Authentic Grünkohl and Pinkel (German-style Kale)

Kale with Pinkel and Kassler and Pork Belly and potatoes

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5 from 7 votes

Authentic Grünkohl and Pinkel (German-style Kale)

A hearty kale stew from the North of Germany. Perfect for those cold winter months.

Course Main Course

Cuisine German

Prep Time 30

Cook Time 1 30

Total Time 2

Servings people

Calories 486kcal

Author by Marita Sinden

Ingredients

3 ⅓ lb kale fresh, frozen or from a jar.
4 onions about 350 gr / 12 oz
salt and pepper
2 cups beef broth
½ teaspoon allspice
2 bay leafs
4 juniper berries
3 tablespoon lard ideally goosefat or pork lard, but you can also use vegetable oil
2 tablespoon mustard ideally German mustard but you can replace it with Dijon mustard.
2 tablespoon oats
¼ teaspoon sugar

Sausages and Meat

½ lb smoked pork belly
2 lb smoked ham German Kassler can be substituted with smoked gammon, smoked pork chops, smoked pork loin, smoked pork neck,
4 Pinkel Sausages this is optional as they are difficult to get hold of abroad. Replace with a smoked sausage.
4 smoked sausages in Germany Mettenden or Rauchenden. But any smoked sausage will do. Popular subsitute is a Polish Kielbasa

Metric - US Customary

Instructions

If using fresh kale, wash it and remove the leaves from the stems. Blanche the leaves in boiling salted water, and then rinse with cold water.
3 ⅓ lb kale
Peel the onions and finely cube them. In a large saucepan (approx 5-liter volume) heat up the lard. Then fry the onions until translucent. Add the two tablespoons of mustard and mix well.
4 onions, 2 tablespoon mustard, 3 tablespoon lard
Add the kale to the pot in little portions and briefly fry it until the kale starts to cook.
Once all the kale is in the pot, pour in the beef broth with the allspice, bay leafs, juniper berries and sugar. Season with salt and pepper.
2 cups beef broth, ½ teaspoon allspice, 2 bay leafs, 4 juniper berries, ¼ teaspoon sugar, salt and pepper
Create a little hole in the middle of the kale and add your piece of ham and pork belly to it. Close the pot with a lid and leave it to cook on a low to medium heat for approximately 45 minutes. Remove the ham and pork belly.
2 lb smoked ham, ½ lb smoked pork belly
Then stir in the oats, this will thicken up the kale stew.
2 tablespoon oats
15 minutes before the stew is ready add the smoked sausage and pinkel on top.
4 smoked sausages, 4 Pinkel Sausages
Before serving, season with salt and pepper to taste. Chop the pork belly into 0,5 cm cubes and mix it back into the Kale. If you are using Pinkel sausages, then slice one open and mix in the content with the kale. Discard the casing.
On a serving plate, place the kale with the sausages. Slice the ham and add it to the platter. Serve with boiled potatoes or Bratkartoffeln. (recipe also on the blog).
You could also serve the meat and kale in two separate bowls.
Traditionally you will also Rote Grütze (recipe on the blog) with Vanilla Sauce for dessert.

Video

Notes

Reheating

I found it easier reheating the kale in the pot, when the meat is removed from the post, as otherwise it is easy to burn the bottom of the pan. Once the kale is hot, you can put the sausages and meat back in to warm up.

Storage

The cooked kale stays good in the fridge for up to four days. It is also perfect for freezing. Frozen it should stay good for up to 6 months.

Nutrition