Zaumagen

Zaumagen consists of potatoes and pork, usually seasoned with onions, marjoram , nutmeg and white pepper , in addition, cloves , coriander , thyme , garlic , bay leaf , cardamom , basil , caraway seeds , allspice and parsley are also found in various recipes ^{[1 ] [2]} . Sometimes beef is also used; A popular fall option involves replacing part or all of a potato with a chestnut . Large ingredients are diced. After that, zaumagen is prepared in hot water, just below the boiling point, in order to prevent rupture of the pig stomach. It is served either with sauerkraut and mashed potatoes , or stored in the refrigerator for later use. To heat it again, saumagen is cut into slices with a thickness of about ¹ ⁄ ₂ to 1 inch (1.3-2.5 cm), which are then fried in an open pan. A typical accompanying drink, especially in the Pfalz wine region, is usually dry white wine , and local beer is preferred in the western Palatinate forest .

Zaumagen was created in the 18th century by farmers from the Palatinate who used pork leftovers to prepare a fried dish for those who do not have the financial means to afford the purchase of meat. Today, saumagen offered by German butchers use high quality ingredients. It is said that Louise Wilhelmina Henninger (1871-1951), a cook and hostess at the Weinhaus Henninger in Kalstadt , brought saumagen to culinary excellence. The name of the dish originates from the Saumagen Kallstadt vineyard near Kalstadt ^[3] .

Helmut Kohl , Chancellor of Germany from 1982 to 1998 , especially loved the saumagen and asked for it to be submitted to foreign leaders, including Margaret Thatcher , Mikhail Gorbachev , Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton . Kohl comes from the Palatinate , and his enthusiasm for this local dish popularized him in the general public ^[4] . Some Germans viewed this affection as a sign that Kohl was unsophisticated and provincial.

The Schlotte Carnival in Schifferstadt has been awarded the Order of Saumagen since 1992 ^[5] . Landau hosts the Saumagen - Internationale Pfälzer Saumagen-Wettbewerb competition. The unique recipes presented on it include as ingredients, for example, minced fish or venison. The first winners, Imke Bruns and Iris Wittmann, are now members of the jury ^[6] .

Among the Germans in Pennsylvania , USA , a dish known locally as “seimaage,” “hogmal,” consists of pork (“maw,” an old word for stomach), namely, a pig’s stomach or goose. The dish is popular during the harvest season. Traditionally, a pig’s stomach, rather than a turkey, has been a Thanksgiving main course among German families in Pennsylvania. This tradition comes from the Old World , and the bulk of the German settlers in Pennsylvania come from the Palatinate . Unlike the German version of cooking saumagen, the dish is usually baked for several hours, rather than boiled.

• Judith Kauffmann (Deutsch), Der Saumagen - Entdeckungsreise ins Innere eines Pfälzer Küchenklassikers , Annweiler: Verlag Plöger Medien, ISBN 3-89857-204-8