Wednesday, April 2, 2014

Boerenkool: A Dutch Comfort Dish


Boerenkool (literally, farmer’s cabbage) is form of Dutch stampot (translation: mashed pot). Stampot is a very popular Dutch comfort food, basically glorified mashed potatoes. Other forms include potatoes with carrots, endive or other vegetables. I never regularly bought kale until I learned to make this, one of my Dutch husband’s favorite meals. Now it’s a staple on our menu.

Ingredients:
  • 1 bunch kale with stalks removed
  • 2.5 pounds potatoes, chopped into chunks
  • 1 12 oz. smoked sausage
  •  ½ cup milk (or unsweetened almond milk, for dairy-free families likes ours)
  • 2 T. butter (or Earth Balance vegan butter stick)
  • Salt to taste
Instructions:

1. Wash kale, remove stalks, and roughly chop.



2. Cook kale in boiling water of ten minutes.


3. While kale is cooking, wash and chop potatoes.



4. Drain the kale.


Save the water if you have plants because when it cools, it's a nutrient-rich drink for them. (I have a black thumb, but I keep trying).


5. Pot potatoes in a large pot and just cover with water. My original recipe said to only cover half with potatoes, but the potatoes either got scorched or the top ones didn't get cooked, so cover them up.


6. Add drained kale on top of the potatoes.


7. Cut a slit in the smoked sausage, then add it to the top of the kale.


8. Cover and cook over medium heat for 30 minutes. The potatoes are done when you can easily slice a form through a piece of potato.


9. Remove sausage and drain the vegetables. Put the vegetables back in the pot and mash to desired texture.


Niels prefers a chunky texture, so we use a masher.


If you like a smoother texture, an immersion blender works really well.


10. Add milk and butter and combine. Add salt to taste.

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1 comment:

  1. Yay! Boerenkool is an awesome dish! I have to have it a few times each winter… And of course only mashed and not blended. And I usually cook all three things in one pot, the sausage gives a great flavor! (And also I'm lazy.)
    This dish is also one of the things where it's obvious that there's still some Dutch heritage in my family. Usually in Germany you will get the Boerenkool just as a side dish, like other vegetables and not as a stampot. But for me it has to be a stampot!

    (And: How beautiful is that second photo?! Awesome!)

    Love, Midsommarflicka

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