Getting In Touch with My Inner German

About author / Sarah Christine Bolton

Coffee addict; professional food writer; food fusion. Her slow cooker recipes go above and beyond your normal crockpot fare.

This summer, I have had quite a lot of free time on my hands. It’s been great to be able to get a lot of writing work done, and catch up on stuff like balancing my checkbook, cleaning my house, and grocery shopping (you know, all the “fun” stuff of life). However, lots of free time also means that I have the ability to spend way too much time on Google. Searching for random stuff. Like sauerbraten.

I honestly don’t even remember how I found the recipe, but somehow, it entered into my life and I became determined to cook it, eat it, and learn all about it.

At which point I remembered that I am one-quarter German. Perhaps my German side is tired of being ignored and overpowered by the Irish side (what can I say? I love beer, the color green and dancing!), and has decided to infiltrate my mind and take it over with thoughts of German food.

Or maybe I just randomly came across a recipe that looked good. Either way, I soon learned that the word sauerbraten is German (obviously!) and it means “sauer” (sour) and “braten” (braised meat). Whenever I think about German cuisine, I think rich, lots of stews, and beer. I realized that my image was completely stereotypical, so I set out on a journey to redefine what I believed about German food.

Sauerbraten was originally made from horse meat or venison, but today it’s definitely a good idea to use beef. From what I could find, there are two versions of Sauerbraten. One is the “Rhineland” variety where the meat is marinated in vinegar, sugar, seasonings of cloves and juniper cones, and braised (which essentially means it’s cooked in a closed dish in a good amount of liquid. Hm, sounds like a crockpot to me!). Raisins and crushed lebkuchen (ginger) spice cookies are used in the sauce.

As much as I like ginger cookies, I wasn’t so sure about using them on a meat dish. I try to be adventurous, but there are certain lines I’m unable to cross. So, I decided to try the Swabian sauerbraten. Swabia is a historic region and language in southwest Germany, near the border of France and Switzerland.

To make the Swabian version of sauerbraten, you marinate the meat in vinegar, water, salt, cloves, and bay leaf. The meat is cooked in a sauce of beef broth and white wine and served with Spätzle or dumplings. The Swabian version sounds more appetizing, and also, both Albert Einstein and the Mozart family were from Swabia. Hey, if it’s good enough for them, it’s good enough for the rest of us!

Like I mentioned a moment ago, I have some German in my family line, mostly from my great-grandmother (my grandmother’s mother). I once saw an old faded picture of her, standing tall and strong. I don’t really remember her, but I remember hearing stories about how much of a good cook she was, how strong she was, and how she kept her house spotless. I definitely got the strong-willed aspect of her personality (the spotless house not so much).

Hopefully, my German dish would have made her proud. Because my house cleanliness certainly wouldn’t have!

Serves/Makes: 4

• 1 pound beef roast
• 2 tablespoons oil
• 2 onions, chopped
• 1 cup chopped celery
• 1 cup apple cider vinegar
• 1 cup beef broth
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 2 teaspoons mustard seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 5 whole cloves
• 5 allspice berries
• 1 teaspoon black peppercorns
• 4 sprigs parsley
• 2 bay leaves