Kaiserschmarrn – a step by step guide based on an original Austrian recipe

Already loved it as a child, today is the first time I made it myself. Once you know how, Kaiserschmarrn is super easy to make and tastes incredibly delicious! With this step by step guide, it’s easy to do.

Kaiserschmarrn is a thick, pan-fried, shredded pancake. The dish got its name because it was supposedly first prepared for Emperor (Kaiser) Franz Joseph I. Schmarrn or Schmarren has its word origin from lard (Schmalz) or it comes from Schmarrn, Viennese dialect for nonsense. Perhaps because Kaiserschmarrn on the plate looks like a destroyed mess. 🙂

When preparing it, if possible, I would really recommend going for a cast iron pan or a pan with a steel or copper bottom, as these hold the heat when the batter is put into the pan. Aluminum cools down too quickly in this case.

The traditional side dish is either plum roast (Zwetschgenröster) or applesauce. You can find my recipe for homemade applesauce with little sugar here.

Kaiserschmarrn – a step by step guide based on an original Austrian recipe

Already loved it as a child, today is the first time I made it myself. Once you know how, Kaiserschmarrn is super easy to make and tastes incredibly delicious! With this step by step guide, it's easy to do.

5 from 2 votes

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Course: Dessert, Main Course

Cuisine: Austrian

Keyword: Pancake, vegetarian

Cook Time: 45 minutes

Servings: 1 large portion as a main, 4 as dessert

MetricUS Customary

Equipment

• Mixer
• large pan ideally cast iron

Ingredients

For the dough

• ▢ 120 ml milk
• ▢ 2 egg yolk
• ▢ 4 g vanilla sugar
• ▢ 1 g salt
• ▢ 60 g flour

For the beaten egg white

• ▢ 2 egg white
• ▢ 15 g sugar

For the pan

• ▢ 15 g sugar to caramelize
• ▢ 1 pinch cinnamon ground
• ▢ 30 g butter
• ▢ 15 g raisins
• ▢ powdered sugar to dust

Instructions

The dough

• Mix ⅔ of the milk with the egg yolks, vanilla sugar and salt.
• Add the flour, stir until smooth and stir in the remaining milk.
  

The beaten egg white

• Beat the egg whites together with the sugar until they are compact but still smooth. Then fold it into the batter.
  

The preparation in the pan

• In a small bowl, mix the sugar with the cinnamon and set the mixture aside.
• Heat the butter over medium heat in a frying pan, preferably a cast iron one.
  
• Pour the portion evenly into the pan, sprinkle the raisins on top and let it brown over low heat.
  
• Now quarter the dough, turn it and finish baking.
  
• Tear the dough into irregular pieces and sprinkle with the sugar-cinnamon mixture.
  
• Now let the sugar and cinnamon caramelize on the kaiserschmarrn pieces while stirring.
• Then arrange the Kaiserschmarrn on plates sprinkled with powdered sugar and serve with your side dish.
  

Please rate my recipe before you leave 🙂:

Notes

Tips & Tricks:

• use a heavy bottom pan, that stays hot
• Beaten egg whites are done, when they’re that firm, that you can turn the pot upside down and it they don’t run out

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Source of the recipe: Österreichisches Bundesministerium für Landwirtschaft, Regionen und Tourismus, nach „Die 100 klassischen Gerichte Österreichs“ – The book, which the link references, is unfortunately not available anymore. Cooked with love on From zero to curry.