My German beef rouladen recipe is the most delicious comfort food you'll ever eat. "Rinderrouladen" are tender beef roll-ups filled with pickles, mustard, bacon and onions. They are browned all over and then simmered in a rich gravy to soft perfection.
Rouladen is one of the most loved dishes in Germany. It is not specific to a certain region. We eat rouladen all over the country, from north to south and east to west. The sides may vary, but the fork-tender beef roll-ups with their flavorful, tangy filling and thick, glossy gravy are a constant everywhere. It is an all-German dish like no other.
I'm not going to pretend that this is a cherished family recipe passed down by my dear Oma or Mutti. These are 100% authentic German rouladen because I am 100% German. And, growing up in Hamburg, I have enjoyed countless servings of Rinderrouladen (beef roulades) - at home, at friend's houses and in restaurants.
My rouladen recipe is the sum of all these extremely pleasurable meals. And in addition, I have given the dish my own, healthy twist.
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What I Love About This Recipe
Literally everything! Rouladen are like love on a plate. In Germany, we serve them at festive occasions, sometimes even at Christmas. That's how special they are.
The preparation. It takes a bit of prep time to fill the beef roll-ups, chop the vegetables and fry everything until golden brown. When I make rouladen, I choose a day when I have time to potter in the kitchen. It's part of the fun.
The waiting. While the rouladen cook, the kitchen fills with the most delicious aroma.
The eating. Naturally, the best part of all. Rouladen is a feast for the whole family. You can serve stuffed beef roll-ups to young and old and everyone in between. This is hearty comfort food packed with rich flavors.
Ingredients
Here are the ingredients you'll need for German beef rolls:
For The Rouladen
- Beef - I recommend to let the butcher cut the beef for you. What you need is thin frying steak. Top round is best, or flank steak. Ask for long, thin steak slices that you can roll up easily. If the slices are too short, you can layer 2 slices over one another. It is essential to pound the meat with a mallet before using. This tenderizes it and makes it as thin as possible.
- Mustard and tomato paste - To give flavor and both also tenderize the meat. I like Dijon mustard, but regular yellow mustard is fine. The tomato paste is actually a Nürnberger family secret now that I think of it. I have a memory of my mother adding it in addition to the mustard.
- Bacon - Thin strips of bacon, which can be either smoked or unsmoked. The fat in the bacon keeps the beef moist.
- Dill pickles - The acidity of the pickles is another meat tenderizer! If the pickles are too thick, simple slice them lengthways.
- Onion - We want to slice the onions really thinly. They become super soft during stewing.
For The Gravy
- Vegetables - Onion, leek, carrot, celery, zucchini and garlic.
- Red wine - Use a dry red wine. Alternatively, use more beef stock.
- More tomato paste plus pickle brine or apple cider vinegar - Adds a tang to the sauce. I recommend to double up on the vinegar or brine if you choose to swap the wine for more beef stock.
- Herbs and seasonings - Bay leaves, rosemary, thyme, salt and pepper
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
Instructions
Making beef rouladen does take a bit of time. But, it is actually pretty easy. Here are the basic steps.
Scroll down to the recipe card for the detailed methos with timings, ingredient amounts and nutrition information.
STEP 1
Gently pound the beef slices with a meat mallet or rolling pin until they are a little thinner than ¼ inch. Season with salt and pepper.
STEP 2
Spread the beef with mustard and tomato paste.
STEP 3
Top with bacon...
STEP 4
... and add thinly sliced onions and pickles.
STEP 5
Fold the long sides of the beef in to straighten, then roll up and tie with the cooking twine. You can also use toothpicks.
STEP 6
Heat oil in a large frying pan. Fry the rouladen until golden brown all over. Depending on the size of pan, you may need to do this in batches. Set aside.
STEP 7
In a Dutch oven or heavy pot, sauté the onion, celery, leek and carrots until golden.
STEP 8
Add the herbs, garlic and ⅓ of the red wine. Simmer until almost dry. Repeat 2 more times until the red wine is used up.
STEP 9
Add the beef stock, tomato puree, salt, pepper and dill pickle brine or apple cider vinegar and continue to simmer until the vegetables are soft.
STEP 10
Remove the bay leaves and puree with an immersion blender to make a thick gravy.
STEP 11
Add the beef rouladen into the pot with the gravy. Also, stir in any deglazed pan juices and brown bits from the frying pan. Put on the lid and let the rouladen simmer on the stovetop over low heat until they are soft and tender.
Katrin's Top Tips
#1 Remember to use all the brown bits and juices from the bottom of the frying pan. They help to make the gravy extra tasty.
#2 Adding the wine in batches and letting it cook into the vegetables is another German kitchen hack. It flavors the veggies, which are the base for the gravy.
#3 During cooking, check the roulades occasionally, spoon sauce over and turn them. Also, add a little more stock if the gravy becomes too thick.
#4 Test if the rouladen are fork-ready! They are done when the meat is so tender that you could cut it with the side of your fork. Otherwise, continue to let them simmer. Patience is key.
Variations
Stew first, gravy last. First of all, you have the option to make the gravy at the end of cooking. I choose to blend my gravy before stewing the beef because by the end, I just want to eat my rouladen straight away instead of getting the sauce together.
