Pork Roullade with Prunes

Pork Roullade with Prunes

My mom loved this kind of pork roulade called rullesteg (rolled roast) in Danish. It might have been the prunes that made it special for her. And I have to agree with her, the prunes gives this roast a sweetness that pairs well with the pork and the saltiness.

Don't get me started about the gravy. Danes are a meat, potato and brown gravy kinda people. The sauce or gravy should be spooned over the potatoes and not just used as a small amount of dipping sauce. The sauce from a roast like this makes the most fantastic sauce. All the flavors from the roast is concentrated in the cooking liquid, making the sauce to die for.  I normally only make a sauce like this at christmas when we have roasted duck or/and Danish pork roast, but this roast calle for the traditional brown sauce. 

Ingredients:

• 1½ kg (3 lbs) pork belly, no skin
• 200 g pitted prunes
• salt & pepper
• butter and olive oil for the searing
• 4-500 ml (2 cups) water

Directions:

Cut off any large chunks of fat, but don't make it too lean. Trim the ends so they are straight.   Lay the pork belly flat on a cutting board and sprinkle salt and pepper on both sides. Place the prunes on the pork belly along one of the sides. Roll the pork belly into a tight sausage keeping the prunes in the center. Use cooking twine to tie the meat up all the way.

Heat butter and oil in a pot, and sear the roast on all sides. Add the water, turn heat to low and let to simmer for about 90 minutes, turning a few times during the cooking process.  

Remove the roast from the pan, and let rest on a cutting board, before slicing.

Extra: Make a sauce from the cooking liquid, by adding cream (or whole milk) to the pan, and bring it to a boil. Thicken the sauce with a thick mixture of water and all-purpose flour. Add browning (kulør) to get the brown color. Season with salt, pepper and sugar.

Serve the roast sliced thin with boiled potatoes and some kind of vegetables.

Enjoy!

Warm Cabbage Salad

Warm Cabbage Salad

I love cabbage. It's cheap, healthy and easy to make. You can use it raw or cook it. When you sauté it like in this recipe, you still get the crunchy texture and a mild flavor. You can pull the flavor profile in different directions, by adding chili, curry or keep it mild with lemon and parsley.

Serves 3-4

Ingredients:

• 1 medium head of green cabbage, thinly sliced
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 lemon, the zest of
• 1 handful Italian parsley, chopped
• salt to taste
• lemon juice or white balsamic vinegar to taste

Directions:

Melt the butter in a sauté pan, don't let it brown. Sauté the cabbage until it starts to get tender. You still want it to be crispy, but not raw. Turn off the heat, and mix in parsley and lemon zest. Season the salad with salt and lemon juice or vinegar.

Serve immediately.

Enjoy!

Slow Roasted Chicken in Clay Baker

Slow Roasted Chicken in Clay Baker

The clay baker or a Römertopf was a popular item in the late sixties to early seventies. My mom had a clay baker like this, but I have never seen it being used. I think my mom thought that it was a bit of a hassle to soak the clay baker before use. But if she had know that how moist and juicy a slow roasted chicken gets, I'm sure she would have used it. 

The clay baker has got a renaissance in the last few years. You can make a lot of different roasts in it, but you can bake bread in it too.

Avoid drastic temperature changes with a clay baker. Always presoak baker for 30 minutes and always allow to cool before cleaning.

Serves 4-6.

Ingredients:

• 1 large whole chicken
• 1 red onion, cut in chunks
• 6 carrots, cut in chunks
• 6 garlic cloves
• 2 lemons, zested and cut or sliced
• 3 sprigs rosemary
• 4 tablespoons salted butter
• 200 ml white wine
• 800 g fingerling potatoes
• salt

Directions:

Completely submerge top and bottom of the clay baker in water and let soak for minimum 30 minutes prior to cooking. 

Zest the lemon, and mix it with the butter together with the chopped rosemary.

