In a second round of the "So schmeckt Kulturregion" competition, the seven-member jury has awarded this label to a total of 17 culinary products and events. The award-winning entrepreneurs can now use it to promote their submissions. "So schmeckt Kulturregion" is a joint initiative of the Capital of Culture project Makers, Business & Arts with the Chamber of Crafts and the Chemnitz Chamber of Industry and Commerce. After a successful kick-off and 11 award-winning submissions in May this year, a second call was launched in the summer. A total of 22 entrepreneurs from the food industry took part with their ideas.
The jury, consisting of seven members from different sectors, awarded the maximum number of points in this round to a total of five culinary entries:
Feinbäckerei Hertel - Forest rye wholemeal rolls
Master baker Markus Hertel from Mildenau in the Ore Mountains is offering special bread rolls during the Capital of Culture year. They are special because forest perennial rye is an ancient rye. Making delicious, high-quality breads and pastries from forest rye requires a high level of craftsmanship. All ingredients, supplier products and services come from the region. Markus Hertel deliberately chose the ancient grain: "The ancient grains that are so precious today were cultivated by our ancestors many thousands of years ago before they almost completely disappeared from the fields for reasons of efficiency. There are many good reasons for today's renaissance of ancient grains: a millennia-old tradition, more diversity in the fields, nutritional benefits, special flavour, exclusivity, naturalness, resistance to disease and sustainable production. However, as forest perennial rye is an extremely undemanding, frost-resistant type of grain that grows on poor soils and even at an altitude of 2000 metres, it is once again attracting increasing attention in agriculture."
→ feinbaeckerei-hertel.de
Bräunig bakery - miner's bread
The miner's bread from the Bräunig bakery in Ehrenfriedersdorf is another award-winning bakery speciality. A bread for all the senses, a bread for the region, as master baker Marcus Bräunig describes it: "It is a bread for society - whether young or old, it connects. It stands for simple and healthy nutrition in our Erzgebirge cultural heritage region, which has been characterised in particular by mining, the timber industry and craftsmanship. Traditional baking means sustainability. Back to the roots, or in other words, back to where it all began. As the fifth generation of a family of bakers, I incorporate my new ideas into our range, try to appeal to many or preferably all customers and bake bread that appeals to the senses and invites you to savour it. After three days of work, the result is a really great miner's bread that is honest and reflects the region and the craft."
Hofmanufaktur vom Huttenberg - Melting Pot Chemnitz
Danilo Braun's Hofmanufaktur vom Huttenberg in Oberschöna produces special Asian delicacies: Ramen noodles. These are produced in a small Saxon manufactory using traditional methods and not only fulfil the highest sustainability standards but are also produced in organic quality. "Through regional partnerships and short delivery routes, we actively contribute to promoting the circular economy and strengthening the local community. Our ramen noodles are therefore not only a pleasure to eat, but also a contribution to the sustainable development of our region," says Danilo Braun.
Tofubar - Miriquidi tofu ham
In her Tofubar, Julia Jeschek from Chemnitz produces tofu according to the centuries-old Japanese model. Next year, she will be offering "Miriquidi tofu ham". Most of the soya beans come from the Guidohof organic farm in Limbach-Oberfrohna, which has been growing them in organic quality since 2023. Soya cultivation also promotes soil fertility, as the soya plant binds nitrogen for the next sowing. For the tofu ham, Julia Jeschek uses the spice "Miriquidi" from the certified organic Chemnitz spice manufacturer Direkt vom Feld - with spruce needles and juniper for a flavour reminiscent of the deep forests of the Ore Mountains. Julia Jeschek is setting trends in vegan nutrition and is becoming increasingly popular: "Tofubar stands for traditional craftsmanship instead of industrial substitute products full of additives and flavour enhancers. Restaurants and hotels in Chemnitz are also offering more vegan and vegetarian options since they started offering our tofu."
ASG Chemnitz - cultural region menus "Tradition and modernity"
The ASG (Anerkannte Schulgesellschaft Sachsen mbH) training centre in Chemnitz provides vocational training for young people who need special support with their education. The centre also has its own home economics kitchen with ten workstations. This is where the idea of a special Kulturregion menu entitled "Tradition and Modernity" was born. Starting with goose liver mousse on apple and walnut puff pastry, the menu continues with a white salmon trout cream soup and finally the main course, baked and marinated fallow deer ham on pointed cabbage with blueberries and buckwheat dumplings. The 4-course menu concludes with a sea buckthorn ice cream dome on pistachio sponge cake with chocolate sauce. In future, the young trainees will be happy to cook all of this to order in the ASG's home economics kitchen.
