, a student at Lawrence High School.

He says most people in Germany take that option when it comes to sauerkraut, too.

“Most of the time they just buy it in a can,” he says. “It’s just so much easier.”

For another uniquely German meal that requires a little more work, Berthold suggests rouladen. It’s thinly cut beef, smeared with mustard and rolled with vegetables inside.

Though German food will be in the spotlight even in the United States during the next month, Berthold says the only true way to experience it is to go to where it all started.

“Oktoberfest is only in Munich,” she says. “They might have other ones, but they’re not the same.”

Recipes with Oktoberfest flavor

Pork Schnitzel

4 boneless pork cutlets or pork tenderloin, cut about 1/2-inch thick

Salt and black pepper, to taste

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

1 1/3 cups seasoned dried bread crumbs

1 egg

1 tablespoon milk or water

1/4 cup olive or vegetable oil

Pound each pork cutlet or tenderloin to 1/4-inch thickness using a meat tenderizing mallet. Sprinkle the pork with salt and pepper.

Place the flour and dried bread crumbs in separate shallow bowls. Break the egg into another bowl and whisk in the milk or water. Dredge the pork in the flour, dip into the egg and milk mixture, then coat with the dried bread crumbs.

Heat the oil over medium heat in a large nonstick skillet. Fry the schnitzel slowly, turning several times, until golden brown, about 10 minutes.

Serves 4.

Source: Mariele Berthold

Bavarian sauerkraut

3 cups sauerkraut

8 ounces bacon

1 medium yellow onion, chopped

1 cup brown sugar

3 cups beef broth

2 bay leaves

1 1/2 teaspoons caraway seed

1/4 cup apple butter

2 to 3 tart apples, peeled and sliced (optional)

1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar (optional)

Drain the sauerkraut and wash in cold water for about 15 minutes. Drain well.

Fry the bacon in a large skillet over medium heat. Drain the bacon and set aside, reserving the drippings. Heat the bacon drippings in a Dutch oven or a large oven-proof casserole over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until soft. Stir in the brown sugar and cook, stirring frequently until dissolved. Add the beef broth, bay leaves, caraway seed, apple butter and sauerkraut. Add the apple slices, if desired. Crumble the bacon over top and stir to combine.

Cover and bake the sauerkraut in a 350 degree oven for 1 hour to 1 1/2 hours. Taste the sauerkraut and add vinegar for tartness, if desired. Serves 10 to 12.

Source: Mariele Berthold

Rouladen

3 pounds, round steaks (six cut

about 3/16-inch thick)

12 strips bacon

1 large carrot

1 large dill pickle (cut into six pieces)

1 to 2 tablespoons oil or fat

1 medium onion, diced

1 tablespoon flour

5 cups boiling water

German hot mustard

1 cup cream (optional)

Salt and pepper meat lightly on both sides. Spread about 1/2 to 3/4 teaspoon mustard evenly on one side of each roulade. Cut the bacon in pieces about 1 inch long and place pieces equally distributed on the roulades. Cut the carrot and pickle into strips as large as a pencil and as long as the roulades are wide. Place the carrot and pickle strips on one end of the roulade and roll the roulades together, tucking the ends as you roll. Tie together firmly with thread or toothpick. Roll roulades in flour until well-coated. Heat frying pan. Brown roulades well on all sides, adding fat as necessary. Add one tablespoon flour and stir in well. Add onion and brown until glassy. Add boiling water slowly. Stir well with fork to dissolve crust on bottom of pan and to prevent lumps. Cover pan. Simmer slowly for one to two hours. Salt and pepper gravy to taste and stir in cream if desired.

Source: Inge Starr

Hot German potato salad

3 pounds potatoes

1 1/2 cup soup stock

1 medium onion, chopped

4 to 6 strips bacon or 1/2 cup bacon bits

1/2 cup salad oil

1 1/2 tablespoons flour

2 tablespoons vinegar

Salt and pepper to taste

1 tablespoon sugar

In large pot with about 10 cups of water and one tablespoon of salt, boil potatoes until done. Meanwhile, in saucepan, saute onion, then add bacon bits and stir. Add flour and cook for one minute. Pour in soup stock and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and cook over medium heat for about three minutes. Combine with pepper, salt, vinegar and sugar, and stir. Peel potatoes, cut into thin slices and carefully mix into broth.

Source: Inge Starr

Kartoffel kloesse

6 to 8 medium baking potatoes

2 eggs

1/4 teaspoons ground nutmeg

3 slices of bread, cubed and toasted

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons margarine or butter

Cook potatoes in water until tender. Cover and refrigerate 12-24 hours. Peel and finely chop cooked potatoes or mash thoroughly. In a medium bowl, combine potatoes, flour, eggs, salt and nutmeg to form a firm but light paste. If mixture is too moist, add flour as needed. This will keep the dumplings from falling apart during cooking. Melt margarine or butter in a large skillet; add bread cubes and saute until golden brown. Working with floured hands, form potato paste into a roll about 2 1/2 inches in diameter. Cut roll into eight to 10 pieces. Form pieces into dumplings enclosing a few sauteed bread cubes in center of each dumpling. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add dumplings, one at a time, and simmer about 15 minutes. Dumplings are done when floating on top. Remove dumplings with slotted spoon and drain well.

Source: Inge Starr