For most of us, eating sauerkraut boils down to only two Alsatian recipes: choucroute garnie, with about three or four kinds of meats or sauerkraut with fish. In short, these are the two traditional recipes that everyone knows and has certainly tasted when visiting Alsace. And no, I’m not saying it’s not good. I actually love it, it’s a great meal to gather up families and it’s not that difficult to prepare.
However, sauerkraut is a vegetable that can also be cooked differently, with a good recipe on hand. It is what I’m proposing to do today with this recipe with sauerkraut, embracing part of the traditional recipe (lardons and sauerkraut) and making it the perfect recipe for a TV tray dinner, a picnic or a nice aperitif with friends!
In 2018, Alsatian sauerkraut received the PGI label (Protected Geographical Indication). This European certification is for local producers, protects and showcases sauerkrauts produced, processed and prepared in Alsace. That is something to be very proud of in Alsace!
For this recipe, I have used sauerkraut cooked in Riesling (namely from Maison Le Pic). It is ready to be used as is, and you won’t have to rinse it (as it would be the case with raw sauerkraut). It is also already seasoned, so I would recommend not to add salt or pepper in your filling.
Not a huge fan of lardons? You could use tapered salmon instead.
Ingredients and the different preparation stages for 10 to 12 pieces
For the filling with sauerkraut and smoked lardons
- 2 shallots
- 300g of cooked and wring out sauerkraut
- 100g matchstick smoked lardons
- 1 to 2 teaspoons of cumin or caraway seeds (depending on your taste)
- 1 dash of olive oil
Chop the shallots. Sweat them in a pan with a dash of olive oil. Add the smoked lardons and brown them for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the cooked sauerkraut (don’t forget to wring it out properly) and the caraway or cumin seeds. Season if needed. Let it cook at medium heat for about 5/6 minutes. Stir together. Your filling is ready. Leave to cool.
The cream
- 250 ml liquid full-fat cream
- 30 gr of smoked lardons
Put the cream and lardons in a saucepan. Warm up at low heat until it’s time for serving. Strain the cream to remove the lardons. Put the cream in small serving bowls.
The spring rolls
- 5 to 6 brick pastry sheets
- sunflower oil
Cut the brick pastry sheets in half. If they are a bit dry, brush some water with a pastry brush all around the half-sheet to make folding easier. Put the semicircle of brick pastry sheet with the round edge in front of you. Put about two tablespoon full of filling in the middle, 3/4 cm from the round edge of the sheet. Refold each side of the sheet on the filling and shape the spring roll by rolling it in front of you.
Fry them in a pan with hot oil. Once the spring rolls are brown, put them on absorbent paper and serve immediately. If you prepare them in advance, keep them in the fridge until it’s time for serving and reheat them in the oven on grill mode at 220 °C for about 5 minutes to make them crispy again.
To enjoy these spring rolls with sauerkraut
Serve these spring rolls with sauerkraut with lettuce leafs to roll them inside and dip them in the lardon-infused cream.
My pictures of the recipe for spring rolls with sauerkraut and lardon-infused cream
Enjoy your meal!
0 Comments