Classic rouladen gravy. The gravy is where I have made my tweak to the classic rouladen recipe. I thicken my gravy by blending the vegetables. It is one of my favorite low carb kitchen hacks. Traditionally, rouladen gravy is thickened with butter and a flour or cornstarch slurry.
Optional add-ins: Sliced mushrooms taste great in the rouladen sauce. You can also add a little sour cream or heavy cream to make it even creamier.
Serving Suggestion
In Germany, rouladen are always served with Rotkohl, which is a sweet and sour braised red cabbage.
In southern Germany, they are also paired with Semmelknödel (bread dumplings) or Kartoffelknödel (potato dumplings). In Northern Germany, where I am from, we eat them with mashed potatoes or boiled potatoes.
This being a low carb blog, I recommend that you swap the potatoes for this divinely creamy mashed cauliflower!
As a dessert, I recommend my keto Black Forest cake.
Recipe FAQs
The beef strips need to be large enough that you can fill and roll them up. They should have a minimum length of 6 inches. I recommend 8 - 10 inches long, 4 - 5 inch wide and ¼ inch thick.
Yes. You can fill and roll up the beef rouladen a day in advance. Secure them with the toothpicks or the kitchen twine and store uncooked rouladen overnight in the fridge. You can also prepare the entire dish in advance and reheat the next day.
Yes! It takes around 7-8 hours to make this rouladen recipe in the slow cooker if you cook on low. It takes 3-4 hours if you cook on high.
Prepare and saute the beef rollups and the vegetables as per recipe. Then, lock the lid and pressure cook for 30 minutes. Do a quick release. Remove the rouladen from the pot and puree the sauce. Return the beef back to the pot until ready to serve.
Storage
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months.
To reheat: Gently warm the rouladen in the gravy on the stovetop over low heat or put them into the oven at 180C / 350F. I do not recommend reheating them in the microwave because this dries out the meat and makes it tough.
More Beef Dinners
- Keto Bolognese1 Hours 30 Minutes
- Low Carb Keto Beef Burritos
- Hearty Low Carb Keto Beef Stew1 Hours 45 Minutes
- Keto Egg Roll In A Bowl15 Minutes
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Recipe
German Beef Rouladen Recipe
from Sugar Free LondonerNote: The servings slider only changes the first amount in each line and not any subsequent amounts. Please make your own calculations where necessary.
Ingredients
Rouladen
- 8 thin slices top round steak 800g, Use top round or flank steak, 8 - 10 inches long, 4 - 5 inch wide and ¼ inch thick. Get the butcher to cut it for you.
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ¼ cup Dijon mustard 60g
- ¼ cup tomato puree 60g
- 8 slices bacon strips halved (130g)
- 8 gherkins/dill pickles medium, sliced lengthways in half or quarters if large (80g)
- 1 small onion thinly sliced (60g)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil for frying
Gravy
- 2 tablespoon olive oil for frying
- 1 small yellow onion chopped (60g)
- 1 small leek chopped (100g)
- 1 large carrot chopped (150g)
- 1 large celery stalk chopped (50g)
- 1 small zucchini 140g
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 1 cup red wine 250ml
- 2 cups beef broth 500ml
- 1 tablespoon tomato puree
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar or Dill Pickle Brine
- 2 bay leaves
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 tablespoon fresh rosemary chopped
- 4 sprigs fresh thyme leaves only
Instructions
- Gently pound the beef slices with a meat mallet or rolling pin until they're a little thinner than ¼ inch. This tenderizes the meat.
- Lay the slices of beef out flat on parchment paper and season with salt and pepper.
- Spread the beef with mustard and tomato paste. Top with the onions and pickles, then with 1 slice of bacon (cut into two halves).
- Fold the long sides of the beef in to straighten, then roll up and tie with the cooking twine. You can also use toothpicks.
- Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large frying pan. Add the beef rolls and cook until brown all over, about 5 minutes on medium heat. Depending on the size of pan, you may need to do this in 2 batches. Remove the rouladen from the pan and keep warm. Deglaze the pan with a little water, scraping any brown bits from the bottom to use for the gravy. Set aside.
Gravy
- Add the olive oil to a Dutch oven or heavy pot. Add the onion, celery, leek and carrots and sauté for 7 - 8 minutes until golden. Add herbs, garlic and ⅓ of the red wine. Simmer for 4 minutes until almost dry. Repeat 2 more times until the red wine is used up (this will give the veg the best flavour which you’re then using as a base for the gravy).
- Add the beef stock, tomato puree, salt, pepper and 1 teaspoon dill pickle brine or apple cider vinegar. Simmer for 5 minutes.
- Remove the bay leaves and puree with a stick blender to make a thick gravy.
- Add the beef rouladen into the gravy plus any deglazed pan juices and brown bits from the frying pan. Put on the lid and let the rouladen simmer on low heat for 1.5 hours. Option to place in the oven (160C/320F electric / 140C/285F fan) for the same time. Check regularly, spooning the gravy over the beef and turn the rollups half way through. Also, add more beef stock if the sauce becomes too thick and dry.
- After 1 ½ hours, test whether the rouladen are soft (they should give easily when pressed on with a wooden spoon). If not, continue simmering for another 20 - 30 minutes.
- Remove rouladen from the pot and cut off the string. Serve with the gravy and sides of your choice.
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