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Where's the Party?
Dithmarschen is centre of the largest cabbage-growing
region in Europe and every year, the city of Heide
hosts the biggest cabbage festival in the country. 80 million
cabbages are lifted yearly in Dithmarschen. If you laid them
back to back, they would reach from the north pole to the
south pole. And if you like cabbages, this is the place to
come.
The celebrations take place in different villages in the
Dirthmarschen area and the dates vary. Contact the Hamburg
tourist office who can put you in touch with the relevant
local tourist offices.
What Happens at Dithmarschen
Cabbage Days?
The locals love this festival. They won't hesitate to sing
the praises of their beloved vegetable, and if you are lucky,
you'll probably get invited to taste some of their local specialities
like cabbage liquor or cabbage bread. There's as much cabbage
to eat as you can muster, you can even participate in a five
course gourmet cabbage dinner!
A Cabbage Queen is selected from the many participants in
historic costumes, and a giant cabbage pyramid, a mini mountain,
is installed in a large field, so large that a crane is needed
to add the final cabbage to the summit. If the pyramid falls,
it's a bad omen for the year's cabbage harvest.
Sauerkraut: Pickled
Cabbage
It's amazing what you can do with cabbage, from cabbage roles
and oysters with red cabbage to the world known sauerkraut.
Sauerkraut is a pickled cabbage dish which has been a German
staple for centuries - despite beliefs that it actually originated
either in China in the 3rd century BC or in Ancient Greece.
The Chinese shredded it and preserved it in rice wine before
serving it to labourers building the Great Wall.
Cabbage has been grown as a cheap staple in Germany since
Roman times, but as it was fed to the lowly ranks of the army
it was seen considered a food of little importance or nutritional
value. Today, we know that cabbage lowers cholesterol levels
and is rich in minerals, specially iron.
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