Dešros su Kopūstais — sausages with sauerkraut — is the most essential Lithuanian dinner: grilled or pan-fried fresh pork sausages served on a bed of sauerkraut simmered with onion and caraway. It is the food of every Lithuanian tavern, every village kitchen, every beer garden — sausages, kraut, mustard, and a cold glass of alus (beer).
Dešros su Kopūstais (sausages with cabbage) is the quintessential Lithuanian tavern and home meal — the simplest expression of the country's pork-and-cabbage cuisine. The sausages (dešros) are fresh pork sausages, flavored with marjoram and garlic, grilled or pan-fried. The sauerkraut (rauginti kopūstai) is the Lithuanian fermented cabbage, simmered with onion and caraway until tangy and soft. The dish is always served with mustard and a cold beer (alus) — Lithuania has one of the strongest beer cultures in Europe, and this is its standard accompaniment.
A plate with two sizzling sausages, their skin snapped, the pork juicy and garlicky, on a pile of tangy, soft sauerkraut studded with caraway seeds. Squirt of mustard, a forkful of sausage and kraut together, a sip of cold beer. It is the most satisfying, most Lithuanian meal there is.
The sausages should be fresh (not smoked or cured), with a high fat content for juiciness. They are grilled or pan-fried until the casing snaps and the inside is just cooked through (overcooking dries them). The sauerkraut is rinsed (to control sourness), then simmered with onion and caraway until very soft — at least 30 minutes. The caraway is the Lithuanian signature spice for cabbage.
Variations
Some use smoked sausages; some add potatoes; some add apples to the kraut; the mustard is always present.
On the Palate
Where Dešros su Kopūstais sits in the Lithuanian flavor cloud
Ingredients
Serves 4How it's made
6 steps · 30 min active + 30 min waiting
- 15 min
In a pot, sauté 1 sliced onion in 30 g butter or lard 5 minutes.
- 23 min
Add 500 g sauerkraut (rinsed and squeezed); 1 tbsp caraway seeds; and 200 ml water.
- 330 min
Simmer covered 30 minutes until the kraut is very soft.
Watch outSimmer the rinsed sauerkraut a full half hour until it's very soft and mellow — undercooked, it stays harshly sour and crunchy.
- 48 min
Meanwhile, grill or pan-fry 8 fresh pork sausages (flavored with marjoram) 4-5 minutes per side until golden and cooked through.
Watch outFry the fresh sausages just until the casing snaps and the center is cooked — push past that and they dry out and split.
- 52 min
To serve: spoon the sauerkraut onto plates; top each with 2 sausages.
- 61 min
Serve with mustard and cold beer.
