Kjøttkaker og kålstuing

Fall is here and with the cooler nights and the sharpness in the air comes the desire for more solid comfort food. Slow-roasted meat and apple cake. The oven warming up the house and emanating smells reminiscent of good times and good food past and present.

Time to cook childhood memories. Here’s a classic from when I grew up: meat, potatoes, and cabbage stew. It’ll use up a few pots and space on the stove, but the result is rewarding, even if you grew up in southern climes.

As much as I’d love to, now is not the time to grab the bottle of red for deglazing the pan. If you’d tasted red wine from Norway, you’d know why. Water’s just fine. High heat.

Mixing up the beef.

 

Scoop a quarter-cup size ball and flatten.

 

Resting.

 

Potatoes and carrots. Boiled. Pretty darn simple, yet pretty darn good.

 

Roux and pansauces. Using a wooden spoon, Michael Ruhlman. Nothing fancier back when.

 

Crowding the stovetop.
 

Served family style.

 

Norwegian Meatballs and Cabbage Stew

• 2 lbs ground beef
• salt 
• pepper
• allspice
• 2 Tablespoons potato flour
• breadcrumbs
• butter
• potatoes
• carrots
• butter
• flour
• milk
• salt
• pepper
• freshly grated nutmeg
• cabbage

 Mix beef with spices, the potato flour, and a handful of breadcrumbs. Shape flattened meatballs, fry in butter over high heat, in batches. Make sure to deglaze the pan and scrape all the good stuff off for the gravy.

Boil potatoes and carrots in salted water until just tender.

Make a béchamel sauce with a generous amount of nutmeg.

Cut the cabbage in chunks, boil until tender, and add to the béchamel. 

Season the cabbage stew and gravy with salt and pepper to taste and enjoy with family and friends.

 

 

Comments

1. Comforting in the Kitchen: Norwegian Meatballs - - […] a full recipe in an older posts, Kjøttkaker og Kålstuing, the meatball mixture changes slightly every time I make…