Cauldron Potatoes and Meat over an Open Fire

Cooking method

1. Step 1:

   

   How do you make potatoes and meat in a cauldron? Gather all your ingredients. Which meat is best? Absolutely any works — poultry, beef, pork, or game. This recipe uses a piece of pork neck. Rinse the meat and pat it dry with a towel.

2. Step 2:

   

   Peel the onion, carrot, and garlic. Wash the vegetables in cold water. If you can, use bell peppers of different colors so the dish looks brighter and more appetizing.

3. Step 3:

   

   Peel the potatoes, wash them, and cover them with cold, clean water.

4. Step 4:

   

   Cut the vegetables however you like. For cauldron cooking, I prefer large cuts.

5. Step 5:

   

   Cut the potatoes into wedges or cubes, whichever you prefer.

6. Step 6:

   

   Pour refined vegetable oil into a clean, dry cauldron and heat it well.

7. Step 7:

   

   Meanwhile, drain the potatoes and spread the pieces out on a flat surface to dry. Out in the fresh air, this happens fairly quickly.

8. Step 8:

   

   Add the onion, carrot, bell peppers, and garlic cloves to the hot oil. Fry, stirring constantly with a slotted spoon, to the doneness you want — you can just lightly blanch them in the hot oil or fry them until golden. Lift the vegetables out with the slotted spoon into a separate container. Be careful not to burn yourself!

9. Step 9:

   

   Next up, the tomatoes. Drop the cherry tomatoes into the oil the vegetables fried in. Leave them just 2–5 seconds and pull them right out — the oil is very hot, so they cook fast. (You can leave the cherry tomatoes out of the recipe if you like.)

10. Step 10:

    

    Lift the tomatoes out with the slotted spoon.

11. Step 11:

    

    Add the dried potatoes to the cauldron.

12. Step 12:

    

    Fry over high heat until golden. Keep stirring constantly, or everything will scorch.

13. Step 13:

    

    Remove the potatoes from the cauldron.

14. Step 14:

    

    Now for the meat. Add it to the hot oil and fry until golden. Fry the meat in batches so it sears rather than steams — I usually do it in two rounds.

15. Step 15:

    

    Lift the first batch of pork out of the oil into a separate bowl and fry the rest of the meat.

16. Step 16:

    

    Return all the fried meat to the cauldron and add a little water. Pull a few logs out from under the cauldron to moderate the flame, and braise the pork, covered, until tender. This takes 40 to 60 minutes. Lift the lid now and then to check that the meat isn't scorching, and add a little water if needed.

17. Step 17:

    

    Finely chop the fresh herbs. For color and an appetizing presentation, I recommend red onion — cut it into thin slivers or thin half-rings.

18. Step 18:

    

    Once the meat is done, move on to the final steps. Open the lid, and if there's too much liquid, cook some off. Add the potatoes and fried vegetables to the cauldron.

19. Step 19:

    

    Season with salt to taste and sprinkle with your favorite spices and ground pepper blend.

20. Step 20:

    

    Stirring gently, bring the dish to full doneness (go by the potatoes). Keep the flame low.

21. Step 21:

    

    At the end of cooking, add the herbs and onion.

22. Step 22:

    

    Stir everything again and call your family and friends to the table.

23. Step 23:

    

    Serve it while it's still hot!