Why Do Germans Eat Raw Pork? 

Hackepeter is life! 🇩🇪 Learn a language with Rosetta Stone - get your exclusive discount of over 60% at partners.rosettastone.com/my-name-is-andong

If I got a euro every time I saw someone post about "German sushi" today, I'd have two euros, which isn't a lot but it's still weird that it happened twice today.

Why do Germans eat raw pork? Cuz it tastes good. Thank you for attending my TED talk.

"give it a shot" BUT! please only when you are in Germany. I know not every country does check pigs for Trichinella spiralis and so you would get these in your body.

Mett is also known as "Maurermarmelade" (bricklayer jam) when eaten on a bread roll.

The Mett Damon killed me...

The L’chaim toast before eating a Mettbrötchen was diabolical. Although it does mean to life, so in that way it makes sense!

In Poland, we eat this too. It's called "metka”

Eigentlich heißt das fast überall in Deutschland Mettbrötchen. Aber dass es offenbar in Berlin so erfunden wurde ist super interessant!

You're pronouncing "Mettbrötchen" wrong 😀

Unter 100 Gramm Mett pro halbem Brötchen geht nix.

I sadly moved to the USA many years ago and was wondering why, despite all my searching, I haven't been able to find Mett here. Americans import so many foods, you can get almost anything here, and there's so many German immigrants, so why not Mett? You have finally given me the answer. American health regulations are not suitable for raw pork. Thank you Andong for this video!

what somehow everybody talking about mettigel seems to omit is the fact that it's not a dish but rather a mode of presentation. you're not gonna order a mettigel at a restaurant and chow down on it with fork and knife. you'll see it at a breakfast buffet and it's meant so that you can take a bit of mett, put in on your plate alongside other stuff, and then enjoy idk some bread with mett on it for breakfast. you know like buffets are full of fancy or odd ways of presenting large quantities of something to provide for a large number of guests. also i think the mettigel has it's origins in the 50s/60s, you know the time where having fun with garish ways of food presentation really came into fashion, idk like party foods or fancy fruit punches or whatever. i really don't get why facts like this are never explained properly. maybe it's creators not realizing that facts like this need clarification to international viewers because they're so obvious to the creator idk

Finnish people consume a lot of mettwurst. It pairs very well with our dark rye breads. The supermarket coldcut sections are filled to the brim with different kinds of mettwursts.

The US had a decent issue with trichinosis back in the day, because a lot of pigs were often fed table scraps, which lead to the issues with trichinosis in meat. This lead to generations of people like my mother and late grandmother thinking the only way to handle pork was to cool it to the point of bordering on lightly seasoned saw dust. But as time went on, feeding pigs table scraps became rare enough to not matter, and the only real reports of trichinosis in meat was tied to people eating bear meat, where the bears would feast on anything they could get their paws on.

Here in Chile 🇨🇱 we have a traditional and very popular dish called "crudo" that is an adaptation made by the german colony in the early 1900s

I would not try consuming raw pork in the United States right now. "Degregulation == good" has led to loads of food safety issues in the last few years, especially at meat processing plants (self-inspection is a sick, sad joke!)

I was a guest at a wedding once where a "Mettdrache", a "Mett Dragon" was served. I never ate more than that day.

In Silesia in Poland we have "metka" or "kiełbasa metkowa", which clearly indicates the German origin :D And we love it too! Regarding the Berlin cuisine - please make a series!

To those wondering about the two weirdly named dishes Andong mentioned; Strammer Max is a slice of bread with Schinken (smoked ham), and a fried egg, Stolzer Heinrich is a Bratwurst served with a beer sauce.

I come from a german region called "Eichsfeld" that is has a special dispensation to process pork while it is still warm (basically processing the meat by hand straight after slaughtering instead of cooling it down first). The Sausages, Mett (we call it Gehacktes) can take in the seasoning way better when its still warm leading to a variety of delicious meats. To this day some families have a butcher come over and have him slaughter a pig in their homestead and process the meat themselves.

