Gourmet Calendar

Saddle of Suckling Pig with Sweet and Sour Poppy-Seed Noodles

serves 6 persons:

approx. 1 kg saddle of suckling pig, boneless, but with the skin
50 ml apple vinegar
1 leek (only the white part)
300 g knuckle of pork, chopped
2 onions
50 ml cola
2 tbsp. honey
4 cloves of garlic, gently pressed in their skins
1 l vegetable stock or water
a pinch of caraway
a pinch of nutmeg, ground
6 peppercorns
2 bay leaves
2 tbsp. pork lard
salt
white pepper

For the sweet and sour poppy-seed noodles

300 g "Fleckerl" noodles
4 tbsp. white poppy seeds
2 tbsp. butter oil
salt
warm white radish

Wash the saddle of suckling pig and pat dry. In a roasting tin, bring two fingers high of water together with the apple vinegar to the boil. Place the saddle of suckling pig with the skin facing downwards into the tin and boil the skin for approx. 10 minutes (push the saddle down firmly as it will bulge). Take it out of the tin and shake off the water before scoring the rind with a razor blade in lines length and breadth wise at 3 mm intervals. Take care that only the skin and not the meat is cut. Afterwards, rub with salt, caraway and pepper.

Heat the lard in the roasting tin on the stovetop and lightly roast the knuckle of pork. Add the coarsely chopped leek, garlic and chopped onions and brown in the tin. Pour over the cola and some of the stock and add the rest of the herbs and honey. Put the roast to cook slowly in a pre-heated oven at 220 °C for approx. 50 minutes and baste with fresh stock at regular intervals. After this, take the tin out and put the saddle of suckling pig in with the skin facing upwards and cook slowly at a temperature of 220 °C for approx. 30-40 minutes. Baste with cooking juices at regular intervals.

In the meantime, cook the "Fleckerl" noodles al dente in salted water and drain. Toast the white poppy seed in a frying pan, add the butter oil and coat the noodles in this. Keep this warm to one side. Prepare the warm white radish. As soon as the skin is crispy, take the saddle of suckling pig out of the oven and let it sit for 10 minutes. In the meantime, boil up the cooking juices and sieve, pour on more stock if required and boil. Season to taste. Cut the saddle of suckling pig into slices and arrange on a plate together with the poppy noodles and warm white radish. Pour over the sauce.

Cooking time: 30-40 minutes
Oven temperature: 220 °C

Tip:

If the "crackling" pork rind is not crispy enough, spread with a mixture of honey and cola and place back in the oven to grill a little longer "to satisfaction". The "Fleckerl" noodles can be replaced by potato pasta or gnocchi.
This and other recipes are part of the new "Sacher Kochbuch" Cook Book!