Pork knuckle baked in Bavarian beer with sauerkraut and honey

Pork knuckle – the part of the front leg adjacent to the knee structure, also called the drumstick, forearm or pork ham. When harvesting meat, the boundaries of separation from other parts are the knee and elbow joints. One of the most successful cooking options is marinating the shank in beer, followed by baking in the oven. In Bavaria, this dish is called “Schweinehaxe” and is served at Oktoberfest, and in the Czech Republic, the baked shank is known as “Boar Knee Liver” and is combined not only with beer, but also with any strong liquor. We will consider a classic German recipe.

It is advisable to use fresh meat, then the smell will be richer and the taste softer. Previously, the skin must be thoroughly cleaned of bristles by scraping with a knife or shaving. You can not remove the skin – part of the taste disappears.

Requires quality beer with a bright hop aroma and no obvious alcohol tones. In Germany, the knuckle is baked in dark beer, as it is considered more saturated, however, to get very tender meat, you can also take a light variety. After baking in the oven, all the alcohol will evaporate, so the finished dish will turn out to be non-alcoholic.

Ingredients for 4-6 servings:

pork knuckle – 2 kg (you can take 2 pieces of 1 kg each);
beer (usually dark) – 1,5-2 liters;
onions – 1 piece (medium);
carrots – 100 gram;
celery – 100 grams;
garlic – 1 head;
bay leaf – 3 pieces;
black peppercorns – 3 pieces;
allspice peas – 5 pieces;
cumin – 1 pinch;
salt – 1 tablespoon;
carnation – 3-5 buds;
for garnish:
sauerkraut – 1 kg;
onion – 1 piece;
cumin – half a teaspoon;
coriander (chopped) – half a teaspoon;
vegetable oil – 4 tablespoons;
beer broth – ¾ cup;
for the sauce:
mustard – 2 tablespoons;
honey (liquid) – 2 tablespoons;
broth – 100 ml.

The set of spices can be changed at your discretion, the traditional Bavarian composition is indicated in the ingredients. Properly prepared sauerkraut with honey sauce is the most suitable side dish for pork knuckle, but you can simply serve the meat, skipping the fifth and sixth stages of cooking.

Recipe for shank in beer

1. Put the washed and dried knuckle into a cooking pot. Fill with beer.

Attention! Beer should completely cover the meat, so choose the volume of the pan so that you use up a minimum of foamy drink.

2. Put on a strong fire and bring the knuckle in beer to a boil.

3. While the mixture is boiling, cut the peeled carrots into large circles, celery into large pieces. Stick clove buds into a whole peeled onion, and simply divide the garlic into cloves and remove the peel.

4. Remove foam from boiling beer, add vegetables and spices to the pan. Reduce the power of the stove to a minimum. Boil the shank in beer for 2 hours under the lid. Turn the meat over after 60 minutes of adding the spices.

5. Prepare a side dish: in a heated frying pan with vegetable oil, fry the onion cut into thin half rings until golden brown. Squeeze the cabbage from the brine and put it in the pan. Fry over medium heat until soft, then reduce the power to a minimum, pour in the beer broth from the pan and simmer for 30-40 minutes.

6. Make the sauce: mix honey, mustard and broth in a deep bowl.

7. Remove the cooked shank from the beer, cool slightly, generously grease with sauce on all sides and put on a baking sheet

8. Preheat the oven to 160 ° C, bake the shank for 30 minutes, so that a golden crust appears, basting the meat with the remaining sauce and beer broth from the pan every 5-6 minutes.

9. Remove the finished dish from the oven, put it on the center of a large serving plate. Fill the remaining space with stewed sauerkraut. You can additionally decorate with vegetables or chopped herbs.