Germany has a lot of culinary weirdness to offer. Not only are some of our regional specialties very peculiar in nature, they often also come with names which are rather silly. Can you decipher the titles and find out what these dishes are made of? Caution: Some of these are not for the faint of heart.

1. Germans love minced pork meat so much that they eat it raw, on a piece of bread. Do you know how it’s called?

photo by webvideopreis via Flickr

photo by webvideopreis via Flickr




 

 

2. If you’re bored by regular cheese, try “Milbenkäse”, …

photo by Ivo Bauer via Wikimedia

photo by Ivo Bauer via Wikimedia




 

 

3. Fortunately, “Kalter Hund” (cold dog) contains no meat products. It simply stands for …

photo by nadine.juliana via Flickr

photo by nadine.juliana via Flickr




 

 

4. “Arme Ritter” (poor knights) refers to …

photo by Oliver Hallmann via Flickr

photo by Oliver Hallmann via Flickr




 

 

5. Fanta was invented in Germany, so it shouldn’t surprise anyone that “Fantakuchen” is a thing. But what is it?

photo by tin.G via Flickr

photo by tin.G via Flickr




 

 

6. Why is this pickled herring called “Rollmops”?




 

 

7. Do you know what “Himmel und Erde” (heaven and earth) refers to?

photo by AlishaV via Flickr

photo by AlishaV via Flickr (creative commons)




 

 

8. These donut-like pastries are quite popular in Southern Germany and are called “Nonnenfürzle”. But do you know what that actually means?

photo by Mufi69 via Wikimedia

photo by Mufi69 via Wikimedia




 

 

9. Which type of “Spargel” (asparagus) is typically German?

photo by alasdairnicol via Flickr

photo by alasdairnicol via Flickr




 

 

10. Everyone knows “Bratwurst” and “Currywurst”. But do you know what “Teewurst” is?

photo by Best German Food via Flickr

photo by Best German Food via Flickr




 

 

11. “Saumagen”, a specialty from the Pfalz region, basically is nothing else than …

photo by Claus Ableiter via Wikimedia

photo by Claus Ableiter via Wikimedia




 

 

12. It’s well known that Germans love “Bier” (beer) but do you know what “Bierkäse” is?

photo by Langinger via Wikimedia

photo by Langinger via Wikimedia