Instant Pot German Pot Roast with Mustard (Senfbraten)

Grandma said: If you want luck in the New Year, you have to have pork on New Year’s Day. Who am I to argue with Grandma? Here’s my New Year’s day recipe inspired by the German side of my family, Instant Pot German Pot Roast with Mustard.

In Germany this is a Senfbraten, or mustard roast, pork rubbed with mustard and cooked with onions, carrots, and thyme. I use my Instant Pot Pot Roast trick of cutting the roast into pieces - it cooks faster and more evenly. Other than that, it’s a standard pot roast; brown it to add a flavorful crust, sauté the onions, simmer in a little wine, add the roast and some broth, and cook with carrots until falling-apart tender. (You don’t have to add the carrots, but they’re my wife’s favorite part. I get asked a lot of pointed questions if there aren’t carrots.)

Oh, and of course I made a side of Sauerkraut and Kielbasa - Grandma says you need pork AND sauerkraut for luck in the new year. And I don’t want to cross Grandma…

Inspired by: https://www.daringgourmet.com/traditional-german-senfbraten-mustard-gravy-pork-roast/

Instant Pot German Pot Roast with Mustard (Senfbraten)

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5 from 2 reviews

• Author: Mike Vrobel
• Total Time: 1 hour 45 minutes
• Yield: 8 servings 1x

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Description

Instant Pot German Pot Roast with Mustard. Senfbraten is a traditional German mustard roast, and this version is done in about 90 minutes thanks to pressure cooking.

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Ingredients

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• 3- to 4-pound boneless pork shoulder roast, cut into 4 pieces, each roughly 2-inches by 2-inches by 4-inches
• 1 ½ teaspoons fine sea salt
• 2 tablespoons spicy brown mustard
• 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 large onion, diced
• ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• ½ cup white wine (dry Riesling is traditional) or water
• 3 large carrots, peeled and cut into 2-inch lengths
• 1 cup chicken broth or water

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Instructions

1. Season and sear the roast: Cut the pork shoulder roast into 4 pieces, each roughly 4” x 2” x 2”. Sprinkle the pork pieces with 1 ½ teaspoons salt, and then rub with the spicy brown mustard to coat. Heat 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil in the Instant Pot using Sauté” mode adjusted to high until the oil is shimmering. (Or, over medium-high heat in a stovetop pressure cooker.) Sear the pork roast in two batches, two pieces at a time. Sear each piece on 2 sides – use the largest sides – until it is well browned, about 3 minutes a side. After searing, put the pork on a platter and save for later.
2. Sauté the aromatics: Add the butter to the pressure cooker pot, and swirl around to start it melting. Add the onions and sprinkle with ½ teaspoon salt and the thyme. Sauté until the onion softens, about 3 minutes, stirring and scraping the browned pork bits from the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon. Pour in the wine, bring to a simmer, and simmer for 1 minute to boil off some of the alcohol.
3. Everything in the pot: Pour in the chicken broth and scrape the bottom of one last time to loosen any browned bits of onion. Add the platter of pork (and any pork juices) to the pot, then scatter the carrots on top.
4. Pressure cook the pot roast for 45 minutes with a natural pressure release: Lock the pressure cooker lid and cook at high pressure for 45 minutes (“Pressure Cook” or “Manual” mode in an Instant Pot), or for 38 minutes in a stovetop PC. Let the pressure come down naturally, about 20 more minutes.
5. Defat the sauce, and serve: Gently move the pieces of pork to a serving platter with tongs or a slotted spoon. (Or both – the pork is fall apart tender at this point.) Scoop the carrots and onions into a serving bowl with a slotted spoon. Pour the remaining liquid in the pot into a fat separator and let settle for five minutes. Cut each piece of pork in half, pour a little of the defatted sauce over it, and serve, passing the rest of the sauce and the vegetables on the side.

Notes

• What if my pork roast is bigger? Or smaller? As long as you cut it into roughly 2” by 2” by 4” pieces, the timing on the recipe stays the same. The cooking time is determined by the size of each piece, not the total weight. Don’t decrease the amount of liquid in the recipe, though; a pressure cooker needs the liquid to come up to pressure.

Tools

• 6 quart or larger pressure cooker (I love my Instant Pot electric pressure cooker)
• Flat edged wooden spoon
• Slotted Spoon
• Fat separator
• Tongs

• Prep Time: 15 minutes
• Cook Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
• Category: Sunday Dinner
• Method: Pressure Cooker
• Cuisine: German

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My complete Instant Pot Pressure Cooker Recipes list

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