Golonka

After reading Annula's post, checking out a YouTube video, and getting guidance from Ed, who loves the golonka at the Berlin train station, I felt prepared to take on this new cut of meat. Golonka means knuckle in Polish. I want to compare it to the familiar ham hock, which I often include in a pot of beans, but you'll see below that this has much more meat, and a lot less "inedible stuff" than a ham hock in the US.

The cost - about $2.40Ingredients

golonka

beer

Directions

My first step was to score the outside, seasoning all around with salt and pepper.

With just enough olive oil to cover the bottom of a pan, brown all sides over medium-high heat.

At this point, I will advise you to add enough beer and stock (equal parts) to give you a couple inches of liquid in the pan.

I had a couple cups of a thick, beer based, meaty stock in the freezer. (The Guinness I used in my Irish Stew needed to be toned down a bit at the end, so I ladled out two cups, replacing it with beef stock.) I'm using this frozen beer broth and a cup of stock.

Simmer, two to three hours, turning occasionally, skimming any foam that developes. Add vegetables at the mid-point of your cooking time.

Preheat the oven to 200 C or 400 F.

Heat the remaining beer with honey, warming enough to combine.

Remove the golonka and veggies and transfer to a baking dish

Baste the golonka and veggies with the beer/honey and bake for about 20 minutes or until the outside of the golonka begins to crisp and the vegetables begin to brown.

This could be served with rice or mashed potatoes. I'm using the cooking liquid (thickened if necessary - either by whisking in a roux or a little corn starch dissolved in cold water) as a gravy.