Hi JJ
I have the recipes ready to post . The part about curing of the meat, I suggest to look up the post from Dave Omak, which I thought was "right on" It can be found in the curing section under "How much Instacure to use"
Is it OK to do that?
Below I pasted the 3 recipes, I hope it is not too long-winded. I will post a couple of pictures in a different post, am afraid that if I do it now, it will mess up the formatting.
DieterR
Brine for curing the pork shank (Eisbein):
I suggest to use the formula and the instructions which Dave Omak posted in the forum in response to my question. “How much Instacure#1 to use for curing meat” This is an excellent post and is easy to understand and to follow.
Make sure the curing takes place in a refrigerator at just over freezing point, or around 34° F. I like to keep the meat cold.
Once the meat went through the curing time, it is ready to be cooked. I prefer to freshen the meat in cold water for 1-2 hours to remove some of the salt. (Optional)
You can cook the “Eisbein” in a regular pot, I prefer to use a pressure cooker which cuts the time in about half.
Depending what size pot you use and how much meat you cook at a time you may need varying amount of cooking liquid. In my pressure cooker I make sure that the meat is fully covered with liquid, plus some for evaporation during the cooking cycle. Keeping the meat covered allows the flavors to be soaked up in the whole chunk of meat.
Most people just use water and add the ingredients which I will list below. I use half low sodium chicken broth and half water. I just feel that the chicken broth adds a little flavor.........your choice.
Eisbein
"Eisbein" is a salt-cured pig knuckle that is simmered for several hours in broth and then served with sauerkraut and pureed peas and boiled potatoes. It is a specialty in Berlin and is a favorite for tourists in restaurants. Because it is simmered, it is not crispy on the outside. Eisbein can be made at home with simple ingredients and great results.
Eisbein can also be prepared from none cured pork shank using the same recipe and procedure. A good spicy mustard goes good with the uncured style. I like it both ways, but the curing of the meat adds another level of flavor to the meat.
Pork shank is the part of the leg right under the picnic roast, can be from the front or hind leg of the pork. An Eisbein is normally a slice of the leg about 2 ½” thick. You can ask the butcher to cut up a shank, or you can cook the whole shank. Your choice….
You can cook the Eisbein, which is what I am describing here, or you can add another process and roast the cooked Eisbein or shank in the oven, very delicious also. For now let’s stay just with the cooked version and the side dishes…..boiled potatoes, sauerkraut and yellow peas puree.
Brine for curing the pork shank (eisbein):
I suggest to use the formula and the instructions which Dave Omak posted in the forum in response to my question. “How much Instacure#1 to use for curing meat” This is an excellent post and easy to understand and follow.
Make sure the curing takes place in a refrigerator at just over freezing point, or around 34° F. I like to keep the meat cold.
Once the meat went through the curing time, it is ready to be cooked. I prefer to freshen the meat in cold water for 1-2 hours to remove some of the salt.
You can cook the “Eisbein” in a regular pot, I prefer to use a pressure cooker which cuts the time in about half.
Depending what size pot you use and how much meat you cook at a time you may need varying amounts of cooking liquid. In my pressure cooker I make sure that the meat is fully covered with liquid, plus some for evaporation during the cooking cycle. This way the meat can absorb all the flavors from the ingredients
Most people just use water and add the ingredients which I will list below. I use half low sodium chicken broth and half water. I just feel that the chicken broth adds a little to the flavor………your choice
Ingredients list for cooking solution:
3-4 liters of water or chicken broth, or mixed for about 3 1/2- 4 1/2 pounds of pork shank
1 very large onion, or two medium cut up into chunks
10-15 cloves of garlic, chopped or sliced
4-6 bay leafs
3-4 cloves
1 ½ tsp. juniper berries crushed
1 1/2 tsp. of caraway seeds
1 tsp. of peppercorns crushed
Do not add any salt as the cured meat will give up plenty of salt during cooking.
