Skip to main content

Sauerkraut Braised in Wine

The combination of sauerkraut, juniper, and fruity wine is a divine one. You might as well use a German wine to be completely consistent. Best with pork, like Baeckoffe (page 399).

Recipe information

  • Yield

    makes 4 servings

Ingredients

2 tablespoons lard or neutral oil, like corn or grapeseed
1 1/2 to 2 pounds sauerkraut, rinsed
1 onion, sliced
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon juniper berries, crushed with the side of a knife
1 cup Gewürztraminer or Riesling, not too dry
Freshly ground black pepper to taste

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Heat the lard in a large skillet over medium heat until hot. Add the sauerkraut and onion and toss until the onion begins to wilt, 5 to 10 minutes. Add the remaining ingredients except the pepper, stir, and cook until some of the wine bubbles away, a minute or two.

    Step 2

    Cover, lower the heat, and cook until the sauerkraut is tender, about 30 minutes. Add a good grinding of black pepper and serve.

The Best Recipes in the World by Mark Bittman. © 2005 by Mark Bittman. Published by Broadway Books. All Rights Reserved. MARK BITTMAN is the author of the blockbuster The Best Recipes in the World (Broadway, 2005) and the classic bestseller How to Cook Everything, which has sold more than one million copies. He is also the coauthor, with Jean-Georges Vongerichten, of Simple to Spectacular and Jean-Georges: Cooking at Home with a Four-Star Chef. Mr. Bittman is a prolific writer, makes frequent appearances on radio and television, and is the host of The Best Recipes in the World, a 13-part series on public television. He lives in New York and Connecticut.
Read More
Like spicy carrot rigatoni and weeknight-fancy ravioli with peas.
Like lemony baked salmon and strawberry shortcake roll.
Turn humble onions into this thrifty yet luxe pasta dinner.
This one-pot dinner cooks chicken thighs directly on top of a bed of flavorful cilantro rice studded with black beans for a complete dinner.
Keep this easy frittata recipe on hand for quick breakfasts, impressive brunches, and fridge clean-out meals.
A warmly spiced Ashkenazi charoset, perfect for your Passover seder—or spooned over yogurt the next morning.
Crispy, Parmesan-crusted cutlets make this spring dish sing.
A feel-good dinner designed to cram a ton of veg in each serving.