Written by Ivana Blahoutova
A traditional Czech recipe loved by everyone. Served with sauerkraut and potatoes or dumplings and cabbage, made at home or enjoyed in a cozy restaurant a good Czech beer is best to match it with.
When reviewing the ingredients in Czech recipes many times in America the use of cumin is mentioned and is mistakenly used instead of caraway seeds. This happens in translation because Kmin sometimes is translated into Cumin because they may look the same and sound similar. Cumin is never used in Czech meals.
4 pork steaks (shoulder or boneless cutlets)
3 stalks of celery
1 large carrot
1 onion
1 1/4 cup lager beer
2 Tbs whole grain mustard
2 Tbs oil
all-purpose flour
lard or oil for frying
salt to taste
ground black pepper to taste
1 tsp marjoram
1/2 tsp paprika
1 bay leaf
4 corns allspice
a pinch mace
a pinch dried ground ginger
a pinch ground caraway seed
Preheat the oven to 400 F. Mix a marinade from oil, mustard, marjoram, paprika, mace, ginger and caraway seed. Tenderize the pork steaks, add salt and pepper to taste, and toss them in the marinade. Dice the onion, carrot, and celery. Heat the lard or oil in a large ovenproof pan. Sauté the vegetables until lightly brown.
Dredge the steaks in flour and add to the pan with the vegetables. Sauté both sides until brown. Add the beer, salt, and pepper to taste. If necessary, scrape the flour from the bottom of the pan. Put the pan into the oven. Roast covered for 1.5 hours at 400 F until the meat is soft, occasionally checking the thickness of the sauce. The flour will thicken the sauce, so add more beer or water if the sauce is too thick. Serve with cooked or mashed potatoes.
