Crispy pork shoulder / Schäufele with side dishes from the Roman pot

Ingredients for 4 servings:

• 1.2 kg pork shoulder or shoulder with rind and bone
• 1 kg potatoes, peeled and sliced, approx. 1 – 2 cm thick
• 4 large carrots, peeled and also in thick slices
• 2 large onions, peeled and cut into half rings, not too finely, rather coarsely
• 3 clove(s) garlic, just peeled
• ½ tsp caraway seeds, whole
• 500 ml vegetable stock, beef or roast stock, strong (alternatively granulated stock)
• 3 tsp mustard
• n. B. Salt and pepper, from the mill

Instructions

Working time approx. 15 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 4 hours; Total time approx. 4 hours 15 minutes

no turning, no watering

Soak the Roman pot in water for a long time while preparing the vegetables and cut crosswise into the meat on the rind side. Don’t make the rectangles too large – a side length of 1 cm is optimal, as it will cut more easily afterwards – and don’t cut all the way into the meat, but rather as deep as the fat layer is. The easiest way is to use a knife to score only the tough, outer skin and then carefully cut again until just before the meat. Season the meat on all sides except the skin side with pepper, salt, and spread with mustard. Place the vegetables in the bottom of the pot, creating a hollow in the middle. Place the meat (rind facing up) in there and sprinkle the caraway seeds over it. Rub the rind well with salt – including the cuts. Pour in the stock/broth, but not over the meat. It should be at least half submerged in the broth. Be careful not to overfill the pot; leave at least 4 cm to the rim, otherwise it could boil over. Then place it in the oven at 120°C with the lid on for 3 hours; if it takes 4, it doesn’t matter. Remove the lid, add a little more salt to the rind, and increase the oven temperature to 160°C. Bake for another hour or so, checking halfway through to make sure the crust isn’t over-browning. When it’s nice and bubbly and crispy, use a knife to see if the meat is easily falling off the bone—it should now be buttery soft and practically falling off the bone. Don’t worry, it won’t dry out in the clay pot. Remove the earthenware pot from the oven. Fish out the potatoes and place them in a casserole dish. Let them crisp up briefly in the 250°C oven. Be careful not to burn them. In the meantime, season the sauce, add salt and pepper if desired, and simply let the roast rest, covered, until the potatoes are browned. It takes time, but you don’t have to do anything during that time, and you’ll be rewarded with wonderfully tender meat.