"Alles wird aus Hack gemacht, Hack sag mal Guten Tag." ^^

Saying "Lachaim" and then eating raw pork is .... lets say ... mh ... somebody will be offended XDXDXD

Is this similar to rohack? Type of raw meat we have in Namibia, always been told the Germans brought to popularity back in the day

Haha, ist bestimmt ein Comment-Bait für die deutsche Community, es „Hackepeterschrippe“ zu nennen statt „Mettbrötchen“. 😀

Down here in Belgium we have Americain Preparé which is a mix of raw beef & pork mince with sauce. If it isn't bright neon orange your butcher did something wrong! You can have it straight on bread or in a sandwich like a Martino, with added onions, pickles and spicy sauce. Raw meat on bread is just great, why wouldn't you eat it?

They eat raw pork in Italy too, salsiccia cruda.

Pigs infected with trichinosis: 1 in 800 in the United States, 3 in 10 million in Germany. Big difference. If I visit Germany, I'll try raw pork, but not in the US. No, no, no.

Besides Torisashi (Japanese dish of thinly sliced raw chicken breast), Japan also has Basashi (horse meat)

Go to a German funeral in any village... Be prepared to see some raw pork.

Because it is tasty

in Poland you eat Metka Cebulowa its raw pork with onions! so not only i Germany! they it this since i can remember in the early 80s

Give us beer braised Carp I dare you Andong!

Andong, I don't know if you'll see this but I want to thank you for making me laugh in the mettigel part. Your humour is so effortless but always makes me smile. I needed that laugh in these hard times I'm living in.

Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA has a large German immigrant population going back over 150 years, and raw ground beef served the same way is a New Years Eve tradition around here. It's often served on rye bread

In Poland, they've got a similar thing called Metka, or Metka cebulowa, which is basically Onion Mettwurst. It's pretty much the same deal, and it's really popular over there

Interesting about the origin of the word “mett”. In Swedem, a Medvurst or medwurst is a spotted sausage, which is found both cooked and smoked. The name comes from the Low German metworst, and the word “medvurst” has been in the Swedish language since 1454.

Dude I love your long form more educational stuff. Diving into etymology and history especially in food and culture is so interesting to me

I love Mett. What was not mentiond, there is a distinction between warm and cold Mett. Mett made from slaughtered pig that day. And Mett made from frozen meat. Most Mett is the frozen one.

I am from Brandenburg and live in Sweden. Swedes absolutely panic when hearing about Hackepeter, especially those who are less openminded to raw stuff and usuallly arent too keen on fermented stuff, offal etc either, abandoning even their own traditions like surströmming. People with children's palates, is what I'm saying. Danke dass du Hackepeter sagst, like the good Lord intended 😊

"Hackepeterschrippe".. tut schon etwas weh als Ruhrgebietler

Germany is definitely not the only place where eating raw pork is normal. Mettwurst is pretty popular in Poland under the name of "metka". There is also "metka tatarska" which is made from beef. From what I've heard it is also relatively common in other European countries.

Afaik the main concern was never salmonella, its Trichinella. Not a bacteria but a parasitic worm that eats you from the inside. But like you said, with some hygiene standards, pigs grown in a controlled environment and meat thats less than 15 days old the chance of getting it is essentially 0. It did give pork a really bad rap in especially warmer countries though, ive heard this worm was the main reason muslims stopped eating pork as it really was "unclean" and made alot of people sick. No idea how true that is though.

I don't know if it is a thing outside Frankonia, but we have G'häckweckla. This is a roll (weckla) with the filling of a bratwurst (Gehäck like chopped). In other words, raw pork flavoured with marjoram and spices. Garnished with onions and paprika.

In my region of germany, we add caraway seeds to the Hackepeter. Thanks for the video, now i have some to show my international friends when they ask me about.

In Brazil, German restaurants serve hackepeter made out of beef, and it's absolutely amazing. Can't imagine it being served with pork though - sounds amazing and would love to try!

Wait, it's not "Mettwoch" today! And please don't forget to tell the people a "Schrippe" is called in other parts of Germany "Brötchen" (or "Semmel" in Bavaria or "Wecken/Weckle" in Baden-Württemberg).

9:45 Hey, I'm not an atrocity!

Bulgarians though have a similar sandwich (but it is baked) called a "princess sandwich" which is an open faced sandwich with minced meat and topped with yellow cheese (Kashkaval). You can add anything to it and it s glorious....

In the US at least, the concern with raw pork isn't mainly salmonella or other bacteria, but with trichinosis. Apparently, recent regulatory changes have made this much less likely with pork, and trichinosis transmission is much more common via undercooked wild game, but the background sense that undercooked pork is a danger to health isn't likely to disappear soon.

