Smørrebrød with Liver Pâté, Bacon, Mushrooms and Lingonberry Compote

Liver Pâté with Bacon, Mushrooms and Lingonberry Compote © kvalifood.com

Liver pâté with bacon is one of the great Danish smørrebrød classics and belongs to the warm category, where the pâté is served straight from the oven. Homemade liver pâté is a different world from the bought kind — pork liver, fatback and spices are minced to a fine farce and baked in a water bath, giving a soft, creamy texture. The bacon must be crisp so it crackles against the soft pâté, and the mushrooms add an earthy umami. The lingonberry compote is the Scandinavian counterpoint — its sweet-sour flavour cuts through the richness of the liver in a way no other garnish can. This is comfort food in its purest Danish form.

Liver pâté with bacon, mushrooms and lingonberry compote assembly © kvalifood.com
Liver pâté with bacon, mushrooms and lingonberry compote assembly © kvalifood.com

Ingredients

Yields 4 servings

Homemade liver pâté

  • 500 g pork liver
  • 200 g fatback
  • 1 onion, roughly chopped
  • 2 tbsp butter
  • 3 tbsp plain flour
  • 3 dl cream
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 tsp salt
  • ½ tsp white pepper
  • ½ tsp allspice
  • 1 bay leaf

Lingonberry compote

  • 150 g fresh (or frozen) lingonberries
  • 3 tbsp sugar
  • 2 tbsp water
  • Grated zest of ½ orange

Crispy bacon and mushrooms

  • 8 rashers bacon
  • 200 g mushrooms, quartered
  • 1 tbsp butter
  • salt
  • pepper

Assembly

  • 4 slices dark rye bread
  • Butter, for the bread
  • Crisp salad leaves
  • Chervil

Directions

Liver pâté

Fry the onion in butter until soft. Pass the liver, fatback and onion through a meat grinder twice (or blend to a fine farce). Make a roux with butter, flour and cream. Mix the roux into the farce. Add the eggs and spices. Pour into a greased loaf tin with a bay leaf on top. Bake in a water bath at 355°F (180°C) for about 1 hour. It is done when the internal temperature reaches 160°F (72°C).

Lingonberry compote

Bring the lingonberries, sugar, water and orange zest to the boil. Simmer for 10 minutes until the berries are soft and the sauce thickens. Leave to cool.

Bacon and mushrooms

Fry the bacon until crispy in a pan. Fry the mushrooms in butter over high heat for 3–4 minutes until golden. Season with salt and pepper.

Assembly

Butter the rye bread. Cut a thick, warm slice of liver pâté and place it on top. Add the fried mushrooms and crispy bacon. Put a spoonful of lingonberry compote on the side. Garnish with chervil.