Who wants currywurst?

March 5, 2010 in Allgemein

When it comes to fast food in Germany, currywurst aka sausage with curry sauce is always on top of the list. The sausage used for currywurst is usually a bratwurst (“fry sausage”) which is cut up and smothered with a curry-ketchup mixture. Yes, that’s right: curry-ketchup mixture is what we call curry sauce here in Germany.

Bratwurst smothered in sauce.

I probably had one currywurst in my whole life and never missed it. But when I was a kid, I really loved curry ketchup. Me and my sister refused to eat regular ketchup, so my father always had to buy a large bottle of curry ketchup when he went grocery shopping. It was probably only because of the curry sauce/ketchup that I wanted to veganize currywurst. I know, I could just have grabbed a bottle of curry ketchup. For those, who are not familiar with the whole bratwurst/currywurst/currysauce obsession, here’s a recipe.

Bratwurst (makes 4 sausages)

144 g (1 cup) gluten powder (vital wheat gluten)
10 g (2 tablespoons) chickpea flour
25 g (4 tablespoons) yeast flakes
2 teaspoons dried marjoram
1 teaspoon granulated onion
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon salt
65 g (2.3 oz) smoked tofu
2 cloves garlic, minced
240 ml (1 cup) cold water

Preheat oven to 200°C (400°F). In a bowl, combine gluten, chickpea flour, yeast flakes, marjoram, granulated onion, black pepper, and salt. Mix well.

Mash tofu as finely as possible (or process into a paste using a food processor).

Add mashed tofu, garlic,and water to gluten mixture and knead until everything is well combined. Let rest for five minutes and knead again for 30 seconds.

Divide dough into four equal parts, form into logs (about 30 cm or 12 inches long) and tightly wrap in aluminium foil. Seal the edges by twisting the foil and bake for 25 minutes. Let cool completely before unwrapping.

Naked bratwurst

Currywurst (serves 4)

Heat a large pan and add 1 teaspoon of oil. Fry the sausages until brown and crispy. Meanwhile prepare the sauce in a small saucepan:

For the sauce:
250 g (1 cup) ketchup (use a sweet version)
60 ml (1/4 cup) water
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 teaspoons mild curry powder
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

In a small saucepan, mix all the ingredients and cook sauce for 1 minute. Cut the sausages into bite size pieces and add to sauce. Stir and divide between four plates. Sprinkle with curry powder and serve with fries.

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