Bavarian Wurst Salad with Cheese
Bavarian Wurst Salad with Cheese is a perfect summer dish! Made with sliced ring bologna, Emmental cheese, and pickles this popular beer garden dish is sure to be a crowd-pleaser!
OK, you’re soon enough going to accuse me of cheating. Seeing what passes for a salad in this country makes me hopeful for the future. This has all the nutrients you’re going to need to climb the next mountain top!
Here’s our secret family recipe for wurst salad. It’a recipe from my aunt who has a restaurant in the Alps which you can only reach by boat. The restaurant has been in the family for 4 generations. It was a wedding present from prince regent Luitpold of Bavaria in 1912 and started with a little shop which grew into a restaurant loved by all the tourists which visit the Koenigssee.
One of their specialties is this Bavarian Sausage Salad with Cheese. It’s actually called Swiss Sausage Salad because of the Cheese but we used Bavarian Cheese so I think it’s fair to call it Bavarian. You can cut the cheese and the ring bologna as thin as you like!
This Wurst salad recipe is great to make in advance. And if you don’t like cheese you can leave it out then it’s a real Bavarian sausage salad. It tastes great either way!
We like to eat it with bread as a light dinner or lunch. A rustic bread is perfect! Make this Wurst salad, my Bavarian Potato Salad, my Bavarian Beer Cheese Spread (Obatzda) and serve is with some pretzel bread or a rustic sourdough loaf for the ultimate Bavarian summer feast.
And for dessert, I recommend my German Apple Streusel Sheet Cake! A delicious moist apple cake made with apple chunks and apple sauce. It’s topped with a delicious streusel topping. And don’t worry it’s really easy to make!
Bavarian Sausage Salad with Cheese
Ingredients
- 4 cups ring bologna, finely sliced, 300g
- 2 cups Emmental cheese, finely sliced, 200g
- 1 cup pickles, finely sliced, 100g
- 3 tbsp vinegar
- 1-2 tbsp sunflower oil
- 3 tbsp water
- 4 tbsp brine from the pickles
- Salt, to taste
- Pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Combine sliced ring bologna, Emmental cheese, and pickles in a big bowl.
- In a small bowl combine vinegar, sunflower oil, water, and brine from the pickles. Add to the big bowl.
- Combine everything and season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Cover the salad with plastic wrap and let it rest in the fridge for about 3 hours.
- Garnish with parsley and onions rings (optional) and serve with rustic bread.
You’re missing the mayonnaise.
What you’re describing is called Fleischsalat, which is different from Wurstsalat. Fleischsalat is mayonnaise-based and has just German bologna and pickles while Wurstsalat is oil & vinegar-based.
My husband’s family is German. I would like to make this, but what is ring bologna? I live in canada, so we use some different terms. Also, how do I slice the cheese? Is Swiss cheese OK?
Hi Maureen, Instead of the ring bologna you can also use Lyoner sausage which should be easier to get in Canada. Swiss cheese is ok, cut it into thin strips.
Julia: excited to try this wurstsalat. We plan to visit Bavaria in September and want to go to the restaurant you talk about. Can you recommend the kind of pickle you use – sweet or dill?
DeeDee Kennedy
Dill would be best. Let me know if you need any tips for your trip to Bavaria. I’m happy to help!
Hallo Julia!
I am excited to try my hand at making Wurstsalat myself after so many wonderful experiences eating it last summer when I volunteered in Switzerland on organic farms! My question is – what kind of vinegar do you use? I have a bottle of Surig Essig-Essenz concentrated vinegar (25 % acid) and I would love to incorporate it into some more recipes. Do you think that the full amount in this recipe would be too much for this strong vinegar? Danke schön!
Kayla
Hi Kayla, I love to use a herbed vinegar for Wurstsalat but you can also use Essig Essenz. You need to dilute the Essig Essenz with water to make it taste not as strong. I would start with 1 Tbsp Essig Essenz diluted in 1/3 cup (80ml) water (and omit the 3 Tbsp water the recipe calls for). If you want a stronger vinegar taste add a little bit more. I hope that helps! Let me know if you try it! – Julia