This classic German dinner is made of steak stuffed with pickles, bacon, mustard, and onions and then served in a delightful gravy. Make this classic German comfort food to really experience German cuisine.
Hello Reader! I try my hardest to research recipes as best as I can before posting to ensure I am representing each culture correctly. If this recipe is from your country and I have made a mistake or you have suggestions for how to make it more authentic, I would love to hear! Please leave a comment below letting me know what should be different, and I will rework the recipe. It is always my intention to pay homage and respect to each cultural dish that I cook. Thanks for reading!
Recipe Origins
Beef Rouladen is a special dish that is served across Germany. It is made from pickles, mustard (sound familiar to another filling? Check out this Medianoche Sandwich), and bacon rolled up inside beef, then cooked in a gravy.
Beef Rouladen originally began in Germany as a special dish served mostly on Sundays or holidays. As the years have gone on, the dish has now transformed from a dish created for special days to a dish that can be made any day.
Due to the heavy nature of the dish, beef stewed in gravy, beef rouladen is most typically enjoyed as a winter dish. It is great as a comfort food (ooh now I’m dreaming about it being served alongside these Instant Pot Horseradish Mashed Potatoes)!
Why Make this Recipe
- Experience Germany: Germany is a wonderful place to visit with fantastic food options! If you want to experience Germany but aren’t quite ready to purchase a ticket, make this dish at home. It will bring Germany to your kitchen!
- Celebration Dish: We love making this recipe when we want to celebrate something big. The beef rouladen are, admittedly, a lot of work, but SO worth the reward!
- The Gravy: OMG this gravy is delightful! It is light but flavorful and pairs great with the beef and fillings in this dish. (For another great gravy recipe try this Frikadeller from Denmark).
What Do I Need to Make This Dish?
Ingredients
- Beef: I use thinly pounded top round steak.
- Dijon Mustard: You can also use yellow mustard if so preferred, or even German Mustard
- Bacon: Thick cut, pork bacon
- Baby Pickles: I cut each pickle in half lengthwise and then each of those halves into three or four smaller pieces. I tried to get as small of pieces of pickle as possible.
- Carrots: You can use 1-2 large carrots, if you have them available. I had baby carrots in my fridge, so I chopped those up and used them instead.
- Red Wine: I used a bottom shelf merlot for cooking. Merlot is also a great choice for a glass of wine to drink with this dish.
Tools
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- Gallon-sized plastic bag
- Mallet/Meat tenderizer
- Cutting Board
- Toothpicks
- Dutch oven
- Measuring Cups
- Measuring Spoons
- Wooden Spoon
- Tongs
How to Make this Dish
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Step 1: Prepare the Beef Rouladen
Put each piece of top round in a gallon sized plastic bag and seal the bag. Pound the meat through the plastic with a meat tenderizer until about ¼” thick. Each piece of meat should be about 3”x7”, so you can cut the pieces accordingly to get as close to this measurement as possible.
Lay each of the pieces of top round on a cutting board and spread the top with dijon mustard.
Lay one piece of bacon on top of the mustard on each piece. If you can fit 2 pieces of bacon side by side on the beef, feel free to use two pieces.
Lay the pickles horizontally down the length of the beef cut.
Then sprinkle about ¼ cup of the chopped onions over all of the beef rouladen.
Use your hands to roll the beef up from top to bottom, using as many toothpicks as necessary to secure the beef/toppings in place.
Step 2: Brown the Beef
In a dutch oven, heat 2 tbsp of butter over medium heat. Add the rolled rouladen into the dutch oven and cook until the bottom browns. Then flip, cooking each side until the entire outside of the rouladen brown.
Remove the beef rouladen to a separate plate and set aside.
Step 3: Cook the Vegetables and Sauce
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
Add another 2 tbsp of butter into the pot until it melts. Then add the rest of the chopped onions, carrots, celery, and green onions into the dutch oven.
Saute for about 5 minutes, until the vegetables start to soften. Then, add the chopped garlic.
Saute for another 3-4 minutes. Then, add the red wine into the pot, letting the mixture come to a simmer. Once the wine has simmered for about 4 minutes, add the beef broth, sugar, bay leaves, tomato paste, salt and pepper to taste. Stir to combine.
Step 4: Bake
Add the reserved rouladen back into the dutch oven, put the lid on, and cook in the oven for about an hour and a half, or until the meat is tender.
