Sauerbraten With Sour Cream Gravy Wienerwald Style Recipes

SAUERBRATEN WITH GINGERSNAP GRAVY

Steps:

• 1. Place the roast in a deep ceramic or glass bowl. Most crock pots have a removable one. Add onions, peppercorns, cloves and bay leaf. Pour white vinegar, water and cider vinegar over teh roast. Chill, covered, for 4 days. Turn meat twice each day. Remove the meat from the marinade. dry it well with paper towels and strain the marinade into a bowl. Reserve the onions and one cup of marinade.
• 2. In a Dutch oven, brown the meat on all sides in hot vegetable oil. Sprinkle meat with salt. Pour boiling water around the meat, sprinkle in crushed gingersnaps and simmer, covered for 1 to 1 1/2 hours. Turn often. Add one cup of reserved marinade and cook meat 2 hours or more until tender. Remove the meat and keep it warm. Strain the cooking juices into a large saucepan.
• 3. In a small bowl, mix sour cream with flour. Stir it into the cooking juices and cook, stirring until sauce is thickened and smooth. Slice the meat into 1/4 inch slices. Add to the hot gravy. Arrange meat on a heated platter and pour extra sauce over it. Makes 8 to 10 servings.

SAUERBRATEN BEEF IN GINGERSNAP GRAVY

Steps:

• Combine beef stew meat, onion, beef broth, vinegar, and bay leaves in a slow cooker.
• Cook on Low for 7 to 9 hours.
• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook egg noodles in the boiling water, stirring occasionally until tender yet firm to the bite, 4 to 5 minutes. Drain.
• Remove bay leaves from beef mixture; stir in crushed gingersnaps and brown sugar. Cook beef mixture on Low until thickened, about 15 minutes. Serve sauerbraten over egg noodles and garnish with parsley.

SOUR BEEF AND DUMPLINGS (SAUERBRATEN)

Steps:

• First, make the marinade: In a large saucepan over high heat, combine the vinegars, 3 cups of water, onion, carrot, 1 tablespoon of salt, pepper, bay leaves, cloves, juniper berries and mustard seeds. Cover and bring to a boil, and then lower the heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Set it aside and let it cool. Heat the vegetable oil in a large saute pan. Rub the beef roast with 1 teaspoon of salt and brown it on all sides. Once the marinade has cooled to the touch, put the meat into a large, nonreactive vessel and cover with the marinade. (I use a ceramic-coated Dutch oven.) Place it in the refrigerator for three to five days. If the meat isn't covered entirely by the marinade, be sure to turn it once a day. (In my Dutch oven, I sometimes wedge an onion between the lid and the meat to hold the meat under the liquid.) After marinating, preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Add the sugar to the meat and marinade, cover and cook in the oven until tender--approximately four hours. While it's cooking, you'll want to start making the dumplings (below). When the meat is done, remove it from the pan and keep warm. Move the Dutch oven to the stovetop, whisk the crumbled gingersnaps into the marinade, and simmer over low heat, stirring occasionally, until it is smooth and well blended. Strain the sauce through a fine mesh sieve to remove any lumps. TIP: To crumble the gingersnaps, I usually put them into a freezer bag, squeeze the air out and give it to the nearest child to pound on until there aren't any more lumps. Slice the beef and serve in a large bowl or platter covered in the sauce. Serve the dumplings on the side. Generally each diner puts some beef and a couple of dumplings on their plate, and then spoons the sauce over all. To make the dumplings: Heat the water and 1 teaspoon of salt to a heavy simmer in a 5-quart Dutch oven or large pot over medium-high heat. Add the quartered potatoes and cook until tender, about 15 or 20 minutes. Drain the potatoes very well, and mash them or put them through a potato ricer. (A ricer works best.) Spread the riced potatoes on a platter or cookie sheet and set them aside to dry and cool. After the potatoes have cooled, place them in a mixing bowl and add the eggs, grated fresh potatoes, farina, flour and nutmeg. Mix well, and roll into golf-ball or tennis-ball sized dumplings. (Mine tend to be tennis balls or racquetballs. I like big dumplings and I cannot lie.) Roll the dumplings in a little bit of flour to help them dry on the outside and not stick. Bring a large pot of water to boil and then reduce to a heavy simmer. Cook the balls for 15 to 20 minutes. They should all be floating when they are done. Drain and serve on a platter.

