Week 10: Recipe #5--Oktoberfest: German Brats and Pomme Frites

WARNING:  This is not a quick meal to make.  Nor is it very health-conscious.  However, it is extremely good.  This is a favorite meal of mine that my friend Mark makes.  Soooooooooooo tasty!  I love the curry ketchup; vital to this recipe.  If you can't find it at your local grocery store, it's worth hunting down.  Mark usually serves this with a fruit salad, to add something healthy to this not-so-healthy meal.

You'll Need:

• potatoes (use 1-2 pounds per person), cut into fries
• vegetable oil
• salt and pepper, to taste
• Oktoberfest sausages
• hoagie buns
• curry ketchup (we buy ours at a European store here in Salem; I buy 2 kinds--Heinz and Hela)
• curry powder
• regular ketchup

Preparation:

1. Put the cut fries in a large pot filled with cold water and ice.  Put in the refrigerator for several hours.
2. When you are ready to start the fries (and you will need to start early, especially if you are making a lot), then heat up the oil on high in a large pot; it will take a long time.  While it is heating up, you'll need to take out the fries and pat them dry on paper towels or dish towels.  You want them to be pretty dry when you put them in the oil.  
3. When you notice that the oil is really hot (somewhat moving around) you can begin putting fries in.  Not too much at a time.  Turn the heat down a bit between medium and medium-high.  Now I was really tempted to constantly be checking them and poking at them, but Mark had to remind me to LEAVE THEM ALONE.  You'll want to cook them so they just slightly begin to brown.  You don't want to pull them out soggy, but you don't want them fully cooked either.  It's a fine line that took me a few times to master.  You will be frying them a second time right before eating them, so this is just the first round.
4. When taking them out, put them on a paper towel. After you have finished all of the fries, you can start on the brats.
5. Cut the brats lengthwise almost in half, so that you can unfold them but they are not in two pieces.  Lay them flat on a griddle at 375 degrees (or you could use an outside grill) and baste them with a combination of the following:  ketchup, the two curry ketchups, and curry powder.  Adjust the amounts to your taste preferences.  Flip them over and baste the other side as well.  Cook until the sausages are done.
6. As the sausages are cooking, you can fry the fries one more time until cooked.  I like mine crispy.  As you take them out, put them on a cookie sheet.  Sprinkle them with salt and pepper.  Place in the oven at 200 degrees to keep them warm, especially if you won't be eating them right away.  
7. Toast the hoagie buns and spread the curry ketchup mixture on them as well.  Put in the sausages, grab a handful of fries, and enjoy!

***Mark also serves a traditional German drink that is made of one part Coke and one part Fanta.  He says that's the true way to enjoy this meal.  Personally, I don't like to drink my calories...plus there are enough in here as is!