Nutrition in transition - Bye-bye, side dish? Why Germany eats differently today
Once upon a time in Germany: Schnitzel, Spargel, Bratkartoffeln. Or: Kasseler, Grünkohl, Salzkartoffeln. This means: Under a regular, typically German warm meal, a three-component dish was usually understood. That is: Meat/Fish, vegetable side dish, (starch-based) side dish for filling up. Is the last one dying out? Does it mean saying goodbye? Bye-bye, side dish?
However, the food culture and behavior at the increasingly expensive dining table are changing. And this is happening in multiple ways. A recent representative Civey survey revealed that about half of the adults in Germany eat out less often - "since the reduction of the value-added tax to 19% in the catering industry".
And when someone reads the menu in fashionable places in 2024, they often see that it is becoming normal for each side dish, such as for a beef fillet, as in expensive restaurants in America, to cost extra - often titled as "Sides," under which are often the carbohydrates like fries or mashed potato (or vegetables like grilled green asparagus). What happens culturally when the formerly self-evident side dish is no longer a "must-have" but just an option?
Millions of people still eat dishes like roast pork with red cabbage and dumplings. Many canteens, mess halls, and hospitals still use porcelain division plates with a three-part division in service. However, younger generations have long had different preferences. In the modern eating lifestyle, all-in-one meals from a deep plate instead of a shallow one are popular. Think about trends like bowls, Arabic cuisine, Asian food. And pizza, pasta, burgers, doners are already different from sausages with sauerkraut.
Is classic component cuisine out like Karstadt?
"The long-standing customary three-component dish in Germany is now perceived as outdated and by many as paternalistic," says cultural scientist Gunther Hirschfelder from the University of Regensburg. "Fixed component dishes are about as out as the struggling department stores a la Karstadt." People want to have a large selection and experience today. And just as they are disappointed in the store when there are only two racks with jeans instead of many dozens of models, the same disappointment can spread if the menu is too rigid.
"The younger generation finds it strange that everyone at the table should have the same thing. Eating has become an expression of one's own personality. We have pseudo-individualized eating styles," says Hirschfelder. "Mostly, it's a false choice. In the end, it's completely irrelevant whether I take rice or noodles." In the 80s, a debate about side dish preferences would have been considered bourgeois and pretentious, says the book author ("European Food Culture: A History of Nutrition from the Stone Age to the Present Day").
"If you went to a middle-class place or to the Greeks in the 80s, you didn't always say what you wanted to take away or add or what you couldn't stand. Moreover, there was still the social trend that taught children and young people 'You eat what's on the table.'" Going out to eat was already a wonderful thing to do, and children had Schnitzel with fries to take - and that was good. "That would be seen as a total imposition today."
If we can't change the world, at least my food.
To explain Germany's earlier eating culture, Hirschfelder refers to something. After the shameful World War, there was a "levelled middle class society" as characterized by sociologist Helmut Schelsky. "Socially, one sat in the same boat, symbolically also at the table, one cultivated a nutrition within economic possibilities, one rather did not stand out with an extravagant taste. And potatoes as a side dish were symbolically loaded."
Material consumer goods were more important than what was on the table, but travels and housing were also significant. This changed only after the end of the GDR and the old FRG, according to Hirschfelder.
In the last roughly 30 years, new worldviews have unfolded in the affluent society after the Cold War - often along the narrative "I am what I eat." "In a globalized world, nutrition is a complexity reduction, therefore many consider it important."
Currently, a return of political ideologies is observable, but the overvaluation of food in everyday life still persists, as the cultural scientist points out. It is still important what one eats and what one does not eat, for example, vegan lifestyles, low carb, or as exotic as possible food. "The motto seems to be: If I can't change the world, then I can at least change what's on my plate."
- In the hospitality industry of America, it's common for each side dish, such as with a beef fillet, to cost extra and be labeled as "Sides," often including carbohydrates like fries or mashed potato, or vegetables like grilled green asparagus.
- However, older traditions like the classic German three-component dish of Meat/Fish, vegetable side dish, and (starch-based) side dish for filling up, are perceived as outdated by many in contemporary society.
- Some popular trends in modern eating lifestyle include all-in-one meals from a deep plate instead of a shallow one, like bowls, Arabic cuisine, Asian food, and pizza, pasta, burgers, and doners.
- Gunther Hirschfelder, a cultural scientist from the University of Regensburg, believes that the rigid three-component dish is becoming outdated and replaced with a focus on personal preferences and individualized dining experiences.
- Younger generations are interested in having a large selection and customizing their meals, similar to how consumers expect a wide variety of options when shopping in stores like Karstadt.
- According to Hirschfelder, the cultural shift away from traditional side dishes is a reflection of broader social trends, where individuals are seeking to express their personalities through their choices, including what they eat.
- In the 80s, a debate about side dish preferences would have been considered bourgeois and pretentious, but today, personalization is valued and seen as an expression of individuality.
- In Germany, potatoes were once symbolically loaded as a side dish after World War II, reflecting a levelled middle class society, but this changed in the last 30 years with new worldviews emerging in the affluent society.
- The motto of "If I can't change the world, then I can at least change what's on my plate" reflects the modern tendency to personalize and customize food choices, reflecting individual values and preferences in the realm of gastronomy.
