Tags
Christmas ribs, lingonberrys, medistekaker, medistepølser, Norwegian Christmas food, rødkål, ribbe, sweet and sour red cabbage, traditional Norwegian food
In Norway we have many different Christmas dishes as mentioned in previous posts, but none is greater or more prominent then the Norwegian Christmas ribs, which we call “ribbe”.
It Is from pork (like many Christmas dishes), it uses the rib cut but with the skin on unlike the spare ribs, and is typically salted then steamed for a little while and then put on strong heat to get the skin nice and crispy.
The ribbe is not alone though, we eat something called medisterkaker and medisterpølser, they are sausages and a kind of meatballs, made from pork and pork fat, and different herbs and milk.
In addition to that we have a brown sauce made from the ribbe juice, we normally have many side dishes for this wonderful meal which include, sweet and sour red cabbage ( which is normally made by marinating the cabbage in sugar and vinegar and then cooking it for some hours until it is soft), and many people eat sauerkraut also and prunes, and of course cooked potatoes( Norway’s favorite food) and lingonberrys.
The meal is my favorite of the Norwegian main course dinners and it is what my family have been eating at home for Christmas for the past 5-6 years, but for me a choice between this and turkey is a no brainer, I would choose turkey every time.
But this really is traditional Norwegian food at its best, and it is a absolute recommendation for someone who has never tried it.
Here you have a plate with the ribbe, medisterkaker, medisterpølser, prunes, and the sweet and sour red cabbage.