Whether it’s ‘kraut on a Reuben sandwich, or an elaborate choucroute garnie, pork with fermented cabbage is an enduring pairing. This delicious one-dish meal: Thick pork chops in apple studded Bavarian sauerkraut with dumpling-like pillows of soaked bread and a sprinkling of caraway, is a play on the best of those traditions.
Appreciation for such dishes is long-lived in my family. When my Dad was a young boy in the 1930s, transforming a big barrel of slivered, salted cabbage into naturally fermented sauerkraut was an annual family endeavor. Grandma Lydia and Grandpa Al sliced big heads of the fresh, green chou into the barrel, and scattered salt in measured handfuls while Dad and his brother Emil mashed it all down with a huge wooden pestle. Weighted down, the mixture would mellow in its juices over time, to be paired with pork in one or another family meal preparations.
When I received a reader request from a woman trying to replicate a dish her great aunt Caroline used to make with bread, pork chops, sauerkraut, and apples, I set to work to create this dish. I use Bavarian sauerkraut because it’s more mild other varieties I’ve tried and doesn’t require rinsing. That, plus thick-cut pork chops with a nice fat cap on them, a fresh onion, good crusty bread (I like ciabatta or pugliese), and firm, tart-sweet apples (I used Michigan Evercrisp.) The sprinkling of caraway seeds is optional but adds a wonderful flavor accent. Continue Reading…
