Stegt Medisterpølse med Rødkål

Stegt Medisterpølse med Rødkål

Recipes with Medisterpølse

Pan-fried medisterpølse cooked as a whole coil until both sides develop a dark, crackling crust, served with braised red cabbage and boiled potatoes. This is the standard weekday preparation across Denmark and the form in which medisterpølse appears most often at the dinner table. The coil fries slowly in its own rendered fat and the rødkål is made the day before and reheated, which improves it.

Prep Time

15 min

Cook Time

40 min

Servings

4

Difficulty

Easy

Ingredients

  • 1 coil medisterpølse (approx. 600 g)
  • 1 tbsp lard or butter
  • 600 g waxy potatoes, peeled
  • Salt
  • Fresh parsley, chopped
  • For the rødkål: 1 small red cabbage (approx. 800 g), shredded
  • 2 tbsp butter
  • 3 tbsp red wine vinegar
  • 2 tbsp sugar
  • 100 ml water
  • 1 tsp allspice berries

Steps

1

Make the rødkål first, ideally the day before. Melt the butter in a heavy pot over medium heat. Add the shredded cabbage and stir to coat. Add the vinegar, sugar, water, and allspice. Cover and braise over low heat for 45 to 60 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the cabbage is very soft and the liquid has mostly absorbed. Season with salt and more vinegar if needed. Reheat when ready to serve.

2

Boil the potatoes in well-salted water until tender, about 20 minutes. Drain and keep warm. Scatter parsley over them before serving.

3

Place the sausage coil in a cold, heavy frying pan. Add the lard or butter. Turn the heat to medium. The fat will render out of the sausage as the pan warms. Do not move the coil until the underside is deep brown, about 10 to 12 minutes.

4

Flip the coil carefully using two spatulas. Cook the second side for a further 8 to 10 minutes until equally brown. The sausage should be cooked through with no pink interior.

5

Remove from the heat and rest in the pan for 2 minutes. Slice into portions at the table. Serve with the potatoes and a generous spoon of rødkål alongside.

Tips

Starting in a cold pan is essential — it lets the fat render gradually and prevents the casing from splitting. A pan that is too hot from the start produces a burst sausage with the filling leaking out. The rødkål improves overnight: make it the evening before and reheat it while the sausage fries.