Before the arrival of the electric cooker, fire, wood and iron were the holy trinity of the Swedish kitchen. I grew up in Järpen, a small village in the north of Sweden. My parents would take us to the mountains, and we’d cook over a fire pit. As a young chef, though, I became passionate about Italian olive oil, French braised chicken and molecular gastronomy – serving dishes, in my first restaurant, such as “asparagus clouds”. I could hardly have got any further away from the rustic slow cooking of the Jämtland forests.
And then I spent the summer of 2011 with my family in a cabin on the island of Ingarö in the Stockholm archipelago. My wife Katarina had just had our first child, our son Vinston. I wandered around on the island and pondered, like a gloomy character from a Bergman film staring at the trees, and remembered the open-fire cooking of my childhood. I chopped down some of the birches I had stared at and made a fire pit. For the whole summer, it was our family kitchen – it never went out. Most of the time we grilled in the usual way, on a grate, but one day I didn’t have enough patience and just whacked a cast-iron pan straight into the flames. The fire sizzled and sparked around the pan; the force of the heat knocked me back; and the flavours of the food … what depth! The image of an analogue fine-dining restaurant developed in my mind, a place where everything was cooked over fire, like in the old days.
Back home in Stockholm, I devoured 18th-century cookbooks, researching how Swedish food was prepared before the advent of electricity. Despite what the trends might have you believe, Nordic cuisine can be summarised by a few techniques and tricks that are easy to get the hang of. Anyone can make their own pickles, anyone can handle a cast-iron pan: it works in everyday life – both inside and outdoors – because that is where it belongs. Here are a few recipes that, I hope, will show you how.
Ember-baked leeks
If you can get really young, slim, fresh leeks, this recipe will be even better. Soaking the leeks in cold water will help them to cook without burning, but don’t worry if the outer layer burns, as it will be peeled off.
Serves 4
2 leeks or 4 large spring onions
85g butter, at room temperature
For the seasoning
1 tsp pink peppercorns
3 tbsp sea salt
1. Light the fire, using enough wood to create a bed of embers.
2. To make the seasoning, roast the peppercorns in a dry pan for about 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Set aside to cool, then combine the salt and peppercorns in a mortar and grind together. Store in an airtight container.
3. Keep the roots on the leeks. Clean them in cold running water, then transfer to a bowl, cover with cold water and leave for 20 minutes.
4. Dry the leeks with paper towels. Put the leeks in the embers and cook for about 6-8 minutes, turning once or twice, until tender all the way through.
5. Remove from the fire and peel off the burnt layers. Serve with butter and the rosé pepper salt.
Beef rydberg (main picture)
A luxurious variation of pytt-i-panna, a classic Swedish dish made from leftover meat, pan-fried with onions and potatoes. This, made from tender beef and served with a mustard cream sauce, is believed to have originated at the (now closed) Hotel Rydberg in Stockholm in the 19th century.
Serves 4
4 tbsp sour cream
2 tsp dijon mustard
1 tbsp wholegrain mustard
900g waxy potatoes
900g beef fillet (tenderloin or sirloin)
2 onions, chopped
200g butter
5 tbsp vegetable oil
Salt and black pepper
1 bunch of parsley, chopped
4 egg yolks
1. Combine the sour cream and both mustards in a bowl. Cover and chill until ready to serve.
2. Cut the potatoes into 2.5cm cubes. Rinse in cold water two or three times, then leave to dry on paper towels.
3. Cut the beef into 2.5cm cubes and allow to come to room temperature. Put the onions and 6 tbsp of the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Fry for 30 minutes, or until caramelised.
4. Heat 4 tbsp of oil in a large cast iron pan. Add the potato cubes and fry to lightly colour all over. Add 4 tbsp of butter, then keep cooking until the potatoes are golden and soft in the middle. Remove from the pan and season with salt.
5. Add 1 tbsp of oil to the pan and return to a high heat. Sear the meat one side for about 2 minutes. Add the remaining butter and cook until medium–rare. Remove from the pan and leave to rest for 3 minutes.
6. Put the meat and potatoes back in the pan, add the onions and heat through. Season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with parsley and serve with raw egg yolks and the mustard cream.
