Time to cook my pork & sauerkraut ???

13 years ago

Hi Kids,

OK, it's January 12th, time for me to make my traditional January, pork & sauerkraut. Many of you will remember posts very similar to this one going back several years and always with the question of, what is the best way to cook this dish so the meat is moist & falling off the bone?

Last year, with the help of many of you here at the KT, I came to the conclusion that I was not using the best pork to get the result I was remembering from when my Mom made it. I had been using country ribs which delivered an uneven result: some meat was prefect while some was dry. This year I have St. Louis style spear ribs. I have lots and lots of ribs...3 packs which is just about 12 pounds. I will be cutting them in sections and layering them with sauerkraut.

So, that is the pork I am using, my question for all of you is...how long should I cook it. My thinking is that I would normally put them into a 325 oven and bake for about 2 hours. But, since I am baking such a large amount of meat this year, should I increase the cook time to 2.5 or even 3 hours? I don't think that over cooking is a huge issue as I am sure that this meat will not get dry...am I right?

I would like to know how close I am to correct in my thinking. Any thought and advise will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks, Kids.

sooey

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Comments (7)

tami_ohio
13 years ago
Hmmm, I don't do mine in the oven, so I can't help with time on that. We do ours in the crock pot, on low for about 5 hours with the saur kraut put in about the last hour. Dad likes about 1 T of sour cream added to the kraut. It takes a little of the bite out of it. I also saute a diced onion in butter with about 1 T of sugar and add that to the kraut.

How are you doing the kraut? In the ribs? In a cassarole dish? That only needs about an hour in the oven at 350Ã¯Â¿Â½. I would test the ribs, and when the meat starts to pull easily from the bones, it's done. Start with your usual 2 hours. If you can, spread them out, instead of being all bunched up in a pile. Use a big roaster pan if you can. It it's to thick/dense of a pile, it will take longer.
sooey
Original Author
13 years ago
Hi Tami,

Yes, I also thought it would take a bit longer just because of the mass of it all.

I use my largest roaster pan with a top. I start with a good layer of Silver Floss Sauerkraut, most of the juice squeezed out on the very bottom. I put the first layer of ribs on top of that, add more sauerkraut and another layer of ribs and so on. I just finished getting it all ready and I have 3 layers of ribs all topped with sauerkraut. It fits well into he pan, not over flowing so I am sure all is well.

I rechecked the weight and I have 'about' 10 pounds of ribs. I cut each rack into 4 sections. I should have mentioned that there will be 4 of us for dinner tonight and 4 for leftovers tomorrow night. I will also be making mashed potatoes.

I have thought of using my crock pot for this but not for this amount. Love my crock and would love to try it for ribs. I am sure that yours are wonderful and I like the idea of adding a touch of sugar to the mix. Yumm...my mouth is watering as I type...

Thanks, Tami, I appreciate your input.

sooey
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tami_ohio
13 years ago
You are welcome. Since it's all in the same pan, check it after 1 1/2 hours. I don't think it's too much in the pan to make a big difference. If you usually cook them 2 hours it should only take a little longer. If you want the onions and sugar like I do mine, just saute some onions now in butter, then when they are tender add the sugar. Scatter it over the ribs and kraut and then bake!
glenda_al
13 years ago
This is recipe I used not too long ago. It's Mr Food's recipe.

Slow Roasted Country Ribs

Serves: 4

Cooking Time:1 hr 45 min

What You'll Need:
1 (2-pound) package refrigerated sauerkraut, rinsed and drained
1 (3-pound) package pork country-style ribs
1 (1-ounce) envelope onion soup mix
1 onion, thinly sliced
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat a 9- x 13-inch baking dish with cooking spray.
2. Place sauerkraut in prepared baking dish. Place ribs over sauerkraut, sprinkle with onion soup mix, then top with onions. Cover with aluminum foil.
3. Bake 1-1/2 hours. Uncover and bake 15 additional minutes, or until ribs are tender. Serve with sauerkraut.
sooey
Original Author
13 years ago
Hi Kids,

Dinner is finished and the dishes are done. The pork was wonderful. I cooked it for just 3 hours, I could have pulled it out at 2.5 and it would have been fine. One little piece of meet was just past prime. It was a tiny little end piece that I ate while I was dishing it up. The meat fell right off the bones and it was full of flavor. The 4 of us sat and ate until we could eat no more. It was worth the effort. I also made mashed potatoes that were good but not great. I made a peach pie for dessert that was out of this world! All in all, it was a great dinner.

Glenda, I just found your post with the recipe you use and it sounds delicious. It also sounds like it would be moist with good flavor. I'll give that one a try. Do you think you could adapt that to be cooked in a crock pot? How about that same assembly, cooked 5 hours on low or 3 hours on high? Do you think that it might need more liquid in a crock pot? I love slow cooked pork.

So, that's my venture into January pork and sauerkraut and it was my best effort to date. Thanks Tami and Glenda for you help.

sooey
who is very, very full....
tami_ohio
13 years ago
I'm glad it came out so good! I forgot to add that I put a little water in the c pot with the ribs n kraut. Glenda's recipe would work in it also. You might want to check c pot cook book for time on it.
susanjf_gw
13 years ago
sounds wondeful..do you ever try baverian kraut? little on the sweet side...

Time to cook my pork & sauerkraut ???

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Time to cook my pork & sauerkraut ???

Comments (7)

tami_ohio

sooeyOriginal Author

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glenda_al

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