Turkey Leg with Apple & Sour Cabbage (Putenkeule auf Apfel-Sauerkraut)

A low cost and healthy roast dish for your family which is perfect on a cold autumn day.  I sauteéd stewed apples (Apfelkompott) and fresh sour cabbage (Sauerkraut) in the roast juices together with tiny cubes of turkey bacon, spices, onions and apple juice.   Tastes excellent when served with boiled potatoes!

Ingredients (serves 4):
1 kg Putenkeule (turkey leg), boneless
80 g turkey bacon, to be finely diced
1 medium-size onion, to be peeled & finely diced
700 g fresh Sauerkraut (sour cabbage) - you may use the canned ones
6 pcs Wacholderbeeren (juniper berries), to be crushed just before adding to pan
2 pcs bay leaves
370 ml Apfelkompott (stewed apples) - you may use the canned ones
250 ml apple juice
salt & ground black pepper to taste
80 ml vegetable stock (instant)

Method:
Wash and dry the Putenkeule.  Please note that I normally buy 2 turkey legs of 500 g each.  Season with salt and ground black pepper on both sides.  Then, roll the meat together and bind with strings as shown below.

In a large pan, heat about 2 tbsp of cooking oil over medium/high heat.  Pan-fry the meat bundles and brown on all sides. Once done, remove to a tray.

Remove about 4 tbsp of fat from pan.  Add onion & bacon cubes and stir-fry for about 3 minutes. Then, add Sauerkraut, Wacholderbeeren and bay leaves.  Stir-fry for about a minute before adding the stewed apples and apple juice.  Season with salt and ground black pepper to taste.

Arrange meat on top of Sauerkraut and cover with lid or aluminium foil.  Bake in a preheated fan oven at a temperature o 150° C for 30 minutes.

After 30 minutes are up, add apple juice all over the Sauerkraut and continue baking for another 30 minutes.

After that, remove lid or aluminium foil and bake for another 30 minutes.  Total baking time is one and a half hours.  Once done, remove from oven and check seasoning. Cut and remove the strings before serving.

Slice meat before serving with Sauerkraut and boiled potatoes.

Bon Appetit!