Leberkäse (sometimes spelled Leberkäs or Leberka(a)s in Austria and the Bavarian parts of Germany) is a specialty food found in the south of Germany, in Austria and parts of Switzerland, similar to meat pie. It consists of corned beef, bacon and onions and is made by grinding the ingredients very fine and then baking it as a loaf in a bread pan until it has a crunchy brown crust.

Leberkäse is said to have been invented in 1776 by the cook of Bavarian Duke Karl Theodor, although this story has been heavily contested. The name "Leberkäse" literally translates to "liver-cheese", and since the dish traditionally contains neither liver nor cheese, linguists have come up with an alternate etymology that involves the Middle High German word lab (to clot) and the Slavic root quas (feast). This would imply that Leberkäse was known considerably earlier than 200 years ago.

According to German food laws, only Bavarian Leberkäse may consist of corned beef and bacon; Leberkäse produced outside of Bavaria must contain at least 4% liver and must not be called "Bavarian Leberkäse". Some local variants must contain even more liver; for example, the liver content of "Stuttgarter Leberkäse" must be at least 5%.

There are several ways of eating Leberkäse:

• Cut into approximately finger-thick slices which are then placed in a semmel while still hot and seasoned with Estragon mustard. The result, generally called Leberkässemmel, is a staple of Bavarian and Austrian fast food restaurants.

• Alternatively, the slices can also be pan-fried ("abgebräunt", browned), in which case they are commonly accompanied by a fried egg and German potato salad. This is a very common Biergarten dish sometimes called a Strammer Max.

• Cold Leberkäse can also be cut into very thin slices and be used on a variety of sandwiches.

German cuisine | Meat | German loanwords

Leberkäse | Leberkäse | レバーケーゼ