German Ribs with Sauerkraut

German Ribs with Sauerkraut is a specialty of the German county Rheinhessen and around Frankfurt and Aschaffenburg, served with mashed potatoes and a glass of Appelwoi (apple wine). This German dish can be ordered in every local restaurant. These kind of ribs are cured, cooked and look like pork chops. It is not Kassler which will be smoked after the curing process. German ribs are enjoyed warm with Sauerkraut and mashed potatoes or cold with potato salad, mustard and/or fresh rolls or bread.

Because it is very difficult to find the cured ribs in the USA I did some research and found a recipe which shows you how to cure pork ribs.

Go to the Recipe – How to Cure Ribs

Click here to find the Sauerkraut Recipe
How to make Sauerkraut at Home

Ingredients German Ribs with Sauerkraut

4 boiled pork ribs (with bone or de-boned)
600 g German Sauerkraut (Hengstenberg, Kühne)
1 onion
2-3 tbsp butter
250 ml apple wine (optional)
1 bay leave
10 black peppercorns
5 juniper berries
5 cloves
1 big potato (optional)
salt, sugar to taste

Cooking Instructions

– Peel onion, chop coarsely and saute in a big pan with some butter until transparent.
– Place Sauerkraut in a bowl and lose it up with a fork; add Sauerkraut to onions.
– Add apple wine or same amount of liquid such as water with some white wine vinegar or white wine.
– Place spices into a small cooking bag.
– Spice with salt and sugar to taste.
– Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and let simmer until soft (depending on the Sauerkraut this can be from 30 min to 1.5 hours)
– Grate the potato fine and add to Sauerkraut before the end of cooking time – this will thicken the Sauerkraut.
– Place ribs on top of the Sauerkraut, keep them in the covered pot until they are warmed up for about 3-6 min (depends on the thickness of the slices).

Serve with mashed potatoes and German mustard.