Schäuferle (pork shoulder)

Vegetable bed

1. Peel and roughly chop the onions and place in a large casserole dish.
2. Peel and roughly chop the celery and add to the onions in the casserole dish.
3. Peel and roughly chop the carrots too and add to the casserole dish.
4. Remove the outer leaf skin from the leek and cut off the roots and the top half of the dark green part.
5. Rinse off any soil hidden between the leaves of the leek.
6. Roughly chop the cleaned leek and add to the rest of the vegetables in the casserole dish.
7. Add the vegetable stock to the onion, celery, carrot and leek pieces in the casserole dish.

Schäuferle in the oven

1. Grind the caraway seeds and mix with the salt and pepper.
2. Rub the washed and patted dry shanks all over with the caraway, salt and pepper mixture.
3. Place the seasoned shanks on the bed of vegetables in the casserole dish with the incised fat rind facing upwards.
4. Roast the shanks at 150° top heat for 15 minutes.
5. Pour about a third of the bottle of beer over the shanks and braise for a further 15 minutes.
6. Pour approx. one third of the bottle of beer over the shanks a second time and braise for a further 15 minutes.
7. Pour in the rest of the beer a third time and leave the shanks to braise for another 15 minutes.
8. Increase the top heat to 180° and roast the shanks for a further 30 minutes until the rind is nicely browned and crispy.
9. If necessary, continue to braise the Schäuferle at 120° top heat until the meat is soft and no more reddish juice comes out at the thickest part of the Schäuferle when the needle test is carried out.
10. Remove the Schäuferle from the casserole dish onto a cold baking tray and leave to rest in the switched-off oven for approx. 1o minutes.

Schäuferle sauce

1. Strain the vegetables and beer stock through a sieve into a pan.
2. Squeeze out the vegetables well with a soup ladle.
3. Reduce the sauce, season to taste and serve with the shanks.