An unassuming regional dish of sauerkraut with various charcuterie meats—sausage, duck confit, salt pork—garnered three stars for the restaurant L’Auberge de l’Ill, located on the banks of the River Ill in picturesque Alsace, and made both the specialty, choucroute garnie, and the restaurant classics in the world of European haute cuisine. It’s one of my favorite composed pork dishes, and I often cook a simple but still lusty version of it with robust Polish sausage. If you’d like to make it more elaborate, add baby back ribs baked until half done and/or the cured duck legs without the Toulouse sausage stuffing (page 35) to the sauerkraut. The juniper berries lend a clear, piney fragrance. If you don’t have any on hand, 1 tablespoon of good gin, the spirit they flavor, can be substituted.
Recipe information
Yield
serves 6
Ingredients
Sauerkraut
Potatoes
Preparation
Step 1
Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Step 2
To make the sauerkraut, melt 2 tablespoons of the butter in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add the salt pork and sauté until barely beginning to turn golden, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the onions, stir to coat them well, and sauté until they are softened but not browned, about 6 minutes. Stir in the caraway, peppercorns, juniper, thyme, and sauerkraut, mixing with a fork to separate the sauerkraut strands. Add the wine and broth and bring to a boil over high heat. Transfer the contents of the sauté pan to a large ovensafe pan or clay pot, cover, and bake, stirring once or twice, until lightly brown around the edges, about 1 hour.
Step 3
Meanwhile, in the same sauté pan used for the onions, melt the remaining 2 tablespoons butter over medium heat. Add the sausages and sauté until golden all around, 4 to 5 minutes. Set aside.
Step 4
When the sauerkraut has cooked for 1 hour, add the sausages, pressing them in so they are well embedded. Decrease the oven heat to 325°F, cover, and continue cooking until most of the liquid has evaporated, about 30 minutes.
Step 5
While the sauerkraut and sausages finish cooking, prepare the potatoes. Place them in a large pot, add water to cover generously and a teaspoon or so of salt, and bring to a boil over high heat. Decrease the heat to maintain a brisk simmer and cook until they can be pierced all the way through, 10 to 15 minutes. Drain the potatoes, return them to the pot, and add the butter and parsley. Without stirring, cover the pot and set aside in a warm place.
Step 6
To serve, present the sauerkraut in the clay pot, if you used one, or spoon it onto a platter. Gently stir the potatoes, season them with salt, and serve them in a separate bowl on the side.
