CLASSIC TAFELSPITZ (boiled beef)

Ingredients

1 round of beef (topside), approx. 2 kg (with a little fat) approx. 750g beef bones

3 carrots, 3 turnips and or parsnips 1 small celeriac

1 onion

2 bay leaves

10 peppercorns

2 juniper berries salt – chopped chives for decoration

Fill a pot with about five litres of cold water and boil the bones. Place the meat, bay leaves, peppercorns and juniper berries in the water and simmer just below boiling point on low heat for about 2–2½ hours, regularly skimming off the fat.

Halve the unpeeled onion, and fry on the cut surface until dark brown. Cut vegetables into large cubes and add with the onion to the meat. Simmer for another hour until the meat is really tender.

Remove the meat, strain the soup, and put the meat back in the soup for a while. Take note: as long as the meat is sitting in the soup, don’t add salt, otherwise it will become red and dry up.

Slice the meat, and arrange on a warmed plate. Pour over a little soup, add salt to taste, and sprinkle with chives. Serve with extra-crispy fried potatoes, chive sauce and apple-horseradish sauce. Cooking time: Depending on the quality of the beef, 3–3½ hours.