Curry? A German tradition? Yes, and no… But there’s a good story behind how this apparently alien dish earned a place of honour on the annual Octoberfest menu. Like SPAM in the Philippines, Curry Ketchup has its roots in the post WW II era…
How did Curry become a star of the uber-German Octoberfest celebration? It’s a not too-long a story, but you’ll love how a Berlin snack cart vendor mixed curry powder and ketchup to invent what would become a German national culinary treasure…
A chance encounter
The curry and the ketchup, that is. For some reason we’ll never know, snack vendor Herta Heuwer mixed up curry powder (which she got from British soldiers stationed in the partitioned city) with ketchup (which she got from American soldiers!). The condiment was newly arrived from the US in 1949, and Herta was… curious.
She tried it out on construction workers who frequented her street stand- and they loved it. Soon, Heuer was selling grilled sausage with her own registered brand name sauce and expanding her business across the city. The dish, called Currywurst, is still a runaway best-seller today
The Deutsches Currywurst Museum in Berlin estimates that 800 million currywursts are eaten every year in Germany, with 70 million in Berlin alone. Currywurst is just grilled sausage chunks with Curry Ketchup poured liberally over top, and sprinkled with a little more curry powder – for a trademark bite.
But millions more orders of Curry Ketchup Fries are sold at a multitude of diners and street carts across Germany. And today’s recipe is an elevated version of that concept, emp0loying sweet potato wedges.
The dish of the moment…
… Is a great concept and a really wonderful enhancement to classic Berlin Curry Fries!
Toss your sweet potato wedges in olive oil and sprinkle on salt and paprika. A little dab will do you. Then bake them in a pre-heated 400 F oven, in a single layer, on a big baking sheet lined with parch-ment paper. They should get nice and crispy on the outside, but remain light and fuffy on the inside. Check them with a fork or a toothpick after 20 minutes…
For the Ketchup…
… All you really need is your fave type of curry powder blend and standard red tomato ketchup – your fave brand will do just as nicely as any other.
But you also need scallions (green onions) to make real Curry Ketchup. In a small sauce pan on med-high heat, heat up some olive oil, then sizzle the scallions and curry powder until the onions are softened. Stir in the ketchup until everything is well-combined, and remove from the heat.
You can serve this condiment warm or cold, as the occasion demands. But it shows itself off to best advantage when served warm!
Tips and hacks…
You can make this dish with regular potato wedges, if you wish. It’s just not as special…
DO use wedges or thick-cut British-style ‘chips’ (also the classic across Western Europe) for this dish. It’s just not the same with skinny fries that can get crispy (hard!) all the way through, or soggy in the centre…
DO play with the curry addition. Add a half teaspoon / 2.5 ml at a time until you reach a happy flav-our accord with the ketchup…
DO add a pinch or two of sugar to the sauce if the spicy edge is still to overwhelming for your taste conbined with the tartness of the Ketchup
My take
Today, Curry Ketchup is a favourite meat marinade, BBQ sauce and dip across Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands and Scandinavia. I’m surprised I didn’t do a post on it sooner!
You’ll find it at authentic Octoberfest gatherings starring in Currywurst, on the fries, and by itself as a dip.
But I’m certain that, once you’ve tried it, and establish a happy medium between the ketchup and curry, you’ll use it in all kinds of ways, all year round!
~ Maggie J.