Smørrebrød with Rullepølse, Meat Jelly and Mustard
Smørrebrød with rullepølse, meat jelly and mustard © kvalifood.com
Rullepølse is one of the most iconic Danish cold cuts with a long history rooted in farmhouse cooking, where the pork shoulder was salted, seasoned, rolled and boiled as a way to preserve the meat. The process takes several days — the meat is rubbed with salt, pepper and allspice, brined for three days, boiled for an hour and a half, then pressed overnight — but the result is a firm, spiced sausage cut into paper-thin slices. The flavour is salty and well-spiced with a soft, fatty texture that melts on the tongue. Meat jelly in cubes and raw red onion are the classic accompaniments, and a stripe of Dijon mustard provides the necessary sharpness. It is the fixed pairing of the Danish Christmas lunch alongside roast pork and herring.
Ingredients
Yields 4 servings
Homemade rullepølse
- 1 pork shoulder (about 1.5 kg), butterflied flat
- 2 tbsp salt
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 tsp black pepper, coarsely crushed
- 1 tsp allspice
- 2 bay leaves, crushed
- 1 onion, diced (for boiling)
- 5 peppercorns (for boiling)
Assembly
- 4 slices rye bread (or sifted rye bread)
- butter, for the bread
- meat jelly (see recipe #36)
- 1 red onion, cut into thin rings
- Dijon mustard
- watercress
- coarsely crushed black pepper
Directions
Rullepølse
Rub the flat piece of meat with salt, sugar, pepper, allspice and bay leaves. Roll it tightly and tie with string. Place in a brine of 1 litre water plus 100 g salt for 3 days in the fridge. Then boil in water with onion and peppercorns for 1½ hours. Leave to cool in the cooking liquid, then press under a heavy weight in the fridge overnight.
Assembly
Butter the bread. Cut the rullepølse into paper-thin slices and cover the bread. Scatter the meat jelly cubes on top. Lay on the red onion rings and a stripe of mustard. Garnish with watercress and pepper.