Best Jans Polish Sauerkraut Side Dish Recipes

KAPUSTA

Steps:

• Add the bacon to a large frying pan over medium high heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 6-8 minutes, or until the bacon is crisp and the fat is rendered.
• Add the onions an cook for 3-4 minutes, until softened and light golden brown. If the pan is too dry, you can add a teaspoon or two of olive oil.
• Stir in the sauerkraut, brown sugar, and water. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 10 minutes, until heated through and light golden brown.

SAUERKRAUT SIDE DISH

Steps:

• In a large saucepan, saute onion in butter until tender. Add the sauerkraut, apples, potato, broth, sugar, caraway and salt; mix well. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes or until the apples are tender. Sprinkle with additional brown sugar if desired.

POLISH "STEWED" SAUERKRAUT

Steps:

• 1. In a large pot add sauerkraut and water. Bring to a boil and simmer covered for 1 hour. Drain in colander.
• 2. while sauerkraut is cooking, dice fat back into small pieces and put into a large skillet. Cook down on medium heat until pieces of fatback turn brown and crispy. Remove pieces with slotted spoon and dispose of, keeping the drippings in the pan. Add onions to drippings in the pan and saute' until tender.
• 3. When sauerkraut is cooked and drained, put back into pot and add onions as well as most of the drippings. Add pinch of salt and pepper. If it seems dry add a little more drippings.
• 4. Let this mixture cook down for at least 1/2 hour, stirring frequently to prevent it from sticking and burning. Taste occasionally to check flavor. Important to learn with ethnic cooking.. become a TASTER! Add more salt and pepper if needed. When onions and sauerkraut are tender and blended remove from heat
• 5. Serve with Kielbasa, smoked ham, hot dogs, sausage - you name it!

POLISH SAUERKRAUT AND CARROT SALAD

Steps:

• Place sauerkraut in a colander and squeeze out all excess liquid using your hands; chop well.
• Combine sauerkraut, onion, apple, and carrots in a large bowl and mix. Add oil and sugar and toss to combine. Season with caraway seeds, salt, and pepper. Refrigerate 30 minutes before serving.

SAUERKRAUT SIDE/RELISH

Steps:

• 1. Cook bacon in skillet; remove and chop into small pieces. Cook onion in bacon grease. Place sauerkraut, drained tomatoes, onion, bacon, and brown sugar in casserole dish and mix well. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 - 30 minutes. ENJOY!!

POLISH SAUERKRAUT

Steps:

• 1. Saute' the onions and apples in the butter. Brown them (be careful not to burn them!). Any additional vegetables can be added and saute'd Add meat if you like.
• 2. Add sauerkraut juice to the pan and stir well to get all the caramelized drippings blended in... the liquid will be brown. Stir in the sauerkraut, and heat through before serving. Add spices if you like.
• 3. *** I make it this way for a side dish, pork roast or brats.

POLISH BRAISED SAUERKRAUT

Steps:

• Drain the sauerkraut, keeping the juice (we won't use it here, but feel free to drink it - it's very healthy!). Have a taste - if the sauerkraut is extremely sour, it's worth giving it a rinse under running water first, then squeeze it out.
• Roughly chop the sauerkraut, so that the strings of fermented cabbage aren't too long.
• Move the sauerkraut into a deep frying pan/skillet.
• Pour in enough hot water to nearly cover the sauerkraut.
• Add in 2 tablespoons of butter (don't worry, it will melt on its own), 2 bay leaves, 1 tablespoon of cumin, 5 black peppercorns and 2-3 allspice berries.
• Cover with a lid and braise until soft. Sauerkraut will become soft after around 40 to 50 minutes of cooking. Monitor the process from time to time, making sure nothing boils over or sticks to the pan. Add more water if necessary.
• [optional step: apple] After 25 minutes of braising (somewhere around the half-way mark), add an apple. Peel one small sweet apple (weighing roughly 3.5 oz / 100 g before peeling) and chop it finely. You can also grate it instead (using the largest holes). Add the apple pieces into the sauerkraut and continue braising.
• [optional step: bacon] As the braising is nearing the end, let's fry the bacon: Chop the smoked bacon into cubes (or small pieces) and fry them up on a separate frying pan until lightly golden. Usually bacon renders enough of its own fat, so no additional cooking fat is required - but if your bacon is very lean, feel free to grease the pan with some oil.
• Add fried bacon into the braised kraut, fold it in.
• Add chopped onions into the same frying pan (same one we used for cooking bacon). Sauté them for a few minutes until they turn translucent.
• Add 1-2 tablespoons of flour into the onions, and stir them in (with a pan-friendly spoon or a spatula).
• Add in half a cup of water and stir continuously. Increase the heat and bring into a near-boil (keep on stirring!).
• Move the contents of the frying pan (onions + roux) into the braising sauerkraut. Stir everything together.
• Have a little taste. Does it need some more salt and pepper? If so, season it a bit more, I usually do. If it tastes a bit too acidic for your liking, add a pinch of sugar. Stir everything together and switch off the heat.
• [optional step] Chop fresh dill finely and fold it into the sauerkraut. Serve hot.