Old Munich Sauerbraten(Clay-Pot)

Sauerbraten is Germany’s great sweet-and-sour pot roast, and this Munich version doesn’t cut corners. The beef round bathes in a spiced vinegar marinade, with juniper, cloves, bay, garlic and lemon, for ten days or more, turned twice a day. That long soak is the whole point. It tenderizes the meat and drives deep, tangy flavor right to the center.

After a hard sear, the beef braises in a presoaked clay pot, the German Roemertopf method that surrounds the meat with gentle, steamy heat for an exceptionally tender result. The reduced marinade, red wine, tomato and a bouillon cube become the braising liquid.

The sauce is the signature. Crushed gingersnap cookies melt in to thicken it and add warm spice, balanced with brown sugar and vinegar until it hits that classic sweet-sour note. Serve it sliced and blanketed in gravy over crisp German potato pancakes.

Chef Tips

• Don’t shortcut the marinade. The long soak, turned twice daily, is what tenderizes the beef and builds the sauerbraten flavor.
• Presoak the clay pot as directed, and always start it in a cold oven, since sudden heat can crack the pot.
• Reduce the marinade hard before it becomes the braising liquid. It concentrates flavor and tames the raw vinegar bite.
• Taste the finished sauce and balance it. It should be distinctly sweet and sour, so adjust the brown sugar and vinegar to suit.

Variations

• Use a chuck or rump roast in place of round steak for an even more tender braise.
• No clay pot? A heavy Dutch oven with a tight lid works well.
• Serve with spaetzle, egg noodles or red cabbage instead of, or alongside, the potato pancakes.