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Tierteg (Luxembourg Mashed Potatoes with Sauerkraut)
Mashed potatoes mixed with sauerkraut, onion and crisp smoked bacon, pressed into a hot pan and fried until a brown crust forms underneath, the old Luxembourg side for smoked pork and sausages.
Luxembourgish · easy · serves 4
prep 15 min · cook 45 min
~399 cal · 11g protein · 48g carbs · 18g fat · 6g fiber · 5g sugars · 7g sat fat (estimated, per serving)
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Tierteg is a traditional Luxembourg dish of mashed potatoes and sauerkraut, and like many country dishes it began as a way to use up leftovers. Its name comes from a kind of coarse fabric, tierteg, woven from two different threads, because the dish too is made of two things mixed together.
Boiled potatoes are mashed and mixed with sauerkraut, and cracklings or bacon go in, often with any leftover meat. The mixture is then pressed into a pan with the bacon fat and fried until it browns and forms a crust. Some cooks bake it instead in a buttered dish under breadcrumbs until golden.
In Luxembourg it is served as Tierteg mat Gesolpertes, with smoked salted pork beside it.
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Make it yours
✓ Naturally gluten-, egg- and nut-free. No swaps needed.
Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.
🥕 Vegetarian
🌱 Vegan
🌾 Gluten-Free
🥛 Dairy-Free
🥜 Nut-Free
🥚 Egg-Free
🐖 Pork-Free
Dietary labels are a cooking guide, not allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish; we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, read the label on every product you use, and note that a kitchen can cross-contaminate in ways a recipe cannot control.
Ingredients
US
Metric
Serves 4
- 1 kg floury potatoes, peeled and quartered
- 400 g sauerkraut, rinsed and squeezed dry
- 150 g smoked bacon, cut into small cubes
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- 100 ml warm milk
- 1 tbsp butter
- to taste salt
- to taste black pepper
- a pinch nutmeg, grated
Instructions
- 1Boil the potatoes in salted water for about 20 minutes, until soft, then drain well.
- 2Meanwhile, fry the bacon in a large dry frying pan for about 5 minutes until crisp, then lift it out, leaving the fat in the pan. Cook the onion in the fat for about 5 minutes until soft.
- 3Mash the potatoes with the warm milk and season with salt, pepper and nutmeg. Mix in the sauerkraut, the onion and the bacon.
- 4Add the butter to the pan with the bacon fat and heat until sizzling. Spread the potato mixture in the pan, press it down flat and fry over medium heat for 10 to 12 minutes, without stirring, until a golden-brown crust forms underneath.✎ Chef’s noteLeave it alone while it fries. Turning it too early breaks the crust before it forms.
- 5Turn it over in portions, press down again and fry for 5 minutes more to brown the other side. Serve hot with smoked pork or sausages and mustard.
Luxembourg home tradition.
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🌏 While it simmers, know your destination
📍
Luxembourg City. Judd mat Gaardebounen is smoked pork collar soaked and then simmered with leeks, carrots, celery and cloves, often with a glass of Moselle in the pot, and served over broad beans. The village of Gostingen is so tied to it that its inhabitants are nicknamed the bean-madmen.
🗺️
Luxembourg. Judd mat Gaardebounen is tied to one village, Gostingen, whose inhabitants are nicknamed Bounepatscherten, bean-madmen. The smoked pork collar is soaked, then simmered with leeks, carrots, celery and cloves, often with Moselle wine, and served with broad beans. The word judd has no settled etymology, though one theory derives it from the Spanish judia, meaning bean.
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Europe. European cooking is built on the land and the seasons, wheat, butter, and cured pork in the north; olive oil, tomatoes, and seafood around the Mediterranean; preserved vegetables and hearty stews through long winters. Centuries of peasant tradition, guild craft, and royal courts refined techniques from French mother sauces to Italian fresh pasta and Central European baking. Regional identity runs remarkably deep, with a single dish often changing from one valley to the next.
The story behind this dish is up top, worth a read while the pot works.
More from Luxembourg
Judd mat GaardebounenLuxembourg's national dish: smoked pork collar simmered tender and served with a creamy broad-bean stew.
Kachkéis (Luxembourg Cooked Cheese)Aged curd melted down on the stove with butter and caraway into a glossy, tangy spreadable cheese, poured out to set and eaten on bread with mustard.
BouneschluppA green bean soup with potato and smoked sausage, the national soup of Luxembourg.
Browse all Luxembourg recipes →
Good to know
You’ll need: Skillet or frying pan.
Storing it: Fried food is best eaten fresh while crisp. Re-crisp leftovers in a hot oven or air fryer; the microwave makes them soft.
Make it a Luxembourg meal
QuetschentaartDessert
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Frequently asked questions
What is Tierteg (Luxembourg Mashed Potatoes with Sauerkraut)?
Mashed potatoes mixed with sauerkraut, onion and crisp smoked bacon, pressed into a hot pan and fried until a brown crust forms underneath, the old Luxembourg side for smoked pork and sausages.
Where does Tierteg (Luxembourg Mashed Potatoes with Sauerkraut) come from?
Tierteg (Luxembourg Mashed Potatoes with Sauerkraut) is a Luxembourgish dish from Luxembourg City, Luxembourg.
Can Tierteg (Luxembourg Mashed Potatoes with Sauerkraut) be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?
This Tierteg (Luxembourg Mashed Potatoes with Sauerkraut) recipe includes substitution suggestions for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, egg-free, and pork-free versions. Treat the substitutions as a starting guide rather than a guarantee, and see the allergen note below.
Is Tierteg (Luxembourg Mashed Potatoes with Sauerkraut) safe for people with food allergies?
Our dietary labels and substitutions are a cooking guide, not medical or allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we still count coconut as a tree nut to be cautious, although the FDA stopped listing it as one in 2025), fish, and shellfish, but we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, always read the label on every product you use, and remember a home or commercial kitchen can cross-contaminate ingredients in ways a recipe cannot control.
How long does Tierteg (Luxembourg Mashed Potatoes with Sauerkraut) take to make?
About 60 minutes total (15 minutes prep, 45 minutes cooking), serving 4.
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