Frikadeller

The story

Frikadeller are flat, oval meatballs fried in butter, and they are among the most ordinary dinners in Denmark: Danish recipe writers describe them as classic home food. The base is ground pork, or a mix of veal and pork with around 10 percent fat, bound with egg, milk, grated onion and flour. Some cooks replace part of the flour with fine rolled oats, and some add dried thyme.

The technique matters more than the list. Cooks beat the meat with the salt first, until it turns sticky, so that it can take up the milk, which is added a little at a time. The mixture rests in the refrigerator for about half an hour. Each frikadelle is then shaped with a spoon dipped in the hot fat, or in water, and pressed against the palm into an oval, and the batch fries in plenty of butter and oil for five or six minutes a side, until a dark crust forms.

A typical plate adds boiled potatoes, a quick pan gravy made from the drippings and the potato cooking water, and cucumber salad or pickles. Cook a full batch even for four people, since leftovers reheat well and are good cold the next day.