Traditional German Sauerbraten is paired with German cabbage and mashed potatoes, using a delicious sauce like gravy for meat and potatoes. Be sure to provide some soft dough bread, like muffins or beer bread (made with German beer, of course) to soak up the thick sweet and sour sauce.
Sauerbraten is one of Germany's national dishes, and this version is the most authentic thing I can do. The taste is absolutely amazing, it tastes like the sauerkraut I ate in Germany. Sauerbraten is most commonly made with beef, but it can also be made with roast lamb, pork, or even venison. It doesn't matter, as we all know, sauerkraut was once made from horse meat, and today there are still some places that can be obtained this way.
Traditional Sauerbraten Recipe
Ingredients:
3 pounds beef rump roast
2 large onions, chopped
1 cup red wine vinegar, or to taste
1 cup water
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon ground black pepper
1 tablespoon white sugar
10 whole cloves, or more to taste
2 bay leaves, or more to taste
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
salt and ground black pepper to taste
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
10 gingersnap cookies, crumbled
Directions:
Put the roast beef, onion, vinegar, water, 1 tablespoon of salt, 1 tablespoon of black pepper, sugar, cloves, and bay leaves in a large pot. Cover the lid and refrigerate for 2 to 3 days, turning the meat daily. Remove the meat from the marinade and pat dry with a paper towel, keeping the marinade.
Season the flour with salt and black pepper in a large bowl. Sprinkle the flour mixture over the meat.
Heat vegetable oil in a large Dutch oven or pot over medium heat; cook beef until brown on all sides, about 10 minutes. Pour reserved marinade over beef, cover, and reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer until beef is tender, 3 1/2 to 4 hours. Remove beef to a platter and slice.
Strain solids from the remaining liquid and continue cooking over medium heat. Add gingersnap cookies and simmer until gravy is thickened for about 10 minutes. Serve gravy over sliced beef.