Pat the chicken dry with paper towels. Rub chicken lightly with salt inside and put the chopped up lemon inside too. Gently loosen the skin from the breasts and drumsticks, using your fingers. Rub the butter under the loosen skin, set aside.

Put onion, carrots, garlic, 1 rosemary sprig and the wine in the bottom of the clay baker. Place chicken on top, and rub the chicken with salt. Put lid on the clay baker.

Place clay baker in a cold oven and then turn temperature to 300℉ (150℃). Bake covered for 2 hours, then add the potatoes round the chicken. Cook covered for another 45-60 minutes. If the skin isn’t crispy by now cook the chicken uncovered for about another 15-20 minutes at 430℉ (220℃), until skin is browned and chicken is done.

Remove the chicken from the clay baker at let it stand for 15 minutes before carving.

Drain the liquid into a saucepan, cook it for 10-15 minutes or until reduced to half. You can thicken the liquid if you like it, so you have a sauce. 

Serve the chicken with the potatoes and vegetables and a green salad.

(I'm not using a regular rubber band for my cooking, I use Stretch Cooking Bands. They are easy to use, and easy to remove after cooking.)

Enjoy!

Roasted Chicken with Blood Orange and Mint

Roasted Chicken with Blood Orange and Mint

I keep getting attacked by blood oranges at my grocery store. They keep hopping into my cart. 

So I have to figure out new ways to use them. I have been roasting whole chicken with lemons, so why not use blood oranges? 

I really like the sweet and sour taste this combination gives. The sauce is very thin and can be thickened, but the taste was fantastic.

Serves 4.

Ingredients:

• 6-8 boneless chicken thighs

• few sprigs of mint, torn

• 2 blood oranges, thinly sliced

• 1-2 red onions, cut in chunks

Marinade:

• 3 tablespoons olive oil

• 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

• 3 tablespoons brown sugar

• 200 ml orange juice (preferably blood orange)

Directions:

Mix the marinade add the chicken to it, and let the chicken marinate for a few hours in the refrigerator.

Preheat oven to 425℉ (220℃).

Place the chicken in an ovenproof dish, add onion, mint, blood orange slices and pour the marinade over. 

Place dish in oven and roast until chicken is browned and cooked through, about 35-45 minutes.

Serve chicken with rice or couscous.

Enjoy!

Green Fish Cakes - Grønne Fiskefrikadeller

Green Fish Cakes - Grønne Fiskefrikadeller

Fish cakes is an easy way to make picky kids eat fish. Serve them as finger food with bite-sized vegetables and a dipping sauce. In Denmark you will get a sweet tartar sauce, remoulade, with the fish cakes. You can also serve the fish cakes cold on a sandwich. 

Makes 12-15.

Ingredients:

Fish Cakes:

• 900 g cod, no bones or skin
• 3 eggs
• 300 ml cream (half & half or whipping cream)
• 35 g (⅓ cup) all-purpose flour
• 2 leeks, rinsed and chopped, 
• 2½ teaspoons salt
• 1 handful fresh cilantro, chopped
• 1 handful fresh dill, chopped

Spicy creme fraiche sauce:

• 200 ml creme fraiche (you can use sour cream)
• 1 jalapeno, grated
• about 1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill
• juice from ½ lime
• salt & pepper to taste

Directions:

Put the cod and salt in a food processor and pulse until it gets sticky. The idea is to bind the moisture so that the fish cakes don’t fall apart. Add the rest of the ingredients and pulse until combined.

Let the batter rest in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes. (I tend to forget this part. 😇)

Mix the ingredients for the creme fraiche sauce in a bowl, and leave it to rest in the refrigerator until serving.

Using a spoon and your hand, make plum-size cakes and fry them in a mixture of half oil and half butter in a skillet, until golden brown on both sides.

Serve with boiled potatoes, a salad and a spicy creme fraiche sauce.

Enjoy!