SAUERBRATEN

Steps:

• Season beef well with salt and pepper. Tie meat tightly every 2 inches with kitchen twine, and once from end to end, to help keep meat intact. Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a large, heavy casserole over medium heat. Brown meat evenly on all sides, including the ends. Transfer to a plate, and set aside.
• Reduce heat to medium low, add remaining 2 tablespoons oil, garlic, and onions. Cook, stirring often, until softened, 5 to 7 minutes. Add bay leaves, tomato paste, ketchup, red-wine vinegar, and red wine. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Return beef to pot, and add 2 cups water. (The liquid should come halfway up the side of the beef.) Cover with a tight-fitting lid. Reduce heat to simmer. Cook for 1 hour, turn beef, and continue to cook until fork-tender, another 1 1/2 hours.
• Remove pot from heat. Let cool slightly, and transfer beef to a cutting board with a well. Remove twine, and let beef rest for 15 minutes. Skim the fat from the surface of the sauce in the casserole. Taste the sauce, and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper. Stir in sour cream. Slice meat across the grain into 1/4-inch slices. Place meat back into sauce. Transfer to a large serving platter; ladle over sauce. Serve immediately.

SAUERBRATEN WITH SOUR CREAM GRAVY, WIENERWALD-STYLE

Steps:

• Heat 2 cups water and 2 cups vinegar in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add salt, cinnamon sticks, peppercorns, mustard seeds, ginger, allspice, and cloves. Bring to a simmer; immediately remove from heat. Stir in brown sugar until dissolved. Add Marsala wine. Let mixture steep until pan is cool enough to touch, at least 20 minutes.
• Place beef top round in a 1 1/2-quart resealable zip-top bag. Pour liquid around the beef. Pour in remaining water and vinegar and seal bag, removing as much air as possible. Place bag in a leak-proof container and refrigerate for 4 days, turning once a day.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Remove meat from bag and transfer into a roasting pan; reserve the marinade.
• Strain spices out of the marinade and discard. Pour 1/2 of the liquid into the pan with the meat and reserve the rest, about 4 cups, in a saucepan.
• Bake in the preheated oven until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part reads 165 degrees F (74 degrees C), about 1 1/2 hours. Transfer to a platter and let rest.
• Bring the 4 cups of remaining marinade to a simmer. Stir in sour cream and cook until thickened to your preference, 6 to 10 minutes. Slice beef against the grain and spoon the gravy on top.

EASY SAUERBRATEN

Steps:

• In a large bowl, combine the water, vinegar, cloves, bay leaves, salt and brown sugar. Remove 2 cups to a small bowl; cover and refrigerate. Pour remaining marinade into a 2-gal. resealable plastic bag. Add roast; seal bag and turn to coat. Refrigerate for 1-2 days, turning twice each day., Discard marinade and spices. Pat roast dry; dredge in flour. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, brown roast in oil on all sides. Transfer to a small roasting pan. Add the onion, carrots, celery and reserved marinade. , Cover and bake at 325° for 3 to 3-1/2 hours or until meat is tender. With a slotted spoon, remove meat and vegetables to a serving platter. Strain cooking juices; thicken if desired.

SAUERBRATEN

Steps:

• The marinade - 48 to 72 hours in advance: Place the peppercorns, juniper and allspice into a mortar or small plastic bag, or fold up a piece of waxed paper. Crush with the pestle if using the mortar or a rolling pin or hammer if using the bag or paper. Transfer the crushed spices to a small saucepan. Add the bay leaves, cloves, salt, vinegar, wine, and onion slices and bring to a boil. Transfer the marinade to a large bowl and let cool to room temperature. (I prefer a glass or stainless steel bowl. Whatever you use, don't use plastic: the acidic marinade will absorb flavors from plastic.)
• Tying and marinating the meat: Using kitchen string, tie the beef into a neat, compact shape. As soon as the marinade is cool, add the beef to the bowl and roll in the marinade to coat all sides. Cover, refrigerate and marinate for 2 to 3 days, turning the meat once or twice a day. (There is no special timing here for turning the beef in the marinade. You just want to make sure that over the course of the 48 or 72 hours, the meat is turned 3 or 4 times so it marinates evenly.) Heat the oven to 300 degrees F.
• Browning the meat: With tongs, lift the meat out of the marinade, scraping any onion slices or spices that stick to the meat back into the marinade, and transfer it to a plate. Reserve the marinade. Pat the meat thoroughly dry all over with paper towels. Heat the butter and oil in a large Dutch oven or other braising pot over medium heat. Add the meat to the pot and brown well on all sides, 20 to 25 minutes total. (You may need 2 implements to turn the meat: try tongs and a large metal spatula. Lift the meat from the pan with the spatula, grab with the tongs, and turn.) Transfer the meat back to the plate. Pour off all the fat from the pan, and deglaze the pan with the reserved marinade, scraping any browned bits to loosen. Bring the marinade to a simmer and add the meat. Cover with parchment paper, pressing down so it nearly touches the meat and the edges of the paper hang over the sides of the pot by about 1-inch. Set the lid firmly in place, and transfer to the lower third of the oven.
• The braise: Braise the meat at a gentle simmer for 1 1/2 hours. Check after about the first 10 minutes to see that the liquid is not simmering too energetically; if it is, lower the oven by 10 to 15 degrees. After 1 1/2 hours, turn the meat over, using the tongs, and metal spatula, and continue braising gently for another 1 1/2 hours, or until fork-tender.
• The finish: With the tongs and metal spatula, transfer the meat to a cutting board with a moat and cover loosely with foil to keep warm. Strain the cooking juices into a saucepan and let sit for a minute. Gently tilt the pan and skim off the fat with a large spoon. Whisk in the gingersnap crumbs and sugar, place the pan over medium-high heat, and bring to a boil. Gently boil the sauce for 5 minutes, whisking often, to reduce and thicken it slightly. Lower the heat to low and whisk in the sour cream until smooth. Heat through, but do not let the sauce boil, or the sour cream will curdle. Taste the sauce for salt.
• Serving: Remove the strings from the meat, and pour any accumulated juices into the sauce. Carve the beef into thick slices. If the slices crumble, which they sometimes will, just cut into irregular pieces and arrange on a platter. Spoon the sauce over the beef and serve.

