Preparation
- Boil the potatoes in salted water until soft and drain.
- Meanwhile, sweat the onions in butter or margarine until translucent to pale golden, add the corned beef and cook, covered, for about 3 minutes.
- Add the gherkins, gherkin liquid and beetroot, season generously with salt, pepper and allspice and simmer gently for about 10 minutes.
- Roughly mash the cooked potatoes, not to a fine purée, and stir in the corned beef mixture. If the mixture is too stiff, loosen it with a little gherkin liquid or beetroot juice.
- Fry the eggs in butter or margarine.
- Divide the labskaus among plates, top each with a fried egg and garnish with matjes, Bismarck herring or rollmop.
Drink with it
Pale lager · excellent match
North German pilsner, well chilled
Carbonation and sharp bitterness refresh after every bite of the rich mash and keep the salty seasoning of the herring and corned beef in check.
Pils or Helles: What's the Difference?Vodka · excellent match
Ice-cold vodka or clear Korn, neat from a small glass
The cold, clear spirit cuts through fried egg and corned beef and goes with herring, gherkin and beetroot as it would with a zakuski platter.
What Is Vodka? Raw Materials, Flavor, and CocktailsWhite wine · good match
Dry Riesling
The pronounced acidity stands up to the fat and salt of the herring, and the fruit picks up the sweetish beetroot.
Which wine pairs with food? A simple approach to choosing