No, Germany is definitely not the only country where people eat raw pig meat. In fact all N. European countries do, including Scandinavia.

in Belgium fresh raw pork mince is also a widely enjoyed 😋

I recently tried this for the first time in Koln. Being a tourist I didn't actually realise what I ordered but was pleasantly surprised! Definitely recommend.

Ich komme aus dem äußersten Süden Deutschlands (Konstanz), da gibt's leider keine Mettbrötchenund generell habe ich Mett dort nie gesehen. Als ich vor ein paar Jahren das erste Mal in Norddeutschland war habe ich es natürlich probiert und war begeistert! Finde es viel besser als unsere Leberkäswecken.

Tried it for the first time in Osnabruck in August on Holiday and it was great. Kind of wish we did it in the UK

I know that you usually do your grocery shopping at an Edeka (or possibly formerly Reichelt) shop. It's obvious from the products you use. ("G&G" :-) ). I remember going to our local Reichelt (back in the day) shop and being disappointed because there was no Hackepeter left. You want Hackepeter? How much? We'll make you some. The basic minced pork they had (which you must heat thoroughly before consumption!) was mixed with some salt, pepper and diced onions, and was miraculously safe for raw consumption! A miracle! We ate it, and I am still here to tell you the story, and no uncomfortable night was spent in the bathroom either.

In theory Hackepeter is always seasoned and pre-onioned, Hackfleisch isn't. Thueringer Mett is the same as Hackepeter while Mett is Hackfleisch. No? Anyways. Go seasoned. With extra onion and Spreewald (!) pickle. Also: Hackepeterbroetchen.

I love it! Unfortunately, I live in Denmark, so I don't get to have it very often, but I make sure to get it every time I'm in Germany.

right after telling my parent about being offered mett at work on exchange in germany... 😂😂😂 wish i could show them this vid but sadly they wouldnt understand a word...

I'm German and I've never once in my life heard someone call it "Hackepeterschrippe".

METTBRÖTCHEN MIT ZWIEBELN IST BEST IN SLOT FOOD

There are hardly as many controversial opinions as there are about the preparation and presentation of a Mettbrötchen. But everyone agrees on one thing: you must never, ever, ever forget the toothpicks. Otherwise your smile will look like that of a cave troll for the rest of the day.

I hear „Hackepeter“ the first time in my life. I only know this as „Mettbrötchen“

As a non-German living in Germany, I loved this culinary and historical explanation of a food that I’ve often seen in shops, and which I will still never ever eat.

There is nothing Like a breakfast with your coworkers, where someone would buy a Big amount of mett, someone gets some brötchen (the bread) and the last one gets onions, Salt, pepper, Butter and some Maggi. Amazing time 😂😁

Frisches Mett is sau lecker. Manchmal vermenge ich das Mett neben Salz und Pfeffer noch mit nem Eigelb, fein gehacktem Knobi und etwas Kümmel und benutze feinste Rohmilchbutter ...ein Träumchen 😋

I'm pretty sure that most of the food Berliners claim to being originated in Berlin is actually from some place in the country without anybody bothering to boast about it...

Small correction, there are a few more countries which have that; southern Brazil, Belgium and I think also Czechia.

Adding butter is always a good idea, no matter if mett, peanut butter, nutella or anything really

Now Pak Andong - you should get yourself to Bali, Indonesia and try some lawar plek - that's the ceremonial meat hash made with raw minced pork and a little bit of raw pork blood (only treated with lime juice). Extremely spicy - but it's something that intrepid gourmets should try! Every Balinese Hindu household will feature it during the Galungan holiday season, which is coming up this Wednesday (9/25) - and it's apparently the most perishable dish in the world, as it's ready at 6 AM and isn't really fit for eating around noon, as in the Balinese tropical heat, it's already spoiled.

Hackepeterschnitte? Bei mir nennt das Mettbrötchen

FYI in Thailand we also do have some kind of sour and spicy fermented pork sausage called แหนม (Naem). Often eaten it raw after the fermentation process has occurred.

I want it

Bauarbeiter-Sushi. (Construction worker sushi) Edit: The l'chaim killed me.

Quick correction: "Hackepeterschrippe" is a local term (used mostly in and around Berlin), not universally used in Germany. "Mettbrötchen" would be the generic term that every German understands. Also: I doubt that "millions" of Germans eat Mett every day. That seems like an overstatement.

