Foodmomiac

Send me your questions

I'm sitting in my bed with a very feverish, very lethargic little guy laying on my chest. :-(

I have some "real work" to do, but I will try to update on my Mother's Day meal out as soon as possible. In the meantime, since I haven't been able to cook much lately, and feel bad about my lack of food-related posts, why don't you all ask me some food-related questions?

Go ahead and email them to danielle at foodmomiac dot com.

Sauerkraut Surplus!

Dear Foodmomiac,

Do you have any suggestions for meals that incorporate sauerkraut? My fiance and I had brats and sauerkraut last night (realllll healthy, huh?), and I just hate to throw the whole bag of it away.

Thanks!
*steph

Hey Steph,

I LOVE sauerkraut (and I love brats), but those bags are very big, and it's one of those things that is hard not to waste. That said, there are a bunch of options. Michael loves sauerkraut baked with pork chops. This is not a personal favorite of mine, but if you do it, be sure to season the chops with salt, pepper and a touch of ground ginger. Brown them in oil and then lay them in a bed of sauerkraut to finish cooking in the oven (or crockpot). For some extra zing, try adding sauteed apples and onions to the sauerkraut.

Another option is to make up some Reubens. Get good quality corned beef, and layer it on rye bread with Russian dressing (equal parts ketchup and mayo), Swiss cheese and sauerkraut. Grilling this in a pan or in a George Foreman-type press will make it even tastier.

You are sure to find a TON of recipes online for Reuben casseroles. These tend to make me cringe, but I see them all the time, so they must be edible. I'd start with All Recipes and explore from there.

However, if you are looking for something different THIS recipe is the one I would try. I like this for a variety of reasons. First, it is a salad, so it will be versatile enough to accompany practically any other meal. Second, it will last quite a while in your refrigerator, and since it's just two of you, this is a good thing. Third, it looks like this recipe changes the flavor profile of the sauerkraut. That is a nice feature, because too many nights in a row of that telltale sauerkraut might be a bit much. (A note: if you can't find the pimentos, just grab a jar of roasted red peppers and chop them up.)

Good luck, and let me know what you end up doing in the Comments section.

Readers, if you have any other favorite sauerkraut recipes, please post them here as well!

Technorati Tags: Sauerkraut, Recipes, Reubens