Ingredients
Sausage
- 2rookworst, bought
Stamppot
- 1 kgfloury potatoes, peeled and cubed
- 500 gkale, curly endive or sauerkraut, shredded
- 100 mlwhole milk, warm
- 60 gbutter
- salt, pepper and nutmeg
To serve
- strong mustard
- a spoonful of the sausage’s cooking liquid, or gravy
Directions
- Buy the rookworst — it is a smoked, fully cooked sausage, and everything here is about heating it through without splitting it.
- Boil the potatoes in salted water. If you are using kale, add it to the same pan for the last 10 minutes; sauerkraut goes in for the last 5, drained.
- While they cook, put the rookworst in a separate pan of water at 80°C (176°F) — steaming, with no bubbles at all — and heat for 25 to 30 minutes.
- Never boil the sausage. The casing splits, the fat and the smoke go into the water, and what is left is dry. This is the one thing that goes wrong with rookworst and it goes wrong silently.
- Drain the potatoes and greens, return to the pan, and mash roughly with the warm milk and butter. Season well with salt, pepper and a good grating of nutmeg.
- Keep it coarse. Stamppot is a rough mash, not a purée, and over-worked potato goes gluey.
- Make a well in the centre of the mash on each plate and lay the sausage across the top, whole or cut in half.
- Serve with mustard and a spoonful of the sausage’s warm cooking liquid poured into the well.
Technique
- Eighty degrees, not a boil. Every disappointing rookworst met a rolling pot.
- Mash roughly and keep it coarse.
- The sausage goes on top of the stamppot, not mixed through it. This is how it is served everywhere in the Netherlands.
Substitutions
- Any smoked cooked pork sausage — a Polish kiełbasa or a German Bockwurst.
- Sauerkraut, endive, carrot and onion, or spinach in place of kale, all of which are standard stamppot variants.
Variations
- Boerenkoolstamppot with kale, zuurkoolstamppot with sauerkraut, hutspot with carrot and onion.
- Served with a knob of butter melting in the well instead of gravy.
History
Butchers smoked minced pork trimmings for winter; the sausage is inseparable from stamppot and is sold hot in Dutch supermarkets.
Frequently asked questions
What is Rookworst?
Rookworst is a charcuterie & cured from Netherlands: smoked pork sausage steamed and served on top of stamppot. Butchers smoked minced pork trimmings for winter; the sausage is inseparable from stamppot and is sold hot in Dutch supermarkets.
How long does Rookworst take to make?
Rookworst takes 10 min of preparation and 35 min of cooking. The recipe makes serves 4. It is rated easy to make.
What can I substitute in Rookworst?
Yes, within limits. Any smoked cooked pork sausage — a Polish kiełbasa or a German Bockwurst. Sauerkraut, endive, carrot and onion, or spinach in place of kale, all of which are standard stamppot variants.
What is the most important thing to get right in Rookworst?
Never boil the sausage. The casing splits, the fat and the smoke go into the water, and what is left is dry. This is the one thing that goes wrong with rookworst and it goes wrong silently.
