Oftentimes, these were some of the only crops to survive the cold Bavarian winters, which is another reason for the rise of hearty, meat-centeric meals among farmers living or working in the countryside or the Alps.
Another food heavily intwined with the broader German identity is bread. Different states/regions have their own bread-making traditions influenced by geography and other local traditions. Thus, pretzels in the North of Germany taste and look different than those in the South!
