Frikadelle

A freshly made batch of Frikadellen
Place of origin	Uncertain; supposedly Denmark or Germany
Serving temperature	Hot or cold
Main ingredients	Pork, veal, lamb, beef or fish
Other information	Generally served with boiled potatoes with gravy, or creamed cabbage or with krompadedder
Media: Frikadelle

A frikadelle^[a] is a rounded, flat-bottomed, pan-fried meatball of minced meat, often likened to the German version of meatballs. The origin of the dish is unknown. The term frikadelle is German but the dish is associated with German, Nordic and Polish cuisines. They are one of the most popular meals in Poland, ^[1] where they are known as kotlety mielone.

There are various local variants of frikadelle throughout Scandinavia, as both a main course and a side dish. In Sweden, the word frikadeller refers to meatballs that are boiled, not pan-fried.^[2]

Etymology

The origin of the word is uncertain. According to the Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Deutschen, Frikadelle (pl. Frikadellen) can be found end of the 17th century in German, and is related to the French fricandeau, and Latin frīgere ('to roast').^[3] Other variants used in Germany are Boulette/Bulette, Bratklops, Fleischpflanzerl, Fleischlaberl, Fleischküchle and Grilletta [de]/Grillette as well as the Austrian Faschiertes Laibchen [de]. It may be derived from fricandeau de veau, a dish of sliced veal, larded with pork fat.^[4] In the Dictionnaire des dictionnaires (1837) fricadelle is defined as, "In Belgium, a ball of minced, cooked meat" and a separate word, fricadèle, is defined as fricandeau.^[5] And in Phillips's New World of Words (1706) it is defined as "Fricandoe, a sort of Scotch Collops made of thin slices of Veal, well larded and stuff'd." The Oxford English Dictionary defines fricandele (variation fricadelle) as a "quasi-French form of fricandeau".^[6]

Other variations

Denmark

In Denmark, traditionally, they are made from minced veal, pork or beef (or a blend of two of these meats); chopped onions; eggs; milk (or water); bread crumbs (or oatmeal or flour); salt; and pepper; then formed into balls by using a tablespoon to get the right size frikadelle and flattened somewhat. They are then pan-fried in pork fat or beef fat, or more commonly in modern times in butter, margarine or even vegetable oil. Another popular variation is fiskefrikadeller replacing the meat with fish (mostly cod, but sometimes cod and salmon) as the main ingredient and often served with remoulade.

As a main dish, they are most often served with boiled white potatoes and gravy (brun sovs) accompanied by pickled beetroot or cooked red cabbage. Alternatively, they can be served with creamed, white cabbage.

Frikadeller are also eaten on ryebread (rugbrød) with red cabbage or pickle slices as a traditional Danish smørrebrød.

The combination of frikadeller and a cold potato salad is very popular at picnics or potlucks, due to the ease of transporting either component after cooking.

Indonesia

Frikadel are also known in Indonesian cuisine through Dutch cuisine (of the frikadel, which is historically similar to the frikadaller) influence and called perkedel, however the main ingredient is not meat, but mashed potato, sometimes slightly mixed with ground meat or corned beef. The mixture is then shaped into flat round patties and dipped in egg yolk before being deep fried. Other than mashed potato, cabe rawit, spring onion, shrimp, peeled corn, or mashed tofu fritters are also common as perkedel ingredients.

South Africa

Frikkedelle is also popular in the Cape Malay and Boer traditional cuisine of South Africa.^{[citation needed]}