Today we are going to make a very simple dish of smoked eisbein, mashed potatoes and sauerkraut and apple

For the eisbein you will need:

  • 1 smoked pork knuckle per person (it will seem like a lot, but remember a lot of it is fat and bone, and once this has been trimmed off, the meat portion is not too daunting and, besides, all the left-overs make great rich and fatty stock for pea soup!)
  • a couple of pints of beer (the ordinary local lagers such as Castle or Lion are fine)
  • a few bay leaves
  • 1 tablespoon of mustard (ready-mixed English works best)
  • 1 teaspoon of black pepper corns
  • 1/3 cup brown sugar
  • 1 large onion, peeled and quartered
  • 4 cloves

    Place the eisbein in a large saucepan, add all the ingredients and enough beer to cover. Bring to the boil and then reduce heat to a simmer. Depending on the size of the smoked pork knuckles, this will take anything from 60 to 90 minutes. Test the meat. It should be very tender. Serve with the thick brown skin on and leave it up to your guests to carve their own portions. The words "fat", "cholesterol", "diet" or "gout" are not allowed to be mentioned when this dish is served Serve with wedges of lemon

    Mashed potato
    Make more than usual, because it is divine with the pork. You can vary the taste by adding a couple of cloves of finely crushed garlic to the potato. (Come on, Penny - peel the potato, quarter, put in saucepan, cover with water, boil till it starts to soften, strain the water off, add a blob of butter and a dash of milk, salt, a pinch of mustard, a sprinkling of finely chopped parsley - and there you are!)

    Sauerkraut with apple
    For this you will need :

  • 1 tin of sauerkraut
  • 2 apples
  • salt and pepper

    Peel and core two green apples and boil gently in either water or apple cider. When the apples begin to soften, strain them and add the strained, tinned sauerkraut. Add a dab of butter and heat through. Use a fork to break the apple, but don't mush it too much. Serve the eisbein, potato and sauerkraut together, steaming hot.