Pork & Sauerkraut

This is kind of a pork weekend, right? Brats on the grill. Maybe a little pulled pork action.

Speaking of brats. I'm sure you're totally annoyed with the Hillshire Farms commercials ("When I say Hillshire, you say Farms..."). But the one for "with the Miller High Life cooked in" brats got me going a little. I love Miller High Life, so they totally snagged me and duped me into buying them. We had them on Monday night topped with a mountain of sauerkraut. They were delicious, but I have no idea what maniac would be able to actually taste the Miller High Life. I couldn't even taste beer let alone the brand. Regardless, I recommend.

Back to the story here...If you're not planning on having some big cook out this weekend and are looking for a more refined way to satisfy your craving for dogs and kraut, try this out. We really like the flavors of this dish and felt especially German eating it. You could go all out and serve it with a side of potatoes, but this here dish isn't exactly healthy so we opted for some fresh green beans instead. By the way, it's a wonderful idea for all the leftover sauerkraut you end up having from just feeding two people dogs and kraut, because even a mountain of kraut on each dog doesn't use up even half the container. Another tip. If you don't have caraway seeds in the cupboard, I've seen cans of kraut that have caraway seeds in it. Saves you from having to buy the spice.

Have a lovely holiday weekend!



Pork & Sauerkraut
Adapted from The New York Times

2 slices thick bacon
2 pork chops (bone-in or boneless - I used boneless)
1 small onion, sliced
1 can of sauerkraut
1/2 tablespoon caraway seeds
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1 cup beer
Coarse salt to taste

1. In a heavy skillet, fry the bacon until golden. Remove and drain on paper towels. Brown both sides of the chops in the bacon fat and add the onion. Saute onion for a few minutes until softened. Add the sauerkraut, the bacon, caraway seeds and pepper to the pan. Cover the chops well with the sauerkraut.

2. Add the beer, bring to boil, turn down heat and simmer gently for 20 minutes, or until the pork chops are cooked.

3. Serve by stacking bacon on top of chops followed by a generous mound of kraut and onions.