The Hirshon Norwegian Sour Cream Porridge – Rømmegrøt

Rømmegrøt Image Used Under Creative Commons License From arcticgrub.wordpress.com

Citizens, today is my last day in the mighty country of Norway, a place where my heart and soul truly feel most at home!

In asking my Norwegian colleagues about a good recipe to share with TFD Nation, my friends Anne-Signe and Simen suggested this incredibly rich, yet elegantly simple porridge that is one of the national dishes of this most beautiful of the Nordic countries.

Rømmegrøt (sometimes rømmegraut in Nynorsk) is a simple but delicious Norwegian porridge made with sour cream, whole milk, wheat flour, butter, and salt.

Rømme is a Norwegian word meaning a heavy sour cream made from cream or blend of whole milk and cream which is acidified; ‘grøt’ translates as porridge. Traditionally, rømmegrøt is a delicacy prepared for special occasions, including holidays. It is considered to be a traditional Norwegian dish. Recipes differ depending on the region of the country.

Rømmegrøt is thick and sweet and is generally drizzled in butter and sprinkled with sugar and ground cinnamon. Because this is so rich, it is often served in small cups with a small amount of butter topped with brown sugar, cinnamon and cream. Traditionally it is eaten with cured meat.

As noted on the fantastic blog northwildkitchen.com:

Rømmegrøt is thought to have been around during Viking times. Sour cream occurred in limited quantities, therefore, rømmegrøt was a luxury item and party food. This may be why the tradition of serving porridge at weddings – including the so-called “bride porridge” consisting of porridge with raisins – and during Christmas, Confirmation, the birth of a baby and Sankthans began. Olaug Loken, who released a cookbook in 1897, described rømmegrøt as Norway’s national dish and the highlight of Sankthans.

Rømmegrøt is traditionally a summer dish. There are three traditional summer holidays, Sankthans (23 & 24 June), Olsok (29 July) and Barsok (24 August), which are associated with the serving of rømmegrøt. When friends and family once gathered for these summer feasts, rømmegrøt became the highlight of the menu, for it is possible that during this time the milk was at its best as the cows grazed in the abundance of summer’s grass.

Also, the summer weather would most certainly cause fresh milk to curdle, making it convenient to make porridge for large groups when they had plenty. Rømmegrøt is also associated with other celebrations and is traditionally served at weddings, confirmations, a birth of a baby and during Christmas.

This is an incredibly rich dish, , revel in its flavors and mouthfeel and know that you partake of a dish with Viking DNA!

Battle on – The Generalissimo

The Hirshon Norwegian Sour Cream Porridge – Rømmegrøt

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Ingredients

Homemade Rømme / Sour Cream:
Raw milk
Clean, glass jar
Rømmegrøt:
2 cups heavy cream
2 cups full-fat sour cream, preferably homemade as described above or use Daisy brand ONLY
½ cup (100g) all purpose flour
4 cups whole milk, preferably from a Jersey cow
½ cup semolina
1–1 ½ cups buttermilk
2 tsp salt
For garnish:
Cinnamon
Nutmeg (optional and not traditional, but TFD enjoys it)
Light brown sugar (traditionally, white sugar would be used)
Cream and/or the butter you churned from the earlier part of the recipe
Raisins (optional)
Various cured meats (again optional, but you will risk the full-on Viking wrath of the assembled Norwegian people if you don’t offer it on the side)

Instructions

To make the homemade sour cream:
In order to get proper sour cream, you will need to use raw milk. You cannot use pasteurized milk of any kind or it will turn rancid, not sour, and can make you very ill. I suggest contacting local farmers to find out how you can access raw milk.
That being said, homemade sour cream is quite simple. Taking your raw milk, you will see the cream separates naturally from the milk (there will be a slight color change and two layers). The cream rises to the surface, while the milk sits on the bottom.
With a spoon, take the cream off the milk and place it in a clean jar. Don’t worry if you get some milk with the cream, it will naturally separate during the process. Place a lid on top, slightly ajar.
Leave to sit out at room temperature for about 24-48 hours. The time it takes to sour depends on the temperature, since cream will sour faster on warmer days. Check the sour cream to make sure it has soured and thickened up a bit – it will not be as thick as store bought sour cream because they add in gelatin and thickeners.
When it has soured, place it in the refrigerator and consume within 4-5 days.
Once you have made sour cream from raw milk, you can always take about ½ cup of sour cream from your previous batch with 1 quart of raw cream and mix them (shake them) together in a glass jar with a lid on top. Leave the jar to sit out, with the lid on, for 12-24 hours or until the desired sourness is achieved. Then refrigerate.
To Make The Rømmegrøt:
Bring the heavy cream and sour cream to a simmer in a pot covered with a lid, about 10 minutes. Whisk in the flour and let the mixture cook, stirring constantly until butter generates on top. Skim off the butter.
In a separate pot, bring milk, buttermilk and semolina to a simmer and cook until a porridge is formed. Whisk in the sour cream mixture and bring to a boil. Add salt to taste. Serve the porridge topped with melted butter, cinnamon and sugar, alternatively you can also add some raisins.
Serve warm and top with cinnamon, sugar and the reserved butter. You can also top with cured meats, such as fenelår. Speck, salami or ham would also work.

Ingredients

Instructions

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