Schweinshaxe
A Bavarian pork knuckle simmered then roasted until the rind crackles, in 2 hours 50 minutes, with beer gravy.
Photograph credit: 00ane Haxen by Erich Ferdinand · CC BY 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons
It is the crackling that people queue for, and it needs a dry rind and a hard blast of heat at the end. Schweinshaxe is the Bavarian roast pork knuckle, a big joint with a thick skin that turns to a glassy, bubbled crust.
Start by simmering the knuckles for 1 hour in salted water with caraway and an onion. This sets the meat and shortens the roasting time. Lift them out, dry them hard with kitchen paper and leave them to air for 20 minutes. Score the skin in a diamond pattern, cutting only through the rind, and rub in salt and more caraway.
Roast at 180°C / 355°F for 1 hour 15 minutes, basting with the beer every 20 minutes, but keep the beer off the skin. For the last 15 minutes turn the oven to 230°C / 445°F until the rind blisters and crackles. Rest for 10 minutes. Strain the roasting juices into a pan, simmer to a gravy and serve with potato dumplings and sauerkraut.
What People Ask
How long does Schweinshaxe take to make?
20 minutes of preparation and 2 hours 30 minutes of cooking, plus 20 minutes of draining, so allow 3 hours 10 minutes from start to finish. The recipe serves 4.
The Method for Schweinshaxe
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Simmer the knuckles in salted water with the onion and 1 tablespoon of the caraway for 1 hour. Drain, dry well and leave to air for 20 minutes.
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Heat the oven to 180°C / 355°F. Score the skin in a diamond pattern and rub with the salt and remaining caraway.
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Set the knuckles in a tin on the carrots and pour in the beer and stock. Roast for 1 hour 15 minutes, basting around the skin.
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Turn the oven to 230°C / 445°F and roast for 15 minutes until the rind crackles. Rest for 10 minutes.
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Strain the juices into a pan, stir in the cornflour mixed with water and simmer for 5 minutes.
Worth Getting Right
- Dry the skin before roasting.
- Baste the meat, not the skin.
- Finish at a high heat for the crackling.
What to Serve With It
Potato dumplings · Sauerkraut · Dark beer · Mustard
Leftovers and Storage
Keeps for 3 days in the fridge. Reheat the skin in a hot oven.
Nutrition per Serving
No nutrition figures are given for this recipe: they cannot be worked out reliably from its ingredient list (some ingredient lines cannot be read). Why some recipes have none.
Your notes on this recipe
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Compiled by Turab
Checked by script for timings, diet labels and nutrition arithmetic. How the recipes are checked.
First published ; last changed .
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