Liver pâté
| Type | Spread |
|---|---|
| Main ingredients | Ground pork liver, lard |
Leverpostej (Danish pronunciation: [ˈleʊ̯ˀɐpʰosd̥ɑɪ̯ˀ]) ("liver pâté") – also known, variously, as Leberpastete (German), leverpastei (Dutch), leverpastej (Swedish), leverpostei (Norwegian), lifrarkæfa (Icelandic), maksapasteet (Estonian), maksapasteija (Finnish), paštetas (Lithuanian) – is a meat spread popular in northern Europe. Made from coarsely ground pork liver and lard,[1] it is similar to certain types of French and Belgian pâté.
Danish leverpostej
In Denmark, liver is formed into a paste to which herbs, salt, pepper and other desired seasonings are added. It is then put into a loaf pan and baked in an oven.
Leverpostej is sliced or spread on Danish dark rye bread (rugbrød) and is eaten as an open faced sandwich. It may also be topped with a variety of pickled accompaniments, such as beets or cucumbers, or onions, fried onions or bacon. The Leverpostej is served both hot and cold and can be bought premade in Danish supermarkets and butcheries.
A more extravagant variation is the prepared Danish open faced sandwich (smørrebrød) called Dyrlægens natmad ("veterinarian's midnight snack") — on a piece of dark rye bread, a layer of leverpostej is topped with a slice of corned beef (saltkød) and a slice of meat aspic (sky). This is topped with raw onion rings and cress.[2]
Leverpostej is also served warm on rye bread, or sometimes on franskbrød (white bread, literally "French bread"). Traditional toppings include bacon slices and sautéed mushrooms.
Leverpostej was introduced to Denmark in 1847 by the French François Louis Beauvais in Copenhagen.[3] At that time it was considered a luxury dish, and was expensive. Today it is a common and reasonably priced food.[4] In two 1992 surveys, Danes ranked leverpostej as their favorite sandwich topping.[5]
Stryhn's, established 1945 on Amager isle, south of Copenhagen, is one of Denmark's main leverpostej producers. For the past few decades, their Grovhakket (lit. "Coarse mince") brand has been the most popular leverpostej in Denmark .[6] A typical recipe from Jylland from around 1920 can be found here.[7]
See also
References
- ^ Bettina Buhl, curator of the Danish Museum of Agriculture, "Pålæg – fladt eller højtbelagt – en historisk køkkenvandring"
- ^ idadavidsen.dk, "Opskrifter - Dyrlægens natmad"
- ^ tivolihallen.dk, "Vidste du?"
- ^ videnskab.dk, "Madpakken opstod af industrialisering og baconeksport", October 7 2009
- ^ bt.dk, "Leverpostej-katastrofe truer madpakkerne", January 5 2002
- ^ business.dk - "Den danske leverpostej skal fremtidssikres", February 25 2006
- ^ hoer up.dk "Traditional old Jysk leverpostej recipe", 1920