Vege Oktoberfest

September 20, 2007 12:32 PM

I LOVE beer but feel left out during Oktoberfest. Any good ideas for a vegetarian and/or vegan Oktoberfest?

Many Oktoberfests have meal pairings with beer that are no where close to being vegetarian, let alone vegan. Please post your beer pairings with a vege-centric meal.

posted by jasonspaceman to food & drink (18 comments total)

what about just plain (vegan) pretzels?
posted by buka at 12:45 PM on September 20, 2007

potato pancakes?
posted by amtho at 12:47 PM on September 20, 2007

Yves veggie brats with sauteed onions in a nice roll. Paired with saurkraut and and a good lager-- I like Grolsch for this (even though it's Dutch) because it has an earthy undertaste that's complex.

The food will also work with an abbey-style ale, even though it's almost the opposite of a lager, because it's wintery. I think Omegang has a great quality-to-price ratio.

To avoid: craft-brewed American fall/winter beers. They're too sweet to go with a meal. Better to drink by themselves or with pretzels.
posted by Mayor Curley at 12:55 PM on September 20, 2007

Soft (but not gross) pretzels and spicy mustard. German (hot) potato salad. Bread pudding (yes it is good with beer). At least, these are the vegetarian things served at the Prater Biergarten in Berlin.
posted by unknowncommand at 12:57 PM on September 20, 2007

Boca Bratwurst with sauerkraut, mustard, the works! Pairs nicely with the Spaten Oktoberfest.
posted by malocchio at 1:00 PM on September 20, 2007

Tofurkey brats are the best around, IMO.
posted by tr33hggr at 1:01 PM on September 20, 2007

Seconding the Tofurkey brats. YUM. Wrap them in a big fat Ezekiel bread bun, if you can find some.
posted by dead_ at 1:06 PM on September 20, 2007

German potato salad is usually made with bacon, but you can certainly make it without.

A little off topic, but is beer even vegan, considering it's made with yeast, a living creature?
posted by backseatpilot at 1:22 PM on September 20, 2007 [1 favorite]

Yeast is a fungus, so yes. Be more wary of isinglass.
posted by juniper at 1:34 PM on September 20, 2007

backseatpilot: most veggies I know are willing to call single-celled organisms (which by definition have no nervous system) plants for this purpose. Cask ales have a fish byproduct in them.
posted by a robot made out of meat at 1:34 PM on September 20, 2007

I'm not a big fan of veggie sausage, too much money for too little flavor. But some other things:

Mushrooms, either marinated and grilled on their own, fried and smothered with gravy, or hand-processed into patties and dumplings.

Apples and cheese. Something tart like a granny smith paired with a smooth and slight musky cheese is good.

Slow-cooked stews served with a good dark bread. If you have a slow-cooker, start with a couple of medium onions and fry them until they are brown, put the onions and oil into a slow cooker with a can or two of beans, one or two spuds, or turnups (optional), carots and about a third-cup of hulled (not pearled) barley, top with enough veggie broth to cover everything. Cook for about 3 hours until the barley has softened and split.

backseatpilot: Saccharomyces is a fungus like the common Agaricus. Brewer's yeast is often recommended by vegans as a food suppliment rich in B12. A more critical issue for vegans is the use of isenglass as a clarifying agent for many beers.
posted by KirkJobSluder at 1:40 PM on September 20, 2007

If you don't want to worry about the Isinglass, just only drink beers that are Rheinheitsgebot compliant. Which you should be doing anyway, since it's a German beer-drinking celebration.
posted by god hates math at 2:11 PM on September 20, 2007

seconding potato pancakes. one of the most traditional (and tasty) german dishes is "himmel und erde"- potato pancakes with apple sauce. i lived on it when i was living in germany.
posted by kendrak at 2:17 PM on September 20, 2007

Spätzle is veggie friendly as far as I can tell and very yummy. As for dessert, there are Bavarian Cream Puffs. Also, there are some Oktoberfest Zinzinnati recipes online. Three of them appear to be veggie compatible and I bet you could convert the fourth to be as well.

As for beer pairings I don't have any advice but I am willing to do the research this weekend. Ziggy zoggy, ziggy zoggy, hoy hoy hoy!
posted by mmascolino at 2:30 PM on September 20, 2007

Spätzle is a German common dish to see vegetarianized. Mushrooms are also common, as above. Really, at some point, you're just picking vegetarian dishes that go well with beer - which should have a list of already. :)
posted by kcm at 2:30 PM on September 20, 2007

Vegie schnitzel with potatoes and gravy. There's a German restaurant I like that makes it with steamed root vegetables that are breaded and fried.
posted by oneirodynia at 2:31 PM on September 20, 2007

Sauerkraut mit Kartoffeln (potatoes and sauerkraut). very nutritious and typical German.
posted by furtive at 5:48 PM on September 20, 2007

I've heard edamame (boiled salted soybeans-in-the-pod) called "Japanese beer nuts". Probably lighter and healthier than all this fried food, or just a pleasant respite from the fried food.

Hey, why not be cross-cultural?

And if you want fried food... tempura! A lovely variety of veggie tempura! OK, I just looked it up and tempura batter normally contains eggs, but it might be a good thing to try making with egg substitute.

note that IANABD (beer drinker)
posted by amtho at 6:58 PM on September 20, 2007