Sauerbraten

Total Time: 76 hrs Preparation Time: 72 hrs Cook Time: 4 hrs

Ingredients

• 5 lbs rump roast (top or bottom)
• salt
• 3 cups vinegar
• 1 large onion, peeled and sliced
• 2 bay leaves
• 6 cloves
• 8 peppercorns
• 1 tablespoon pickling spices
• 1 large carrot, peeled and sliced
• 4 slices bacon (save the grease for making "red cabbage" recipe)
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 large onions, diced
• 1 additional bay leaf
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 3 tablespoons flour

Recipe

• 1 tie beef with string in several places to hold its shape. rub entire beef with salt and place in a deep, close-fitting glass or earthenware bowl.
• 2 in saucepan combine vinegar, 1 onion, 2 bay leaves, cloves, peppercorns, pickling spices and carrot. bring to a boil and simmer 5 minutes. cool and pour over beef. meat should be entirely covered by marinade. (if not, add equal parts of vinegar and water to cover.) cover and refrigerate 3 - 6 days. turn at least once daily.
• 3 remove meat from marinade. strain marinade and reserve. dry meat well. (it will not brown properly if wet.) dice bacon and fry slowly in butter in 5-qt. dutch oven or casserole. when fat is hot, add meat. brown quickly on all sides in uncovered pan.
• 4 remove meat and add diced onion to brown, stirring frequently to avoid burning. return meat to pot.
• 5 add marinade until it reaches halfway up sides of meat. add bay leaf. bring marinade to a boil, cover pot tightly, reduce heat and summer very slowly but steadily for 3.5 - 4 hours turning 2 or 3 times during cooking. add more marinade to pot if necessary. (if meat tastes too strong, dilute marinade with water during cooking.).
• 6 meat is done when pierced easily with long fork or skewer. serve with swabian noodles (spatzle) and red cabbage (rotkohl).