Name: Bavarian Pork Roast with a crunchy crust
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 2 h 25 min
Total time: 2 h 55 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: German
Ingredients: 1.5 kg pork belly (ready to cook, with rind); 1 liter chicken broth; 2 large onions; 1 carrot; 150 g root celeriac; 1 small leek; 2 tablespoons oil; 1 tsp powdered sugar; 1 tbsp tomato paste; 250 ml red wine; 2 bay leaves (dried); 2 cloves of garlic; 1 tsp dried marjoram; 0.5 tsp caraway seeds; Salt; pepper; 1 slice of ginger; Lemon zest in one piece

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Are you looking for THE Bavarian pork roast with a crunchy crust recipe?

Then I have just the right thing for you!

It’s super crispy on the outside and it just tastes like it’s in a really good German Wirtshaus!

Table Of Contents

What makes this pork roast so special?
What piece of meat should I use?

What makes this pork roast so special?

Besides being really easy to make?

It’s THE perfect crunchy crust, of course!

And you can really get that fantastic crust too!

Let me show you how:

First you have to cut the rind in a diamond shape with a really sharp kitchen knife.

Then I sear the pork belly first – but first with the rind side!

The perfect crust already has some great colour!

Then I take the pork belly out of my ovenproof pan again, and then I fry the vegetables.

Then, when I caramelized the icing sugar, added tomato paste and deglazed with red wine and some broth, I put the pork roast back in the roasting pan.

Very important: please always sear your pork roast with the rind upwards! Otherwise, you won’t get the crispy crust you want ! 😉

After the roasting time of 2 hours in the oven, please take the pork roast out of the oven again.

And then put it either with the rind up in an ovenproof pan or on a baking sheet, which you should have previously lined with aluminium foil.

Increase the oven to 220 °C top/bottom heat and put the pork crust roast back in the oven.

You need to “bake” it for another 15–20 minutes, and then you will have a wonderful crispy crust as a result.

And while your pork crust roast gets the necessary crispiness, you prepare the sauce.

What piece of meat should I use?

Well, that’s really a debate here. I use the pork belly for my roast, with the rind still on, obviously.

But a lot of people use a pork shoulder, which is also absolutely fine to use. I really would see which piece you can get with your butcher.

It only tastes half as good without the sauce!

Here I have 2 tips for you, which I now use for almost all roast recipes.

I got it from the popular German chef Alfons Schuhbeck, and I’m super happy to share them with you.

First, when you fry the vegetables, push them to the side and add some powdered sugar in the middle.

No, even if it’s really tempting, don’t stir it because the powdered sugar is supposed to caramelize.

Here you can see how the powdered sugar slowly starts to caramelize (melt) on the edge.
Shortly afterwards, you add the tomato paste.

Then add the tomato paste, stir and add the red wine little by little and let it boil down like a syrup.

Pour in the broth and place in the oven with the roast pork (rind facing up).

After the baking time, all you have to do is pour the sauce into a small saucepan using a sieve and season with salt, pepper, marjoram and cumin seeds.

And then comes the second trick!

And how can it be otherwise, of course it has to do with ginger. 🙂

You take a piece of ginger and put it on a toothpick together with a clove of garlic and some lemon zest.

Add this to your finished sauce and simmer for about 15 minutes.

Since everything is on a toothpick, you can take it out again super easily.

I also use this trick with my (Christmas) goose and it works perfectly. The sauce just gets better afterwards.

Since you will probably still have some of this really tasty sauce left, it is best to freeze it in portions.

Then you always have some jus at home for your Maultaschen. You did read that right. Because in a classic Wirtshaus you get them, usually nicely fried with pan fried onions, potato salad and some jus. Absolutely delicious.

And if you then want to cook it at home, it’s just great if you already have the sauce ready in the freezer.

And what else goes with the pork roast?

A beer, of course! 🙂

Or a coleslaw and dumplings. I like the bread dumplings best. But I leave out the mushroom cream sauce, since I have my own jus from the pork crust roast.

Or a Swabian potato salad just tastes great with it.

Enjoy the meal!
All the best,

sabrina x

Bavarian Pork Roast with a crunchy crust

A bavarian classic is the pork roast with a crunchy crust. Super easy to make. Great for a sunday roast.

moderate

Prep time:
30 minutes
Cook time:
10 minutes
Baking time:
2 hours 15 minutes
Total time:
2 hours 55 minutes

Ingredients

4 servings

1.5 kg	pork belly (ready to cook, with rind)
1	liter chicken broth
2	large onions
1	carrot
150 g	root celeriac
1	small leek
2	tablespoons oil
1	tsp powdered sugar
1	tbsp tomato paste
250 ml	red wine
2	bay leaves (dried)
2	cloves of garlic
1	tsp dried marjoram
0.5	tsp caraway seeds
	Salt
	pepper
1	slice of ginger
	Lemon zest in one piece

Utensils

big ovenproof pan

Steps of preparation

For the pork crust roast, first preheat the oven to 180 degrees (top and bottom heat).
In the meantime, rinse the roast pork with cold water and pat dry with paper towels.
Then cut the rind in a diamond shape with a sharp knife and season or rub well with salt and pepper.
Then peel and quarter the onions and 1 of the garlic cloves (just to be safe, not a whole garlic!
Clean the carrot, leek, and root celery and cut into large pieces.
Now heat the oil in a roasting pan and sear the roast pork briefly, with the rind facing down.
Then turn the meat over (so that the rind is on top) and sear it.
Remove the roast pork from the roaster and sear all vegetables.
Place the vegetables on the edge of the roaster and put the icing sugar in the middle and let it caramelize. Add tomato paste and stir briefly. Gradually simmer with a little red wine. Add broth and stir everything together.
Place the roast pork, rind side up, on top of the vegetables and the unfinished sauce.
Roast in the oven on the bottom rail for 2 hours
At the end of the roasting time, increase the temperature to 220 degrees.
Take the pan out of the oven and place the pork crust roast on a baking tray, salt the rind again and place it back in the oven for about 15–20 minutes until crispy.
Meanwhile, pour the sauce through a sieve into another saucepan. And then add bay leaves, a toothpick with garlic, ginger and lemon zest, marjoram and caraway seeds.
Remove the garlic, ginger, and lemon zest after approx. 5 minutes.
Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Finally, take the pork roast from the oven, slice it and enjoy with the sauce.