And I would actually expect salt sticks (Salzstangen) as the spikes. I have never seen a Mettigel with onion spikes before.

Having butter with your pork isn't heresy but saying l'chaïm just before eating pork, now that's heresy !

Where I'm from in Germany we make a mountain of Mett that is shaped like a vulcano and then crack a raw egg on top of it.

Answer: Because brain worms are a popular pet in Germany and raw pork is the lest gross way to get them? (yes I know the hygiene and safety regulations around the ground pork greatly limit that, but that is still what a lot of the world things of when someone says raw pork. Heck in many countries you *can* safely eat rare, medium rare or otherwise 'undercooked' pork without issue but we just don't because brain worms are scary as hell memory of them lingers)

Wow, very interesting stuff. I hadn't really considered how my perception of classic german food was so narrow

Welcome to the parasites say hello to the worms

You need to have a special butcher license to serve raw pork. Its like raw fish, eggs, etc. If its prepared fresh and proper cooled, its safe to eat, and delicious. Normally you eat it with raw onions, that helps reducing bacteria to.

I think the idea for Hackepeter might have more to do with sausages than you think. After all, when you knead sausages (at least the slovak ones are kneaded so the ground meat becomes a coherent structure and mixes in with the condiments) you can and will definitely taste the mixture and if the meat is fresh, it's pretty delicious. so it's not an inobvious idea to, once you're done, use some bread to "clean out" the tub in which you were kneading...

What do you mean Germany is the only country, we have Metka in Poland, it's certainly not boiled.

well Germany is not the only place on earth that eats it, in Poland we do it too

Raw meat spread is mainstream in Poland. Metka cebulowa and metka tatarska can be found in some but not all shops. Also they do mustard instead of butter. Sounds like a good idea to me.

I love that Andong says "L'chaim" before eating raw pork.

Anazing AF video as usual. Congrats, Andong. You've been missed!

"Lachaim" and then eating pork, I spit out my soup laughing! XD Anyway: We eat it oven baked: prepare the Brötchen as you mentioned (although I personally do prefer a my Peter with a little bit more meat on his bones), put onions on and a bit of gouda and then into the oven for a couple of minutes.

In Poland there's both raw metka sausage and steak tartare.

"High quality fresh pork" is, sadly, not easily or cheaply available in the US, though I have been to coastal regions and enjoyed quality sushi and sashimi. Most mass-produced food is made of chemicals, and many do not have land to grow on. Look up the term "food- desert". It's not the utopia it claims to be, lol

I think this is a fun one to point out- the German word for a grinder is 'fleischwolf'. It's literally the words for 'meat' and 'wolf' put together.

btw eating raw pig is also super popular in Poland so not only German

I miss the old 90s family celebrations with „Mettigel“, „Aldisuppe“, grape and gouda skewers, cold „Frikadellen“, „Schichtsalat“, and „Bratwurst“ from the grill.

For the curious: you don't have to eat ground pork if you don't like it. Personally, I prefer ground beef, it's leaner and tastes less bland. And then there are indeed people who mix the two (halb&halb, lit: half and half).

The situation in franconia is a little different: the raw pork we eat on bread is "Bratwurstgehäck" (franconian: Broodwoschdkäck), which is the filling of a franconian Bratwurst. Instead of putting the filling into the sausage it is put on bread and eaten raw. That we call a "Katzbrot". As a kid I was present when my grandparents were still butchering pigs at their farm. And Katzbrot was the snack while butchering. So I assume it originated here as the snack of the butcher while he was making sausages.

In Poland we also have this. It's called: metka cebulowa.

italy has a raw meat on bread thing too. it's a sausage called salsiccia di bra, and it's made with mostly veal with some pork (about 4:1), and has additional spices and flavors added into the mix, since it's a sausage. it's eaten raw as a sandwich, just in a sub roll with no other toppings, and in that form it can be in a very thin sausage casing or no casing. it can also be eaten as a tartare.

Not just Germany. There's a pretty old tradition of eating raw sausages/salamella in norther/central Italy as well. It's seasoned pork meat (salt, pepper, possibly garlic and wine and maybe other herbs or spices depending on local traditions/habits) raw and not cured.

Mettwurst is a common thing in South Australia. It's fermented raw pork and beef, usually with salt, pepper, other spices and it's really good with garlic. Some people then smoke it, and smoked mettwurst is divine.