Swabian Sauerbraten with Spätzle

Ingredients for 8 servings:

• 2 kg roast beef
• 1 ½ bottles of red wine vinegar (e.g. Altmeister wine-spiced)
• 1 liter of water
• 10 bay leaves
• 8 juniper berries
• 8 cloves
• 3 onions
• lots of sauce thickener
• e.g. salt and pepper
• 5 eggs, size M
• 500 g wheat flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 220 ml water, lukewarm

Instructions

Working time approx. 1 hour 30 minutes; Rest period approx. 3 days; Cooking/baking time approx. 3 hours 30 minutes; Total time approx. 3 days 5 hours

First, wash the roast thoroughly and place it in a large bowl. If you want to shorten the resting time or if you want the meat to marinate more, cut the meat into larger pieces and then add it to the bowl. Roughly chop the onions into rings and add them to the meat along with the cloves, bay leaves, and juniper berries. Then add the vinegar and water, stirring briefly to ensure everything is mixed and the meat is submerged in the liquid. Cover the bowl with a lid, making sure it’s as airtight as possible, and store the meat in a cool, dark place for about 3 days. If possible, turn the meat once a day. After the resting time, remove the meat from the liquid and discard the spices and onions. Brown the meat in a pot over high heat on all sides and set aside. Add the vinegar and water mixture the roast was marinating in to the pot and heat it up. You can add half of the gravy thickener at this point. However, since liquid is lost during simmering, do not add the entire amount. Add the roast to the pot along with some of the spices and onions from the pickling process. If you want a more intense flavor, you can also use a fresh onion and spices. I advise against using cloves, however, unless you want to strain the sauce or are particularly careful while eating, as biting into cloves is particularly disgusting. Let the roast and sauce simmer for several hours. Shortly before eating, add the remaining sauce thickener. Add a little water or vinegar, depending on your taste. For the spaetzle, mix all the ingredients into a dough. Knead the mixture for several minutes and then let it rest for 10 minutes. Then, using a spaetzle grater, such as the Spätzleria from Tupperware, process the dough into spaetzle in boiling salted water. Serve the roast, sauce, and spaetzle with the meal. As an additional side dish, we recommend a cucumber salad dressed with vinegar, water, salt, and pepper.