Frikadeller (Danish Meatballs) with boiled potatoes and stewed red cabbage

Although this dinner is not usually served with rye bread, the left-overs are always saved for sandwiches later in the evening (see "Midnight Snacks") or the next day on Smørrebrød (see "Lunch").

Frikadeller - three-sided Danish meatballs (Serves 4-5 people):

Ingredients:
1 lb ground beef or pork
1 lb ground chicken or turkey meat
1 onion- finely diced
1/2 Cup all purpose flour
2 eggs
1/3 Cup finely chopped parsley
3 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
3 teaspoons kosher salt
2 teaspoons curry powder
Oil for pan frying (rice bran oil is the best!)

Combine all of the ingredients (except the oil) in a bowl and mix thoroughly with your hands. Heat a seasoned cast-iron pan on medium heat. Add 1/8 cup oil when hot. Using a spoon and the palm of your hand, create ping-pong ball sized balls of the meat mixture and gently place them into the pan, leaving ample room between your cooking frikadella. You should see the fat bubbling around the edges of the meat. When the first side is well browned turn the meatball 1/3 turn. Repeat for each meatball until they are nicely browned on three sides. You can push the first batch of browned frikadella to the side of the pan so that they can continue to cook as you start a new batch in the center of the pan. You may need to adjust the heat or add more oil. The frikadella pushed to the side of the pan will take approximately 10-15 minutes to finish after they have been browned. The frikadella are perfectly cooked once they feel elastic to the touch instead of mushy.

Serve hot, with boiled potatoes and sweet-and-sour cabbage. Save the left-overs for sandwiches the next day!

 

Rødkål (Stewed Red Cabbage)

Ingredients:
One head red cabbage
2 Tablespoons goose fat (or substitute with another tasty lipid: lard, olive oil, or clarified butter)
1-2 Cups orange juice (optional)
1 Cup Apple cider vinegar or rice wine vinegar
Left over jam or marmalade (4 Tablespoons) or 3 Tablespoons sugar
5 cloves
A pinch of freshly ground pepper
A pinch of kosher salt

In a heavy bottom, 6-8 quart pot (that has a tightly fitting lid) heat 2 Tablespoons goose fat on medium heat.

Cut the red cabbage in half and julienne each half, gradually adding your new strips of cabbage into the pot, stirring with each addition. All of the cabbage should be coated with a thin coat of oil by the time all of the cabbage is in the pot.

Add half of the orange juice and let simmer for two minutes so that the flavor becomes a bit more concentrated. Add the vinegar, left-over jam or marmalade (or sugar), cloves, salt, and pepper. The vinegar will release the water from the cabbage so there is liquid in the pot.

Cover with a tightly fitting lid and turn the heat very low. Let simmer for at least two hours, checking every once in a while to make sure there is liquid in the pot. Add 1/4 cup orange juice when more liquid is necessary necessary.

Cook a day ahead for best results because this cabbage gets better the longer it sits! Store in the refrigerator for up to ten days. Serve on open-faced sandwiches and with poultry or pork dinners!