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.
What Is German Beef Rouladen?
Experience Germany! It's 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!
Why Should You Try This German Dish?
What You Need:
Pound the meat through plastic with a meat tenderizer until about ¼” thick. Each piece of meat should be about 3”x7”.
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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 and add the pickles horizontally.
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Then sprinkle about ¼ cup of the chopped onions over all of the beef rouladen.
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Use your hands to roll the beef up using as many toothpicks as necessary to secure it in place.
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In a dutch oven, heat butter and add the rouladen and cook until the bottom browns. Then flip, cooking each side until the entire outside of the rouladen brown.
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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.
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Saute for about 5 minutes, until the vegetables start to soften. Then, add the chopped garlic.
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Add the red wine, letting the mixture come to a simmer. After 4 minutes, add the beef broth, sugar, bay leaves, tomato paste, salt and pepper to taste. Stir to combine.
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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.
Bake
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Use tongs to remove the rouladen and place them on a separate plate and set aside. Remove the toothpicks.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.
Make the Gravy
In a bowl, mix the flour and water until smooth. Pour this mixture into the liquid in the dutch oven. Cook until the gravy begins to thicken. Place the reserved beef rouladen back into the gravy.
Expert Tip
You can also make this dish with veal. It is thought that the original recipe was made with either venison or pork.
Use cooking twine instead of toothpicks for an easier time browning the meat.
Expert Tip
Make sure to keep the browned bits in the pot after browning the beef but before adding the vegetables. All of those bits add extra flavor!
Expert Tip
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”.