RICH SOUR CREAM GRAVY

Steps:

• Pour drippings from the roast poultry into a 2-cup glass container. Skim off the fat.
• Return 1/4 cup of fat to roasting pan.Blend 2 tablespoons of flour into the fat in the pan.
• Cook and stir 1 to 2 minutes. Loosening bits crusty bits in pan.
• Add Worrcestershire sauce, basil, onion, salt and pepper to juices in the glass measuring cup.
• Add enough water to make 2 cups.
• Stir into mixture into roasting pan. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly
• Stir the remaining 2 tablespoons of flour into the sour cream.
• Gradually blend 1/2 cup of hot mixture into the sour cream. Stir the sour cream mixtujre into the gravy.
• Cook and stir until bubbly about 1 minute more.

SAUERBRATEN WITH SOUR CREAM GRAVY

Steps:

• GETTING READY 1) Clean the meat and remove the sinus and fat off. 2) In a large bowl, place the beef. 3) In a saucepan, combine onions, peppercorn, bay leaves, cloves, vinegar and water, bring to a boil. 4) Boil the onion mixture and cool. 5) Pour the onion mixture on the meat. 6) Add enough additional water to cover the meat. 7) Cover the bowl and refrigerate for 36 to 48 hours, turning meat each morning and night. MAKING 8) Remove the meat from the marinade and reserve the marinade. 9) Pierce the meat and insert the strips of salt pork. 10) In a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of oil and brown the meat on all sides. 11) Remove the meat and place in a pot. 12) In the same skillet, heat the remaining oil and brown the flour. 13) Add sugar, gingersnaps, salt and pepper, mono-sodium glutamate and 4 cups of marinade. 14) Simmer, stirring constantly for 5 to 10 minutes or until the mixture is smooth and creamy. 15) Pour the flour mixture over the meat in pot. 16) Cover and simmer for 2 to 2 ½ hours or until tender. 17) Baste frequently while cooking. FINALIZING 18) Add wine to the meat and cook for 30 minutes or until the meat is done. 19) Remove the meat from the pot and keep it warm. 20) Add the sour cream to the gravy just before serving. SERVING 21) Slice the meat and place on serving plate, spoon the sauce on it. 22) Serve potato dumpling on side if desired.

SAUERBRATEN

Steps:

• In a large saucepan over high heat combine the water, cider vinegar, red wine vinegar, onion, carrot, salt, pepper, bay leaves, cloves, juniper, and mustard seeds. Cover and bring this to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Set aside to cool.
• Pat the bottom round dry and rub with vegetable oil and salt on all sides. Heat a large saute pan over high heat; add the meat and brown on all sides, approximately 2 to 3 minutes per side.
• When the marinade has cooled to a point where you can stick your finger in it and not be burned, place the meat in a non-reactive vessel and pour over the marinade. Place into the refrigerator for 3 days. If the meat is not completely submerged in the liquid, turn it over once a day.
• After 3 days of marinating, preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
• Add the sugar to the meat and marinade, cover and place on the middle rack of the oven and cook until tender, approximately 4 hours.
• Remove the meat from the vessel and keep warm. Strain the liquid to remove the solids. Return the liquid to the pan and place over medium-high heat. Whisk in the gingersnaps and cook until thickened, stirring occasionally. Strain the sauce through a fine mesh sieve to remove any lumps. Add the raisins if desired. Slice the meat and serve with the sauce.