Options:
Some people add a little sugar, others add some carrots, or celery sticks
Some others add Allspice, but I have not tried that……….too many directions for my taste.
Process:
Place the meat into the pot or pressure cooker. I place mine on a trivet or something to keep it off the bottom.
Add all ingredients
Put the liquid to your pot making sure the meat is well covered, plus some for evaporation during cooking.
Turn on your heat and wait for the pressure to build and the bobber to start bobbing.
Write down the start time and let it cook for 80-90 minutes, depending on the size and thickness of the meat (I normally cook about 3 1/2 - 4 1/2 pounds. Once the time is reached, I let the pressure cooker cool down about 10-15 minutes before I open the lid.
That is all there is to it, unless you want to go on and make it a roasted crispy shank, where the skin get deliciously crispy, but that is for another day.
You can prepare the side dishes, Sauerkraut and Yellow Peas Puree ahead of time as they can always be reheated again.
Try to serve some of the cooking broth in a side dish, or in a cup.
Now on to the Sauerkraut Recipe and the Pea Puree
Sauerkraut (a must with Eisbein)
This is the way my mother made it. We still make it the same way. Many people wonder if they should try Sauerkraut, because they might have tried it before, but straight out of the can. This recipe is different, once they try this, they ask for the recipe. It is very easy to make.
Ingredients:
1 32oz. jar of deli (German or Polish) sauerkraut, use it as is. Many markets carry it these days. If using American sauerkraut, dump all water and rinse, squeeze out the water. German or Polish sauerkraut does not need rinsing, it is milder. For cooking later, you can add some water, just enough liquid for simmering, but not to make it soupy.
1 Large onion diced, about ¾” pieces
Some more onion to sauté with the bacon, chopped somewhat fine
4 strips of bacon cut to about ¾’ pieces
1 medium to large size apple, peeled and cut into 6 pieces, or equivalent amount of applesauce (about 1 cup)
1 tsp of caraway seeds put directly into the pot
Put the next 3 ingredients into a cheese cloth packet for easy removal after cooking the kraut
5 Juniper berries
6 pepper corns
1 bay leaf
Optional:
½ -1 glass of white wine
A little sugar, but not so much as to not make the sauerkraut sweet, just enough to overcome the sourness a little, perhaps ¼- ½ tsp.
Process:
Fry the bacon, get rid of grease, add some chopped onions and sauté together, until golden, not brown, add all other ingredients from above and mix well with sauerkraut.
Bring to a slow boil and simmer for about 20 minutes or until desired doneness reached. Do not overcook and end up with a soup. The sauerkraut still has to have a texture to it (bite)
Serve it along with Eisbein as a side dish, it also goes good with many other dishes, like any smoked pork, ribs, bratwurst and the likes. Also, you can pour some of the tasty juice on your plate and mash it with the potatoes. Enjoy
Yellow Pea puree (a must as a side dish with Eisbein)
Ingredients:
250 g
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Yellow split peas, if hard to find, could use green peas instead, but it will not taste as the yellow peas do.
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1
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Medium onion,
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2
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Garlic cloves
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2 twigs
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Marjoram, or could substitute some oregano powder, or fresh twigs, be careful as it has a strong taste
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2
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bayleafs
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2 Tbsp.
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Olive oil
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1 1/2 Tbsp.
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Lemon juice
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4 Tbsp.
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Whipping crèam (not whipped)
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Wash the peas in cold water, drain and place into a pot, cover with water, and bring to a boil. If there is foam, remove it. Add the onion, garlic, marjoram and bay leafs. Let everything boil for about an hour or until the peas are really soft. (You may want to use a simmer plate under the pot to prevent burning the peas to the bottom.)
Remove the onion, garlic, Bay leafs and Marjoram twigs. Dump any liquid (water) left in the pot and puree the peas as you add the whipping crèam and olive oil. In case the peas are kind of soupy, stir in some thickening powder. Add salt, pepper (white if you have it) and lemon juice to taste.
Some people top the puree with some golden sautéed onion rings (optional)
