Königsberger Klopse – German Meatballs in a Unique Creamy Sauce

Small, delectable German meatballs in a creamy white sauce with capers that add a very unique flavor.

What are Königsberger Klopse?

Königsberger Klopse are in a special broth cooked German meatballs. They are served in a creamy sweet-sour sauce with capers.

How to pronounce “Königsberger Klopse” in German?

Listen to this audio file to learn how to say “Königsberger Klopse” in German.

The star of this recipe is the sweet-sour sauce and it´s taste cannot be compared with any other dish. Every housewife has developed her own little twist of the recipe to the liking of her family and so you will find small differences in the recipes. 

Königsberger Klopse is a truly special dish for me because it reminds me so much of my childhood and the good cuisine of my mother and Oma.The dish is also one of the favorite dishes of my children and even my American husband loves it very much.

The History of the Königsberger Klopse Recipe

This dish origins from Königsberg, a former German city that became part of the Soviet Union after 1945 and is now called Kaliningrad. The German community that left the region during World War II took this recipe with them and the dish was introduced throughout Germany, but especially in the Eastern part of Germany (formely GDR).

The term “Königsberger Klopse” was not officially tolerated in the GDR, because the brother country was the Soviet Union, and Königsberg had become Kaliningrad. Therefore in the GDR, the Königsberger Klopse did not appear in most cookbooks, a new name was made up for the dish and the famous Königsberger Klopse is called Kochklopse in the Eastern part of Germany.

Ingredients & Substitutes

Meat: Originally these German meatballs were made from finely ground veal. Nowadays most recipes call for ground beef or a mixture of minced beef and pork, but you can even use ground turkey or chicken.

Anchovy Paste: The secret ingredient for the meatballs are finely minced anchovies or anchovy paste. Some recipes call for herring instead of anchovies. Your first reaction will probably be not excited about that ingredient, but I assure you, you will not taste the fish, it just gives the meatballs a flavor boost. If you don´t like the idea of incorporating anchovies to your meatballs, you can leave them out like my mother did.

Capers: Capers add a unique flavor to the dish. Most recipes add capers only to the sauce. But some recipes add also chopped capers to the meat mixture. In most supermarkets you can find capers in a jar in the area where pickled food and vinegars are stocked. If you don´t like capers or you can´t find them, you could leave them out.

White Wine: The original recipe does not call for white wine and I don´t use it in my traditional recipe. But you can find the addition of white wine in contemporary versions of the recipe.

Heavy Whipping Cream: The cream gives the sauce the creamy texture. There are also some variations that call for sour cream and creme fraiche. But both ingredients are not used in the traditional recipe and I personally think both of these ingredients alter the original taste too much.

Lemon Juice: Fresh lemon juice adds a hint of freshness.

Egg Yolks: The egg yolks not only add a wonderful flavor to the sauce, they are also add a special richness and a velvet like texture to the sauce. Egg yolks are one of the most important ingredients to this dish and I personally think there is no real substitute for it.

Rolls: Best is to use rolls that are a couple of days old. Instead of the two rolls you can use four slices of white bread. Make sure to cut the crust off.

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How to Serve Königsberger Klopse?

Serve with boiled parsley potatoes or mashed potatoes. Some people like to serve the meatballs with white long grain rice.

As a vegetable side red beets or carrots and peas are a great fit.