East Westphalian-Lippe style sausage porridge

Ingredients for 20 servings:

• 1,800 g pork knuckle(s), meat portion approx. 1,100 g
• 1,000 g leg(s), beef, meat content approx. 750 g
• 250 g bacon, fat, unsmoked
• 800 g onion(s)
• 2 bay leaves
• 6 allspice berries
• 6 juniper berries
• 50 g celeriac, diced
• 50 g leek, finely chopped
• 3 ½ liters of water
• 750 g pearl barley, medium
• n. B. smoked salt
• n. B. Pepper, ground, white and black
• e.g. Allspice, ground
• 1 tbsp marjoram, dried, ground or shredded
• 1 tbsp thyme, dried, ground or shredded
• 1 tsp clove powder
• 1 tsp mugwort
• 1 tsp lovage
• 2 tbsp vinegar, alternatively Balsamic vinegar
• 3 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

Instructions

Working time approx. 2 hours; Cooking/baking time approx. 2 hours; Total time approx. 4 hours

Without innards

Place the pork hocks, leg slices, and bacon in the cold water with the roughly diced onions, bay leaves, allspice berries, and juniper berries and simmer for about 1 hour, until the meat easily separates from the bones. Remove the meat and rinds, along with the bacon, onions, celery, and spices, from the broth, cut into suitable pieces, and mince, using a meat grinder with a medium slice of about 4 mm. Remove any remaining marrow from the beef bones and add it to the meat mash. Return the ground mash to the broth. Add the pearl barley and cook/simmer on low heat for another 45 minutes. Caution: The mash can quickly stick to the bottom of the pot or even burn, so stir occasionally. If necessary, add more water in small portions to give the pearl barley some time to swell. I added a whole liter. The porridge shouldn’t be watery or soupy, so it’s best to use water sparingly at first. After cooking, add salt and season generously with the remaining spices. Pepper and allspice are most important, as are the acidic notes of Worcestershire sauce and/or vinegar. Simmer for another 15-20 minutes. The sausage porridge can be stored in the refrigerator for several days and tastes best when reheated in a pan. It’s okay if it sticks to the sides of the pan and browns. Serve with boiled potatoes, pickled cucumbers, and/or pickled beets. Freezing is also possible without any problem. It used to be preserved in jars. Sausage porridge is a specialty from my East Westphalian homeland. Unfortunately, this style is almost impossible to find outside of the region, so I’ve made several attempts to recreate it. Finally, I think the result was good enough to share. I hope other “Westphalians in exile” will appreciate it, too. Anyone who dares to pass by this very “special” sight will be treated to a wonderfully hearty and spicy autumn and winter meal.