This bike is looking reasonably buttoned-up, but somehow, something is missing here... I'm pretty sure it's
more cowbell meat and beer!
We've had a decent Indian Summer here in the northeast, but today on October 1 it's looking a little cool, dark, and drizzly. Time for seasonal comfort-food! This is a riff on a recipe handed to me by my German-descent stepfather, who claims that there is an inverse relationship between how the dish looks, and how it tastes. I'm inclined to agree; when complete, it looks like greasy grey gruel, but tastes like heaven.
Give yourself some time; start this in the morning. With the crock-pot on the hottest setting, add:
1 lb salt-pork, coarse dice (this would be pork #1)
1 large yellow onion, medium dice
4 bay leaves
2 tsp whole peppercorns (I like a mix of red, green, black, and white 'corns)
2 tsp whole caraway seeds
1 tsp whole mustard seeds
Render this down until the salt pork is shrunk by at least half and the onions are translucent... Not quite there in this pic:
Now add:
4-ish lbs coarse-chopped young potatoes (feel free to experiment with variety, this time I'm using a medley of Yukon Gold, Russet, and heirloom purple)
Let the 'pot get back up to temp, and then add:
2 lbs sauerkraut (I include most of the liquid; bagged 'kraut is usually a little drier than the jarred variety)
Stir it up, let it get back up to temp, and drop in pork #2:
5-6 uncooked Beer Bratwurst (some people pierce the casing, but they cook so long and get so fally-aparty that I like to keep some structural integrity in place)
Again, as with each addition of cold ingredients, let the crock get back up to steamy temp before burying the bratwurst into the middle layer of veg, then add pork #3 on top:
1 rack pork back ribs, cut into several portions to fit
Again, a little rest, then in goes a bottle of room-temp lager (pretty much the only good use for room-temp lager). No particular brand preference, but anything with a buxom German bar-wench on the label seems incredibly appropriate.
Top the ribs with a little coarse salt & pepper, a pinch more mustard & caraway seeds, and a few more bay leaves. Cover it up, wait for the liquid to start bubbling, then reduce the temp to low and walk away for a few hours. Resist the urge to fiddle with the lid, or dig around in there. The first proper stirring doesn't happen until the ribs are starting to look mostly-cooked.
Stay tuned.