When the meat is tender, remove the dutch oven from the oven.
Step 5: Thicken the Gravy
Use tongs to remove the rouladen from the pot. Place them on a separate plate and set aside. Remove the toothpicks from the meat.
Strain the vegetables out of the liquid. Return the liquid back to the pot. Put the dutch oven back on the stove on medium heat, and bring the remaining liquid in the pot to a simmer.
In a small bowl, mix together the flour and water until completely smooth. Pour this mixture into the liquid in the bottom of the dutch oven. Allow it to cook over medium heat until the gravy begins to thicken. (If you want another good gravy recipe, check out this Canadian Poutine!)
Once the gravy is thick, place the reserved beef rouladen back into the gravy. Serve and enjoy!
Expert Tips
- You can also make this dish with veal if preferred. It is thought that the original recipe was made with either venison or pork, so you can give those a try as well.
- You can also use cornstarch to thicken the gravy if you’d prefer. Make sure to start with small amounts and add more if necessary, always combining the cornstarch with water first.
- Use cooking twine instead of toothpicks for an easier time browning the meat.
- Make sure to keep the browned bits in the bottom of the pot after browning the beef rouladen but before adding the vegetables. All of those bits add extra flavor to the dish!
- You can reserve the vegetables that are strained out of the gravy. They will be delicious as a side to the dish or served alongside another meal.
Other Filling Ingredients
I chose to fill these Beef Rouladen with pickles, mustard, onions, and bacon. There are plenty of other fillings to try if you want to add a little something extra to your recipe:
- Minced Meat (cooked)
- Ground sausage (cooked)
- Pine nuts
- Mushrooms
- Hard Boiled Eggs (Sicilian Style)
- Bread Dumplings
- Boiled Potatoes
- And so much more
Recipe FAQs
Where Does Rouladen Get Its Name?
As a singular unit, it is called roulade, but many served together are called rouladen.
The word Roulade comes from the French word “Rouler” meaning “to roll”. This makes sense, as the fillings are rolled into the beef.
What Wine Pairs Well with this Dish?
I would recommend enjoying a red wine with this recipe as a pairing for the heaviness of the beef.
You can enjoy the same red wine that you use in the gravy, or you can use a cheaper cooking wine for the gravy and enjoy a higher end glass yourself.
What Sides Go With This Recipe?
There are so many options of side dishes you can serve with this Beef Rouladen! Some great options are:
- Sweet and Sour Cabbage
- Spaetzle
- Cheese Spaetzle (Kasespatzle)
- German Cucumber Salad
- Mashed Potatoes
Did you enjoy this Beef Rouladen recipe? If so, make sure to check out these other recipes I picked out just for you:
- Obatzda (German Beer Cheese Spread)
- Wiener Schnitzel
- Kaiserschmarrn from Austria
- Instant Pot Beef Bourguignon from France
- Steak and Onions (Dibi) from The Gambia
Beef Rouladen
Equipment
- Plastic Bag
- Meat Mallet
- Cutting Board
- Toothpicks
- Dutch Oven
- Measuring Cups
- Measuring Spoons
- Wooden Spoon
- Tongs
- Oven Mitt
- Plastic Bag
- Small Bowl
- Pot(s)
- Toothpicks
- Wine Opener
Ingredients
- 2 lb choice beef top round steak
- 4 tbsp dijon mustard
- 6 pieces bacon
- 8 baby dill pickles, sliced thinly
- 1 sweet onion, chopped
- 6 tbsp Butter, divided
- ¾ cup carrots, chopped
- 1 stalk celery, chopped
- 3 stalks Green onions, chopped
- 2 tsp garlic, chopped
- 1 cup Red wine
- 2 cups Beef broth
- 1 tbsp Sugar
- 2 Bay leaves
- 2 tbsp Tomato paste
- ¼ tsp Salt
- Fresh Ground Black Pepper to Taste
- 3 tbsp Flour
- ⅓ cup water
Instructions
- Put each piece of top round in a gallon sized plastic bag and seal the bag. Pound the meat through the plastic with a meat tenderizer until about ¼” thick. Each piece of meat should be about 3”x7”, so you can cut the pieces accordingly to get as close to this measurement as possible.
- Lay each of the pieces of top round on a cutting board and spread the top with dijon mustard.
