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Sauerbraten

4 servings

Ingredients

• 2.75 kg Beef, fatty tail piece or piece from the clod
• Beer vinegar (as needed)
• Bacon (a little)
• Salt (a little)
• Pepper (a little)
• Cloves (a little)
• Allspice (a little)
• Fat (plenty)
• 1 tbsp Flour
• 2 pcs Yellow carrots
• 3 pcs Bay leaves
• 3 pcs Onions, diced
• 1 pcs Dark bread crust
• 7 pcs Peppercorns
• 7 pcs Allspice berries
• 1 cup Sweet cream

Instructions

1. For Sauerbraten, a good, fatty tail piece or a piece from the middle of the clod is suitable.
2. Wash the meat, place it in beer vinegar for about 8 days, and turn daily.
3. Before roasting, pound it well; cut bacon strips about half a finger long, not too thin, roll them in crushed salt, pepper, cloves, and allspice, make incisions in the meat with a sharp knife, insert the strips, and sprinkle a little more salt over it.
4. In a wide, iron pot, heat plenty of fat until hot and yellow, place the meat in it, quickly evaporate any liquid that forms, and brown the meat dark yellow on all sides, turning it often and moving it back and forth.
5. Then, sprinkle 1 tablespoon of flour into the fat, allow it to brown as well, and quickly pour in enough boiling water to cover the meat halfway; close the pot immediately to prevent steam from escaping.
6. After 10 minutes, for a piece weighing 2½ to 3 kg, add 2 small yellow carrots, 3 to 4 bay leaves, 2 to 3 diced onions, a piece of dark bread crust, and 6 to 8 peppercorns and an equal number of allspice berries.
7. Close the pot tightly again, and let the meat simmer slowly for about 2½ hours, turning it once, lifting it occasionally without piercing it, and adding more boiling water if needed.
8. A cup of sweet cream makes the sauce particularly flavorful.
9. When serving, place the roast on a warmed platter and keep it warm until the sauce is ready.
10. If the sauce has reduced too much, thin it with a little water; if it is too sour, a cup of milk will help.
11. Strain the sauce through a sieve, bring it to a boil, and pour some over the roast, serving the rest in a gravy boat.

Modernized from a treasured 19th-century German cookbook.