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Recipes

Schäuferla

🍖 Franconian Schäuferla

A classic dish of Franconian cuisine. It takes its name from the shovel-shaped bone in the pork shoulder. Key features are the crispy crust, scored in a diamond pattern, and a rich, dark beer sauce.

🛒 Ingredients (serves 4)

  • approx. 1.5 kg Schäufele (pork shoulder with bone and rind)
  • Salt, pepper, caraway (whole or ground)
  • Clarified butter or neutral oil for frying
  • 2 onions, 2 carrots, ¼ celeriac, 1 leek
  • 1 tbsp tomato purée
  • 0.5 l dark beer (Franconian country beer)
  • approx. 0.5 l meat or vegetable stock
  • optional: 1 tsp mustard, 1 clove of garlic

👨‍🍳 Method

  1. Score the rind in a diamond pattern (only the rind, not the meat). Season the meat generously all over with salt, pepper and caraway seeds; rub the rind well with salt as well. Preheat the oven to 160 °C (top and bottom heat).
  2. Searing: Heat clarified butter in a roasting tin and sear the shoulder of pork on the meat side over a high heat, then brown it well all over (leaving the rind untouched). This is half the battle when it comes to flavour and the gravy. Remove the meat.
  3. Roasted vegetables & sauce base: Sear the roughly diced root vegetables with the onions (and garlic) in the cooking fat until they take on colour. Add the tomato purée (and mustard) and fry briefly until the mixture turns dark and smells aromatic. Deglaze with a splash of beer and let it reduce – repeat this once or twice to create a dark, rich sauce.
  4. Braising: Place the Schäufele on top of the vegetables with the rind facing upwards. Pour in enough beer and stock so that the meat is about halfway submerged in the liquid – but the rind must remain dry above the liquid, otherwise it won’t become crispy. Braise uncovered at 160 °C for approx. 2.5 to 3 hours; baste only the meat or the braising liquid, never the rind. It’s ready when the meat is tender and comes away easily from the bone (core temperature approx. 85 °C).
  5. Crust: Finally, switch on the oven grill (top heat) and let the rind crisp up until it is golden brown and crispy – keep a close eye on it. Tip: brush the rind with a little cold beer just before finishing; this will make the crust particularly crispy.
  6. Gravy: Strain the roasting juices through a sieve, skim off the fat, bring to the boil and thicken slightly if necessary. Season to taste – and your dark beer gravy is ready.

🍽 Serve with

Franconian dumplings (half-and-half) and sauerkraut. Serve with a dark beer.