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Braised Pork and Sauerkraut
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4.80 from 5 votes

Braised Pork and Sauerkraut

Pork ribs braised in a low, slow oven with sauerkraut and brown sugar. Serve with mashed potatoes for Sunday dinner on a cold winter night.
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time3 hours
Total Time3 hours 10 minutes
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 479kcal

Ingredients

  • 3 - 4 pounds pork ribs, preferably on the bone, country style or spareribs (if needed, cut into 2 to 3-piece rib sections)
  • 3 - 4   cans Bavarian style sauerkraut (it's sweeter and has caraway seeds) 14 oz each
  • Brown sugar (about 1 to 2 cups)
  • Kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 300º.  Trim any excess fat from the ribs.
  • In a large dutch oven, put 1 can of sauerkraut, with juices, into the pot and spread along the bottom.  Place one layer of pork ribs on top of sauerkraut.  Season with salt and pepper.  Add another can of sauerkraut over the ribs.  Sprinkle generously with brown sugar.  Repeat with another layer of pork ribs, salt and pepper, another can of sauerkraut.  Top with brown sugar. (So I did two layers of pork and 3 cans of kraut.  You may want or need another can of sauerkraut.  Just adjust to your amount and size of ribs and pot.)
  • Add water to the side of the ribs, enough so liquid comes ¾ of the way up the pork and kraut, I added about ½ can of water.  Cover pot with lid.
  • Place in middle of oven and braise for 2½ - 3 hours, until pork is very tender when pierced.  You can remove the lid the last 15 - 30 minutes if you want the top more brown.
  • Remove from oven and skim any fat from the top.  Serve with mashed potatoes, and maybe apple sauce (not baked beans!).

Notes

  • You can use spare ribs, back ribs, country ribs, pork shoulder ~ they all work.  I used meaty pork loin back ribs in these photos.
  • I used over 5 pounds in this recipe, two layers in a large Dutch oven.
  • Sometimes I add a little extra caraway seed, totally optional.  I prefer Frank's Bavarian-style kraut for this recipe, which has caraway in it.
  • The amount of brown sugar is your preference.  I just eyeball it and sprinkle away, maybe a cup or so, total.  You don't want it too sweet!

Nutrition

Calories: 479kcal | Carbohydrates: 9g | Protein: 26g | Fat: 37g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 6g | Monounsaturated Fat: 14g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 127mg | Sodium: 1487mg | Potassium: 734mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 37IU | Vitamin C: 30mg | Calcium: 85mg | Iron: 4mg