One-Pot Octoberfeast

This recipe comes from Whole Foods. Earlier this summer, I went to Busch Gardens Williamsburg with my brother, sister in-law, and niece, who is very cute and has an unfortunate tendency of calling me grandma. While there, we ate an indecent amount of sausage, cabbage, and sauerkraut for dinner. Though the meal was surprisingly good for an amusement park, you should never stuff yourself before riding roller coasters. I am not riding any roller coasters today, so it is as good a time as any to eat German inspired food.

I made some substitutions to make the meal healthier but mostly stayed faithful to the recipe. I used 1 tablespoon butter, 13 ounces chicken sausage, 2 cups chicken broth, 2 teaspoons dried dill, ground black pepper, 1 yellow onion, 1 pound brown Crimini mushrooms, 6 ounces plain Greek yogurt, 3 mounded tablespoons mustard, and 19 ounces sauerkraut (2 cans).

I first browned 2 inch chunks of chicken sausage in 1 tablespoon of butter. This took around 5 minutes.  Then I added 1 cup of the broth, the dried dill, ground pepper, salt and onion. This cooked on medium to high heat for about 6 minutes. I waited until the onions were soft.

I added the mushrooms. I was supposed to lower the heat, but I forgot. I cooked this until the mushrooms had released their moisture and softened. This took about 4 minutes. When a Crimini mushroom grows up big and strong, it becomes a Portobello mushroom.

While the mushrooms were cooking, I drained and rinsed the sauerkraut. Sauerkraut! It literally means sour cabbage. Given its name, it isn’t surprising that it is fermented cabbage. During World War I, American sauerkraut producers renamed sauerkraut liberty cabbage. The unsuspecting American consumers were none the wiser?

I also whisked the remaining chicken broth, Greek yogurt, and mustard.

Once the mushrooms were adequately cooked, I added the sauerkraut and yogurt mixture to the pot.

Once all the ingredients were added to the pot, I simmered the mixture for 10 minutes. My final dish was quite moist, but I added more broth and cream then recommended. I didn’t want to have ¾ cup of chicken broth and half a container of Greek yogurt left in my fridge.

I relished this German inspired stew, but I am a huge admirer of sauerkraut and Rueben sandwiches. I am a bit of a carnivore so I think more sausage would be fitting.