Recipe: how to make the Austrian winter sports hit Kaiserschmarrn
Is it a pancake, is it a waffle? Is it a bit of everything? Austrian Kaiserschmarrn (or Kaiserschmarren) is a wonderful dish for breakfast, lunch or dessert.
Hiking and eating
Confession: my name is Sharon and I love hiking. There, I said it. I love good food even more. And so, a few years ago, I ended up in Tyrol, Austria. And for an excellent reason: the Culinary Way of St. James. On this hiking route for food lovers, you walk from mountain hut to mountain hut, where you satisfy your hunger with dishes from international Michelin-starred chefs. Win-win, right?
Kaiserschmarrn: a poor man’s dish
You can’t climb a mountain on a cracker, so I had a hearty, über-Tyrolean breakfast: Kaiserschmarrn. In the past, Kaiserschmarrn—the dish made from milk, flour and eggs that is best described as a very thick, torn-up pancake—was known as a poor man’s dish. It was especially ideal for shepherds who couldn’t take too many supplies with them on their journey to the mountain peaks.
There are various stories about the origins of Kaiserschmarrn. One story goes that one of the pastry chefs in the imperial kitchen made a light (huh?!) dessert of pancakes and plum compote for Empress Sisi, who was always on a diet. Sisi thought it was just so-so, but her husband, Emperor Franz Joesph, loved it. He ate his wife’s pancake; it was, he said, the most delicious ‘mess’ the chef had ever made, referring to the torn-up state on his plate!
Another story has it that the chef had made the batter too thick, causing the pancake to tear, after which the emperor sent it back to the kitchen with the words: “So ein Schmarrn ist des Kaisers nicht wert!” Either way, it’s a delicious Tyrolean specialty—for any time of day.
How to make Kaiserschmarrn
- Separate the eggs. Mix the yolks with the sugar, vanilla sugar and a pinch of salt until syrupy. Enhance with a splash of rum.
- Carefully fold the sifted flour and milk into the batter.
- Beat the egg whites until stiff and carefully fold them into the batter as well.
- Place the pan over medium heat and melt a knob of (clarified) butter in it.
- Pour the batter into the pan and sprinkle the raisins over it.
- Cover the pan and cook the Kaiserschmarrn over low heat until golden brown on one side.
- Turn it over, cover the pan again and let it cook on the other side as well.
- Pull the Kaiserschmarrn into irregular pieces with a fork, add a little more butter and toss for another 5 minutes.
- Divide among 4 plates and sprinkle generously with icing sugar. Kaiserschmarrn tastes best with cranberry jam, apple sauce or reduced plum compote (Zwetschgenröster).
Lidl Kaiserschmarrn
Thinking, ‘Sounds delicious, but I don’t have the time/motivation for that right now’? Then keep an eye on Lidl’s range. Kaiserschmarrn is regularly available there. For a few euros, you don’t have to think about anything yourself. Just heat it up and you’re done.
Also read:
- Pancakes with just 3, 2 or even 1 ingredient
- Why does the first pancake fail?
- 7x donuts from around the world
With thanks to: Blog Tirol
