Rømmegrøt

Ingredients

Base

• 1 litrerømme, Norwegian sour cream, at least 35 per cent fat

Also

• 150 gplain flour
• about 700 ml whole milk, warmed
• 1 tspsalt

To serve

• the separated butter
• caster sugar
• ground cinnamon

Alongside

• spekemat, cured meats
• flatbrød
• saft or fruit cordial

Directions

1. Bring the rømme to a gentle simmer in a heavy pan, stirring. Simmer it for 5 to 10 minutes. Now sift in about a third of the flour, whisking it in, and keep cooking.
2. Keep stirring and watch the surface. Within a few minutes you will see clear golden butter rising and pooling around the edges and on top. Take off as much as you can. Do not throw any of that separated butter away. Whisk it in gradually and thoroughly, because this porridge lumps very easily.
3. Cook it for a few minutes, stirring. Now begin adding the warm milk, a little at a time, whisking each addition in fully. Add the milk warm rather than cold, and gradually. Cold milk poured in at once seizes the mixture and gives lumps.
4. Keep adding milk until the porridge is thick, smooth and glossy but still spoonable. It should be thick enough to hold a spoon upright briefly and no thicker.
5. Add the salt and cook it a further 10 minutes over a low heat, stirring often. Cook the flour out properly. Scrape the base as you stir, because it catches easily.
6. Pour the reserved melted butter generously over each bowl so it pools on the surface. Pouring back the butter that came out of the cream is the tradition, and a bowl of rømmegrøt without that golden pool looks wrong to a Norwegian.
7. Dust heavily with cinnamon and sugar. Serve it hot, with cured meats, flatbrød and a glass of fruit cordial alongside.

Technique

• Seterrømme, the thickest farm sour cream, gives the best result and the most butter.
• It is very rich and small portions are the norm.
• It does not reheat well, because the butter and the porridge separate differently the second time.

Substitutions

• Crème fraîche at 35 per cent or higher, which behaves similarly.
• Full-fat sour cream with a little butter added, if it will not separate.

Variations

• Made thinner, as a soup.
• With semolina in place of some of the flour.
• Served with sugar and cinnamon only, as a dessert.

History

A Norwegian festival food for harvest, weddings and 17 May, eaten with cured meats on the side.

Frequently asked questions

What is Rømmegrøt?

Rømmegrøt is a dessert from Norway: sour cream porridge with butter pooling on top, cinnamon and sugar. A Norwegian festival food for harvest, weddings and 17 May, eaten with cured meats on the side.

How long does Rømmegrøt take to make?

Rømmegrøt takes 10 min of preparation and 40 min of cooking. The recipe makes 6 servings. It is rated hard to make.

What can I substitute in Rømmegrøt?

Yes, within limits. Crème fraîche at 35 per cent or higher, which behaves similarly. Full-fat sour cream with a little butter added, if it will not separate.

What is the most important thing to get right in Rømmegrøt?

Keep stirring and watch the surface. Within a few minutes you will see clear golden butter rising and pooling around the edges and on top. Take off as much as you can. Do not throw any of that separated butter away. Whisk it in gradually and thoroughly, because this porridge lumps very easily.