Königsberger Klopse - German Meatballs

These are your quintessential German meatballs, carefully simmered and served with a tangy white sauce with capers and lemon juice. The sauce is full of flavor, the texture is velvety smooth and the meatballs will melt in your mouth. It is a well-loved dish you will find all over Germany. ​

​My recipe comes from my niece’s husband’s mother, Kerstin, who lives near Berlin and is an excellent cook. I admire her cooking style, simple yet expertly refined through her constant tasting and slowly adding spices. No recipe is needed. I once asked her son to describe her cooking and the answer was Hausmannskost (home cooking).

​Kerstin cooked the meatballs when she and her husband visited me in Santa Cruz. I loved watching her slowly perfect the flavor. I tried to take notes, but more than once had to cross out and rewrite. The second and third time I cooked them for my German girlfriends, I got rave reviews—and not one morsel was left.

​This dish is named for the Prussian city of Königsberg which is now Kalinigrad in Northern Poland. If you go on the web, you will find many variations for the recipe. Originally, the meatballs were made with veal and either herring or anchovies were added. This dish is traditionally served with boiled potatoes and cooked beets tossed in vinegar. To develop the flavors, cook the meatballs the day before. It is a humble dish and easy to make.

To develop the flavors, cook the meatballs the day before and leave them in the broth.
​Use white pepper if you have it. Once you have cooked the meatballs in the broth, let them steep for at least an hour in the pot. I left mine overnight. The longer you steep them, the more flavor will develop. This recipe makes about a dozen meatballs and serves four to six people.
Boil or steam the potatoes with their skins on for about 20 minutes or until soft when pierced with a knife.  I like German butterball potatoes, but you can use any yellow potato. Peel them and serve them with the meatballs. Boil the beets with their skins on for at least 30 minutes or longer.  I make a vinaigrette with olive oil, balsamic vinegar , some finely chopped onions and salt and pepper. I add this to the warm peeled and sliced beets. ​

Print Recipe

Ingredients:

The Broth 
8 cups of water
2 bay leaves
5 whole allspice kernels 
​½ large onion (quartered) 

Meatballs:
1½ lb ground pork
2 small eggs 
1 tsp freshly ground pepper
½ cup finely chopped white onions
2 TBS breadcrumbs
1 3/4 tsp salt 
​
Sauce:
4 TBS Butter
¼ cup + 2 TBS flour
4-5 cups broth
5 TBS capers
1 TBS caper juice
2 TBS ore more lemon juice
1 ½ tsp sugar 
1 tsp salt
pepper to taste

Directions:


The Broth
In a large pot, bring the water, bay leaves, allspice and quartered onion to a boil. 

The Meatballs:
Mix all the ingredients and form into 2-inch dumplings. Put the dumplings into the broth and bring to boil. When the dumplings rise to the top (after about 4-6 minutes) turn off the heat, cover the pot with a lid and let it stand for an hour. The longer the dumplings steep, the better. You can do this a day ahead.

The Sauce:
Drain the meatballs through a sieve collecting the broth. Separate the meatballs and discard the rest.
To make the roux, melt the butter in a large cast-iron pot, add the flour and stir for several minutes. Be careful not to brown the mixture. Add small amounts of the broth, stirring constantly with a whisk until smooth. Continue adding the broth until you reach your desired consistency, thick like cream that sticks your spoon. It should have a velvety texture. Add the capers, the caper juice, lemon juice, sugar, salt and pepper. Taste the sauce constantly and adjust by adding more or less. Put the meatballs into the sauce and simmer until the meatballs are heated.

Guten Appetit!
recipe by Kerstin Falkenberg
translated by@Sunnycovechef