Hearty Sauerkraut Soup

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Hearty Sauerkraut soup with beef and pork

Ingredients:

• 800g (or enough to cover the bottom of the pot) of oxtail
• 800g cold smoked bacon bones
• 1 large brown onion (diced)
• 5 cloves of garlic (crushed)
• 2 medium carrots (sliced in thick slices)
• 1 can of canned tomatoes
• 400 g sauerkraut
• 5 black peppers
• 3 bay leaves
• 1/2 tsp dried thyme
• 1/2 tsp dried caraway seeds
• 8 dried Boletus mushrooms (optional)
• 1 tbsp grated parsley root (optional)

Preparation:

1. Heat the oven (or your charcoal BBQ) to 200C
2. Heat a large pan with a dash of oil until it’s really hot and brown the oxtail
3. Once browned - take the meat out and put aside
4. Reduce the heat (add another dash of oil if needed) and add diced onion and garlic to the frying pan
5. While onion and garlic is cooking - chop the carrot in thick slices and add to the frying pan
6. After cooking the mixture for another couple of minutes add the canned tomatoes and a half a can of water (use it to rinse the can)
7. Use a wooden spoon or spatula to deglaze the pan
8. Take a large dutch oven or an ovenproof pot (approx 5 liters) and start putting the ingredients together:
   1. On the bottom add the browned beef along with any juice
   2. Add the contents of the pan
   3. Add a layer of sauerkraut
   4. Add the smoked bacon bones
   5. Add the dried Boletus mushrooms, black pepper, bay leaf, thyme, caraway seeds and parsley root
   6. Add another layer of sauerkraut
   7. Add enough boiling water to cover all ingredients
9. Put the pot in the oven for 30 minutes
10. After 30 minutes reduce the heat to 160C and cook for 3 hours
11. After 3 hours the soup is done. You can turn the oven off and leave the soup in the hot oven if you want to eat later.
12. Once you are ready to eat - take out all the pieces of meat, strip the meat from the bones, put it back in the soup, mix it up and serve with sour cream and freshly boiled potatoes or Lithuanian rye bread.