Name: Oven-Roasted Pork Knuckle (Schweinshaxe)
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 170 min
Total time: 200 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: German
Ingredients: 2 pork knuckles (hind hocks) (about 1 kg each); 4 l water; 1 tbsp salt (omit for cured knuckles); 1 tsp caraway seeds; 1 bunch soup vegetables, cleaned and roughly chopped; 1 onion, halved unpeeled; 2 bay leaves; 1 tsp black peppercorns; 4 cloves garlic, crushed; 1 tbsp salt; 2 tsp caraway seeds (ground or crushed in a mortar); 3 tbsp lard (for the roasting tin); 500 g pork bones, chopped small (ask the butcher)

Preparation

Bring the water to the boil in a large pot with the salt, caraway, soup vegetables, onion, bay leaves and peppercorns. Add the washed knuckles, bring back to the boil and skim off the scum that rises.
Simmer the knuckles over low heat for 60 to 90 minutes, until the rind is soft. Lift them out of the liquor and let them drain briefly; keep the liquor.
Preheat the oven to 190 °C fan. Score the rind of the knuckles in a diamond pattern with a sharp knife, across the grain.
Mix the garlic, salt and caraway and rub the knuckles all over with it.
Grease the roasting tin with lard, put the bones in and add a splash of water. Place the knuckles on the rack and slide it over the tin so the fat does not drip into the oven.
Roast for about 90 minutes, basting now and then with a little of the liquor. For the last 10 minutes switch on the grill until the rind has puffed up crisp.
Serve with sauerkraut and bread rolls or potato salad. Pour the remaining liquor through a sieve, skim off the fat and keep it as stock for stews or sauces.

Drink with it

Herbal liqueur · excellent match
Herbal liqueur or digestif bitter, neat and well chilled, after the meal
Bitter compounds and caraway and herbal spice cut the pork fat on the palate and tie in with the caraway aroma of the crust.
What is Amaro? Understanding Italian bitter liqueurs
Dark beer · excellent match
Munich Dunkel or Dunkelbock, freshly drawn
Roasted malt and light malt sweetness pick up the crackling rind, and the carbonation cuts through the fat; in Bavaria this is the beer for knuckle.
Which beer goes with food? More than just pils with barbecue
Pale lager · good match
Helles, freshly drawn
Mild malt sweetness and light bitterness refresh after each bite of crackling roast.
Pils or Helles: What's the Difference?
White wine · good match
Dry Riesling or Silvaner
Strong acidity balances the fat and suits sauerkraut as a side.
Which wine pairs with food? A simple approach to choosing

Why it pairs well

Classically a dark beer goes with the knuckle; the herbal liqueur comes after the meal as a digestif and makes the heavy meal easier to digest.

Preparation

Bring the water to the boil in a large pot with the salt, caraway, soup vegetables, onion, bay leaves and peppercorns. Add the washed knuckles, bring back to the boil and skim off the scum that rises.
Simmer the knuckles over low heat for 60 to 90 minutes, until the rind is soft. Lift them out of the liquor and let them drain briefly; keep the liquor.
Preheat the oven to 190 °C fan. Score the rind of the knuckles in a diamond pattern with a sharp knife, across the grain.
Mix the garlic, salt and caraway and rub the knuckles all over with it.
Grease the roasting tin with lard, put the bones in and add a splash of water. Place the knuckles on the rack and slide it over the tin so the fat does not drip into the oven.
Roast for about 90 minutes, basting now and then with a little of the liquor. For the last 10 minutes switch on the grill until the rind has puffed up crisp.
Serve with sauerkraut and bread rolls or potato salad. Pour the remaining liquor through a sieve, skim off the fat and keep it as stock for stews or sauces.

Drink with it

Herbal liqueur · excellent match
Herbal liqueur or digestif bitter, neat and well chilled, after the meal
Bitter compounds and caraway and herbal spice cut the pork fat on the palate and tie in with the caraway aroma of the crust.
What is Amaro? Understanding Italian bitter liqueurs
Dark beer · excellent match
Munich Dunkel or Dunkelbock, freshly drawn
Roasted malt and light malt sweetness pick up the crackling rind, and the carbonation cuts through the fat; in Bavaria this is the beer for knuckle.
Which beer goes with food? More than just pils with barbecue
Pale lager · good match
Helles, freshly drawn
Mild malt sweetness and light bitterness refresh after each bite of crackling roast.
Pils or Helles: What's the Difference?
White wine · good match
Dry Riesling or Silvaner
Strong acidity balances the fat and suits sauerkraut as a side.
Which wine pairs with food? A simple approach to choosing

Why it pairs well

Classically a dark beer goes with the knuckle; the herbal liqueur comes after the meal as a digestif and makes the heavy meal easier to digest.

Oven-Roasted Pork Knuckle (Schweinshaxe)

Preparation

Drink with it

Herbal liqueur or digestif bitter, neat and well chilled, after the meal

Munich Dunkel or Dunkelbock, freshly drawn

Helles, freshly drawn

Dry Riesling or Silvaner

This pairs well too.

Goose Legs with Apple Red Cabbage (Gänsekeulen mit Apfelrotkohl)

Rhenish Sauerbraten (Marinated Pot Roast)

Bangers and Mash with Onion Gravy

Bigos (Polish hunter's stew)

Oven-Roasted Pork Knuckle (Schweinshaxe)

Preparation

Drink with it

Herbal liqueur or digestif bitter, neat and well chilled, after the meal

Munich Dunkel or Dunkelbock, freshly drawn

Helles, freshly drawn

Dry Riesling or Silvaner

This pairs well too.

Goose Legs with Apple Red Cabbage (Gänsekeulen mit Apfelrotkohl)

Rhenish Sauerbraten (Marinated Pot Roast)

Bangers and Mash with Onion Gravy

Bigos (Polish hunter's stew)