Healthy German Recipes

Using starchy potatoes is essential for making German potato pancakes. Russet, Idaho and Yukon Gold potatoes all work. There is no flour in these potato pancakes so they're gluten-free. The natural starch from the potatoes binds the mixture together. The potato pancakes should be served straight from the pan or oven (you can skip the oven part if you don't mind standing at the stove while everyone else is eating).

Zesty sauerkraut, Swiss cheese and rye bread add Reuben-esque flavor to this surprisingly addictive spaghetti squash skillet recipe. If you can't find seeded rye bread, add 1/2 to 1 teaspoon caraway seeds to the mixture in Step 2. Serve with a green salad tossed with red-wine vinaigrette.

This wholesome sweet-and-sour soup combines beef, caraway seeds, sweet paprika and cabbage--ingredients that star in a number of German dishes. It is particularly nice served with crusty rye bread. For an even heartier soup, add diced cooked potatoes along with the cabbage.

This German braised red cabbage recipe is delicious—and tastes even better the next day after the flavors mingle. Loganberry preserves and red currant jelly are more traditional in this dish, but can be harder to find—cranberry sauce makes an excellent substitute.

Here's a way to make better-than-store-bought pickles in under an hour. The secret is pouring the hot vinegar mixture over slices of cold, crisp cucumber. These pickled cucumbers have the perfect balance of sour and sweet—though closer to a "bread and butter" taste, these quick pickles still satisfy the vinegar-loving pickle crowd. In our humble opinion, there's no reason to ever buy another jar of pickles.

One bite of this hearty sausage casserole recipe--full of sauerkraut, apples and kielbasa--and you'll be transported to a tiny pub in the Alsace region of northern France. Serve with extra mustard if you like.

This hearty German cabbage soup recipe is made healthy with tons of leeks, cabbage, greens, carrot and celery. If you can't find smoked bratwurst or kielbasa, chicken sausage or ham makes a good substitute.

Butternut squash, Brussels sprouts, garlic and sausage all roast on one sheet pan in this super-easy dinner. We're partial to the flavor of chicken-apple sausage, but you can pick whatever variety of chicken sausage you prefer. Serve with crusty bread and a dollop of whole-grain mustard.

The sweet-and-sour cabbage pairs deliciously with braised chops and juicy pears in this German-inspired dish.

This healthy recipe for crispy chicken schnitzel involves coating the chicken breasts with fresh whole-wheat breadcrumbs and oven “frying” using a mist of olive oil cooking spray instead of frying in lots of oil. Serve on a bed of mixed greens or with mashed potatoes.

In this quick German-inspired side dish, red cabbage is cooked until just tender and combined with sweet apples, caraway and a tangy vinaigrette. Serve with roasted pork loin or turkey kielbasa.

Here's our weeknight version of choucroute garni, “dressed sauerkraut,” made with chicken sausage. The flavor of the dish will vary depending on what type of chicken sausage you choose. We like the taste of roasted garlic sausage or sweet apple sausage in this recipe. And although any type of sauerkraut can be used, we prefer the crisp texture of refrigerated kraut over canned. The recipe serves two. Serve with roasted carrots and some mustard to spread on the sausage.