And for those cold winter evenings when you want something hot that will stick with you this is the first thing that comes to my mind. This really is a hot recipe! Make sure you serve it with nice fresh slices of French or Italian bread.
My mother used to make this when we were teens and we would come in from playing in the snow all day.
German Hot Pepper Pot
1-3/4 Lbs well marbled Beef, cut into 3/4-1"
cubes
3 Medium Onions, half thinly sliced, and the
other half finely chopped or grated.
1 Level teaspoon Salt
2-3 Tablespoons coarsely ground (or cracked)
Black Pepper
1/3 teaspoon Allspice
2 Bay leaves
3-4 Lemon Slices, rind included
2-3 Cups water or Beed stock
1 Tablespoon Bread Crumbs
2 Tablespoons Zwieback crumbs
Lemon Juice (Optional)
Place the beef cubes, onions, spices, and Lemon slices
in a large, heavy bottomed pot; the Pepper should be
as coursely ground as you can manage and applied very
liberally. Add the Water or Stock unti lthe Beef cubes
are well covered. Mix well and cook over low heat for
about 1 hour, stirring frequently and adding more liquid
if necessary.
Add the bread crumbs and Zweiback crumbs and cook fo an
additional 20 minutes. Remove the Bay leaves and lemon
slices. Taste for seasoning. The gravy should be thick
and veryspicy; add more Lemon, Salt, or Allspice if
so desired.
Variations:
Toss in capers, a modest amount.
Pre brown the Beef cubes in a skillet for a more robust
Beef taste.
Use flour instead of bread crumbs to thicken the gravy,
but this is not traditional, you may leave out the
Zweiback crumbs, and add more bread crumbs, plus a pinch
sugar.
Caraway may be added, but just the tiniest amount.
Serve with a good cold German Beer and fresh French Bread.
[this post was last edited: 11/6/2011-10:04]
