Pork knuckle, sauerkraut, and apple sauce
Tonight’s meal is all about convenience. I went grocery shopping earlier and saw the slow-cooked pork knuckle in the display case of the meat section, and it caught my eye.
The last time I ate pork knuckle was with Dad in a Bavarian restaurant in Brisbane. The meal consisted of the pork knuckle with a heap of sauerkraut.
When I think of pork I’m conscious of the amount of salt and so I wanted something sweet to balance the meal. I chose some apple sauce.
The convenience factor of this meals is the fact I used a mostly cooked piece of pork, Polish sauerkraut that I bought in a jar, Australian grown apple sauce in a bottle, and potato mash cooked with microwave radiation.
The whole meal took less than one hour to cook.
On the subject of pork, I’ve been reading about the detection of African Swine Fever in Germany. The African swine fever virus causes African swine fever.
It’s a good thing this pork is Australian and not imported German pork.
Recipe
Ingredients
- Slow-cooked Australian pork knuckle
- Polish sauerkraut
- Australian grown apple sauce
- Potato mash
- Instant gravy
Instructions
- Turn on the oven and heat it to 220 °C.
- Remove the pork from the packaging and dry off the surface with kitchen paper.
- Put the pork knuckle onto a lined baking sheet with the rind exposed.
- Cook the pork for about 50 minutes.
- Remove the pork from the oven and allow it to rest.
- Tear off the crispy crackling and set it aside.
- Dissect away the cooked muscle meat from the bone.
- Slice the meat and place it onto a dinner plate.
- Spoon some sauerkraut onto the dinner plate.
- Spoon some apple sauce onto the dinner plate.
- Irradiate the potato mash with microwaves.
- Place the potato mash onto the dinner plate.
- Boil some water.
- Put a tablespoon of instant gravy powder into a glass jug and then whisk through the boiling water.
- Pour the gravy over the potato mash.
Photographs
The following block is a gallery of photographs. Click on one of them and then scroll through them to check out the pictures in all their glory.
Polish sauerkraut and Apple grown apple sauce 
Uncooked 
Uncooked 
Cooked 
Cooked 
Cooked 
Questions
Did you eat the whole pork knuckle?
The packaging suggests the pork knuckle is enough for five people. I ate the whole thing. Yes, I do feel full.
Why not cook everything from scratch? Why be so lazy?
Do you not know me? I’m all about efficiency.
I prefer the word efficiency rather than lazy. By being efficient, I have more time to do other things. For example, today, I watched a couple of movies and relaxed a little.
What’s so good about sauerkraut?
Well, it’s lactic acid fermented cabbage. Lactobacilli elaborate the lactic acid. In a Gram’s stain, especially of normal vaginal flora, lactobacilli are quite beautiful. They appear a deeply and evenly stained violet which is contrasted by the pink background proteinaceous matrix.
The only downside of sauerkraut is the potential for producing large volumes of flatus.
How was the pork knuckle?
It was good. The muscle meat was tender, and the flesh was moist and juicy. The crackling was crisp and not overly salted.
The sauerkraut and apple sauce complemented the pork to a tee.
Final thoughts
- Do you like pork knuckle?
- Do you like sauerkraut?
- Do you agree that apple sauce and pork go together?
This Article was mentioned on yummylummy.com
I am not a fan of pork at all, so pork knuckle is not something I’d eat. Always been curious about these quick and easy meals from Coles. It looks very good. Sometimes I don’t mind having a quick and easy meal because more time to relax is important 😀
Thanks, Mabel. I’ll have your share of all the pork 😊
Looks great Gary, and good timing to get in the last of these cool weather dishes before it gets too hot. Not so sure about following it with a packet of Lindor balls! LOL
Thanks, Beck. I was pleased with how it turned out.
Wow, I love it that your grocery had a pork knuckle that was already prepared and only needed a short time in the oven. This is my husband’s favorite dish when we are in Germany and Austria. And by the way, he eats the whole thing too…he says you have to consider that a lot of it is bone and fat that you don’t eat. 😁
Thanks, Karen. I think your husband and I are similar, except, I eat the fat too 😊
A very nice meal! I’d enjoy that tonight, especially with some cooler weather happening here.
Thanks, I wish it wasn’t still cool weather here 😊
I’m looking forward to summer starting
I do like sauerkraut and yes, pork and applesauce definitely go together–the sweet and salty mixture is wonderful. Cheers!
I’ve never cooked a whole pork knuckle from scratch before. Hehe wow you ate it all in one sitting?
It was really nice, Lorraine. Perhaps I should have split it into two pieces, but it was worth it.
Very nice, pork knuckle is not seen on many restaurants menus but is something I will now have to cook. Sauerkraut is amazing, I have some home made sauerkraut most mornings with my fried eggs and mushrooms. Pork and apple sauce are harmonious companions. This is a delightful dish, carbs, protein, vegetables and fruit. Hopefully you enjoyed a little of the crackling as well.
Thanks, Merryn. The crackling turned out well and it was worth spending the money on this product. I reckon I’ll do it again.
Gary, you should write a cook book for those who live alone!
Thanks, I was thinking about it last year but then COVID-19 hit and I haven’t had much time.
Ooh, pork knuckle is such a treat. I had it in Berlin once with sauerkraut too. I’m not a fan of apple sauce but your dish looks delicious.
Thanks, Emma. Yep, the apple sauce isn’t great for people who need to keep watch of their carbohydrate intake too. I figured since I was having potato mash, I’d splurge a little.