Rhenish Sauerbraten à la Chrissi

Ingredients for 4 servings:

• 1 kg roast beef, well hung
• 3 onions
• 1 tbsp peppercorns, black
• 5 bay leaves
• 7 carnations
• 2 tbsp mustard seeds
• 1 bunch of soup vegetables
• 750 ml water
• 750 ml vinegar (red wine vinegar)
• 1 cup(s) raisins
• 4 tbsp jelly (currant jelly)
• 4 tbsp beetroot syrup (Grafschafter Goldsaft)
• ½ pack of gingerbread (Aachen herb printen or special sauce printen)
• salt and pepper
• Clarified butter, for frying

Instructions

Working time approx. 45 minutes; Rest period approx. 3 days; Total time approx. 3 days 45 minutes

This delicious Sauerbraten is always a hit, even though it’s not made with horsemeat! Tip: If you want to serve the roast on Sunday, you should prepare the marinade and marinate the meat on Wednesday evening. To make the marinade, put the bay leaves, mustard seeds, cloves, peppercorns, red wine vinegar, water, sliced ​​onions, and the washed and chopped soup vegetables into a large saucepan. Bring everything to a boil briefly, then simmer for about 5 minutes to allow the spices and vegetables to develop their aromas. Then let the marinade cool. In the meantime, rinse the meat under running water and dry thoroughly. Now pour the cold marinade and the meat into a sufficiently large freezer bag (about 3 liters should be enough) and seal it with a clip. To be on the safe side, I then transferred the meat to a second freezer bag and sealed it with another clip. Then the marinated meat goes into the fridge and is turned over occasionally until Sunday morning. On Sunday, the contents of the bag are poured into a fine sieve to collect the vinegar marinade, which you will need later for the gravy. The vegetables and spices can be discarded. In a large roasting pan, heat the clarified butter until very hot and sear the meat all over. Once the roast has a nice brown surface, baste it frequently with the reserved marinade to create the delicious dark gravy. Now you can let the roast simmer slowly at a low temperature. Little by little, add the beetroot syrup, the blackcurrant jelly, the raisins, and finally the herb printen. If the gravy is still too thin despite the printen, you can combine liquid cream and flour to thicken the gravy. Then, let the roast simmer for at least two hours at medium heat (approx. 170°-180°C), until it’s tender as butter. Once the roasting time is over, slice the beef (careful, you can hardly call it slicing, it’s so tender!). Serve with dumplings and wonderfully delicious red cabbage à la Ännibell.