During the early 1970s, member Joan McGrath's parents operated an Austrian-German restaurant in Wheaton, Maryland called The Schnitzelbank. Her mom's family came from the Steiermark and Burgenland regions. The restaurant made a name for itself based on one dish in particular, Sauerbraten. She warns to never consider a gingersnap-based recipe or a bottled marinade for true Sauerbraten!


TRUDY'S SAUERBRATEN
(from Joan McGrath)

Ingredients:
  • 4 lbs. beef roast (do not use Filet or London Broil cuts;
     ... best cuts: Top Round, Bottom Round, Eye Roast)
  • 2 large Spanish onions
  • 1 Tbsp. pickling spice (optional to use more)
  • 1/4 - 1/2 cup brown sugar (diabetic version, use Truvia)
  • salt
  • pepper
  • 1/4 cup Maggi seasoning
  • 8 oz. wine vinegar
  • 8 oz. water
  • 1/2 oz. Kitchen Bouquet seasoning
  • 1/2 cup flour in 1 cup water (thickening agent)
Preparation-day 1:

Salt and pepper the beef generously on all sides. Place in a covered crock, covered Corning Ware or Clay baker and set aside.

Slice onions, then cook with pickling spice, vinegar, and water. Pour hot marinade over beef (must cover beef completely). Let marinade cool down, then refrigerate for 2-3 days. The longer it sits, the better.

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Preparation-day 3:

Remove the roast beef from the marinade and save the marinade for later. Dry-roast it to medium rare in a 300°F oven. Use a meat thermometer. Pour the strained marinade over the beef, cook 45 more minutes. Take the beef out, then let it rest dry on cutting board.

Add brown sugar, Maggi seasoning, Kitchen Bouquet seasoning, and a dash of pepper to the strained marinade and bring it to a boil. Mix flour and water to make a thickening agent. Add in a slow-stream-pour to the marinade until it is a smooth gravy with a glassy gloss. If the thickening agent dilutes the color from dark, dark brown to a lighter color, keep adding Maggi seasoning until dark color returns.

Slice the roast and serve with gravy.

Serving suggestion:

Sauerbraten is best served with red cabbage, potato pancakes, or potato pumplings.

Note:

Don't let this recipe intimidate you. I once read the recipe wrong, made the full gravy without the thickening as a marinade, let the beef sit in it for 4 days, and there was no discernable difference. The only steadfast rule is to keep the ratio of vinegar and water to sugar. Don't be surprised when the cooked roast shrinks in size.