No other dish shows off the richly varied charcuterie of Alsace quite like Choucroute. There are many legendary Choucroute institutions in Strasbourg.

Place ham hocks in a large pot. Cover with water and simmer over medium heat for 1-½ hours. Drain and set aside.

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Melt goose fat in a Dutch oven, or a large heavy pot with a lid, over medium heat. Add onions, cook until soft, 5 to 10 minutes, then add garlic, bouquet garni, cloves, juniper berries, coriander seeds, caraway seed, sauerkraut, wine, beer, bay leaves, ham hocks, pork loin, ham, bacon, and bouquet garni. Season with salt and pepper, cover, and cook in oven until meats are tender, about 1-½ hours.

About 35 minutes before serving, place potatoes in a pot of salted water over medium-high heat and cook until tender, 20-25 minutes. Drain and keep warm.

Prick the pork sausages with a fork, then place in a skillet, cover with water, and simmer over medium heat for 10 minutes. Drain. Dry the skillet, add oil, and heat over medium heat. Brown the sausages, turning occasionally, then remove. In the same oil, adding more if necessary, brown smoked sausages, turning occasionally, then remove. To serve, spoon sauerkraut onto a large platter, discarding bouquet garni, seeds bundle and bay leaves. Slice pork loin, ham, and bacon, and arrange on platter with ham hocks, potatoes, and all sausages. On the side serve some gherkins and Dijon as condiment.

What Choucroute means: The word choucroute has also come to mean the show-stopping dish that defines Alsatian cuisine, of sauerkraut topped with copious portions of pork in myriad forms, but it translates simply as fermented cabbage. The earliest reference to sauerkraut in Alsace dates from the 15th century. For hundreds of years, until the early 1900, Srkrt-schniders, or sour-cabbage cutters, toured the countryside, selling their sauerkraut, and shredding cabbage to order.