Berner Platte

Ingredients

• 4 links smoked pork sausages (bratwurst or similar)
• 1.5 lbs beef or pork rib or shoulder meat, bone-in
• 6 oz smoked ham or bacon, thickly sliced
• 2 teaspoons dried juniper berries, crushed lightly
• 2 leaves dried bay leaves
• 3 sprigs fresh thyme sprigs
• 8 peppercorns whole black peppercorns
• 2 onions medium yellow onions
• 3 carrots medium carrots
• 4 potatoes medium waxy potatoes (such as Yukon Gold)
• ¼ head small green or red cabbage, quartered
• 4 cups unsalted beef or vegetable broth
• 1 cup dry white wine
• 1 teaspoon coarse sea salt
• 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, roughly chopped
• 3 tablespoons whole-grain mustard (for serving)

Instructions

1. 1

   Start by preparing your vegetables. Peel 2 medium yellow onions and cut them in half, leaving the root end intact so they hold together during cooking. Peel 3 medium carrots and cut them into 2-inch diagonal chunks, aiming for roughly even sizes. Scrub 4 medium waxy potatoes under cold water but leave the skin on; if they're large, cut them in half so they cook in roughly 25-30 minutes. Cut a quarter head of small green or red cabbage into 4 wedges, keeping the core end intact so each wedge stays together. Set all vegetables aside on a cutting board.

2. 2

   Pat 4 smoked pork sausages completely dry with paper towels — dry skin will sear better and brown evenly. Set aside on a plate. Cut 6 ounces of smoked ham or bacon into 2-inch chunks and set aside.

3. 3

   Set a large heavy-bottomed Dutch oven or 6-quart pot over medium-high heat. Once hot, lay the 4 sausages in the dry pot — you're not adding fat yet. Sear them for 2-3 minutes on the first side without moving them, until they develop a deep golden-brown crust. Roll them once and sear the other side for another 2 minutes. You should hear a steady, strong sizzle. Transfer the sausages to a plate.

4. 4

   In the same pot with the rendered sausage fat, add the ham or bacon chunks. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the edges are crispy and the fat is rendering, about 4-5 minutes. You'll smell a deep, smoky aroma. Transfer the ham to the same plate as the sausages.

5. 5

   Now add 1.5 lbs of bone-in beef or pork rib or shoulder meat to the pot. You may need to work in two batches to avoid crowding. Sear on each side over medium-high heat for 4-5 minutes per side, until deeply browned — this builds flavor through the Maillard reaction. Transfer the browned meat to a clean plate and season lightly with coarse sea salt.

6. 6

   Pour 1 cup of dry white wine into the pot to deglaze, scraping up all the browned bits from the bottom with a wooden spoon. These flavorful fond will enrich your broth. Let the wine reduce by half, about 2-3 minutes — you'll smell a mellower, cooked-down wine aroma.

7. 7

   Add 4 cups of unsalted beef or vegetable broth to the pot. Place the browned meat back in and add 2 crushed juniper berries, 2 dried bay leaves, 3 fresh thyme sprigs, and 8 whole black peppercorns. Stir gently. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat — you'll see large, rolling bubbles breaking the surface.

8. 8

   Once boiling, reduce the heat to medium-low so the liquid is at a gentle simmer — small bubbles should be breaking the surface steadily, not aggressively. Add the prepared onion halves, carrot chunks, and potato halves to the broth. Cover the pot with a lid and simmer for 15 minutes. The vegetables should be just starting to soften.

9. 9

   After 15 minutes, nestle the cabbage wedges and the seared sausages back into the broth among the vegetables. Add the cooked ham pieces. Re-cover and continue simmering over medium-low heat for 10-12 minutes, until the potatoes are fork-tender and the sausages are heated through. The broth should be gently bubbling, not boiling hard.

10. 10

    Taste the broth and adjust seasoning with a pinch more coarse sea salt if needed. The flavors should be savory, aromatic, and slightly earthy from the juniper.

11. 11

    Carefully transfer everything to a large platter or family-style serving bowl: arrange the tender meat, sausages, ham, and all the vegetables in an attractive pile. Ladle 1-1.5 cups of the aromatic broth over the platter — the liquid is part of the experience, not a side. Scatter 2 tablespoons of fresh parsley over the top. Serve with 3 tablespoons of whole-grain mustard on the side for dolloping. Everyone can tear into this together with good bread and share the broth.

Tools you’ll need

• 12-inch chef's knife
• cutting board
• vegetable peeler
• paper towels
• 6-quart Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot with lid
• wooden spoon
• instant-read thermometer (optional)
• fork
• large serving platter or family-style bowl
• ladle

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