- Lay one piece of bacon on top of the mustard on each piece. If you can fit 2 pieces of bacon side by side on the beef, feel free to use two pieces.
- Lay the pickles horizontally down the length of the beef cut. Then sprinkle about ¼ cup of the chopped onions over all of the rouladen.
- Use your hands to roll the beef up from top to bottom, using as many toothpicks as necessary to secure the beef/toppings in place.
- In a dutch oven, heat 2 tbsp of butter over medium heat. Add the rolled rouladen into the dutch oven and cook until the bottom browns. Then flip, cooking each side until the entire outside of the rouladen brown.
- Remove the rouladen to a separate plate and set aside.
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Add another 2 tbsp of butter into the pot until it melts. Then add the rest of the chopped onions, carrots, celery, and green onions into the dutch oven.
- Saute for about 5 minutes, until the vegetables start to soften. Then, add the chopped garlic.
- Saute for another 3-4 minutes. Then, add the red wine into the pot, letting the mixture come to a simmer. Once the wine has simmered for about 4 minutes, add the beef broth, sugar, bay leaves, tomato paste, salt and pepper to taste. Stir to combine.
- Add the reserved rouladen back into the dutch oven, put the lid on, and cook in the oven for about an hour and a half, or until the meat is tender.
- When the meat is tender, remove the dutch oven from the oven. Then, use tongs to remove the rouladen from the pot. Place them on a separate plate and set aside. Remove the toothpicks from the meat.
- Strain the vegetables out of the liquid. Return the liquid back to the pot. Put the dutch oven back on the stove on medium heat, and bring the remaining liquid in the pot to a simmer.
- In a small bowl, mix together the flour and water until completely smooth. Pour this mixture into the liquid in the bottom of the dutch oven. Allow it to cook over medium heat until the gravy begins to thicken.
- Once the gravy is thick, place the reserved rouladen back into the gravy. Serve and enjoy!
Notes
- Dijon Mustard: You can also use yellow mustard if so preferred, or even German Mustard
- Bacon: Thick cut, pork bacon
- Baby Pickles: I cut each pickle in half lengthwise and then each of those halves into three or four smaller pieces. I tried to get as small of pieces of pickle as possible.
- Carrots: You can use 1-2 large carrots, if you have them available. I had baby carrots in my fridge, so I chopped those up and used them instead.
- Red Wine: I used a bottom shelf merlot for cooking. Merlot is also a great choice for a glass of wine to drink with this dish.
- You can also make this dish with veal if preferred. It is thought that the original recipe was made with either venison or pork, so you can give those a try as well.
- You can also use cornstarch to thicken the gravy if you’d prefer. Make sure to start with small amounts and add more if necessary, always combining the cornstarch with water first.
- Use cooking twine instead of toothpicks for an easier time browning the meat.
- Make sure to keep the browned bits in the bottom of the pot after browning the beef rouladen but before adding the vegetables. All of those bits add extra flavor to the dish!
- You can reserve the vegetables that are strained out of the gravy. They will be delicious as a side to the dish or served alongside another meal.
Joelene says
I grew up eating these and live them. I am making them this weekend for family. They are close to how we made them but you need to put Your toothpicks running with the roll of meat and not across it. They need to brown in the pan and need to be able to roll to touch all sides. It also looks better
Alexandria Drzazgowski says
Thank you for the tip! I’ll be sure to try that next time.
Kimberly Westermann says
turned out really good. sauce tasted similar to my oma’s.
The Foreign Fork says
“This tasted like my grandmas” is the ultimate compliment around here, Kimberly! Thank you for leaving a rating, and I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe 🙂
ken says
I also used stone ground mustard, dill pickle, onion, and green pepper for the filling. All those flavors infused into the gravy makes it so dang good.
The Foreign Fork says
Sounds delicious Ken! Thank you for letting me know 🙂 Glad you enjoyed!
Marlene says
I love this recipe, but I do not like hot pickles so I use a strip of smoked sausage instead… It is wondeful!!!
The Foreign Fork says
That sounds like a great idea Marlene! So glad you liked the recipe. Thank you for leaving a comment! 🙂
Shawna says
Omg I’m so excited to try this sweet or dill pickles? My husband will be excited for something other than sauerbraten, stuffed cabbage, and Smokey luscious hunters goulash added to my Easter European repertoire! 😉
The Foreign Fork says
Hurray, I can’t wait to hear what you think! I used dill pickles