As a child my parents liked eating dinner at the local German restaurant where we would listen to the singer sing Shinny Boobies and do the Chicken Dance more times than not. Once my parents moved to Oklahoma I almost forgot about the resturant.
Then David and I started dating and I learned David spent part of his childhood in Germany. That led to David loving German food. I was able to take David to the resturant one for his Birhtday. Then they closed and we didn’t know where to get German food at.
Then we walked into Aldi’s this week and they were celebrating one of their themed weeks I didn’t even know they held. German week which allowed David to purchase Deutshe Kuche. Chicken Schnitzel, Pork Schnitzel and Apple Strudels I wasn’t going to eat because I don’t like Rasins what about you?
The other night I took the Pork schnitzel out of the freezer and dinner; was made the way it always ends up being made when it’s real life and not something staged for a recipe card. David stood at the stove and fried the Pork Schnitzel in a frying pan until the outside turned golden and crisp, giving us the kind of sound and smell that takes over the whole kitchen without needing attention or explanation.
Junior peeled the potatoes, working through them until there was nothing left but what would become part of the meal. The frying potatoes went into the electric skillet with Kinder’s the Blend, a simple seasoning of Garlic, Salt and Black Pepper that has been part of the routine long enough that nobody really thinks about it anymore. It just belongs there now.
Cream Gravy came in at the end that David made, the kind of Gravy that changes everything it touches. It pulled the whole plate into something closer to chicken fried steak than anything delicate or traditional, but that’s how it’s always been at home—practical, filling, and meant to be eaten while it’s still hot.
There were 5 patties in each box, and I gave David’s mom two of each of the Patties for her and Mike’s dinner because Dad was in the hospital. The next day there was Patties left and David and Charlie made them Sandwiches.
The roots of this meal go back to Edelweiss, which is where this meal has in my memory when the Staff tried to convince me it was like Chicken Fried Steak. Not. The meal at the restraint was served with German potatoes made simply with onions and nothing extra. Along with Cabbage and it was served with German Potato Salad. That version still sits closest to the original idea of the meal, even if home cooking shifts things in its own direction over time.
At that restaurant, there were other memories too—from having dinner with our friends and family to the amazing desserts they serve. To the amazing Spaghetti they had on their children’s menu that was slap yo’ mama good.
At home, the versions change depending on who’s at the table. David prefers the cabbage that traditionally comes with schnitzel. but if I had my choice, I would like to have the German potato salad or the fried potatoes with onions.
This meal isn’t about recreating a restaurant exactly as it was. It’s about keeping the memory of it alive in a kitchen where people are still cooking, still peeling potatoes, still standing at the stove making something that brings everyone back to the table all thanks to Aldi’s Theme Weeks.
Thank you,
Glenda, Charlie and David Cates
