Curry is not the first flavor anyone associates with Denmark, which makes boller i karry all the more charming. It is a fixture of the Danish family dinner table: pork meatballs that are poached in simmering water rather than fried, so they stay pale, soft and almost springy, then folded into a velvety sauce built on butter, flour, mild curry powder and the very water the meatballs cooked in. Nothing is wasted, which is a principle Danish kitchens take as seriously as their coffee.

The curry here is gentle and golden rather than fiery. Grated apple and a little leek bring sweetness, a splash of milk rounds out the sauce, and a heap of plain white rice soaks up every spoonful. Children tend to love it, adults tend to have second helpings while claiming they are only tidying the pot, and the whole dish comes together in about an hour.

It is also one of the kindest meals to cook for a race weekend: the meatballs and sauce reheat beautifully, and the flavor is quietly better the next day.

The meatballs

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 lb (570 g) ground pork
• 1 small yellow onion
• 1 large egg
• 1/3 cup (40 g) all purpose flour
• 1/2 cup (120 ml) whole milk
• 1 1/2 teaspoons fine salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 8 cups (2 liters) water
• 2 teaspoons fine salt
• 1 bay leaf

Method

1. Put the pork, grated onion with all its juice, egg, flour, salt and pepper in the large bowl. Stir hard with the wooden spoon, pouring in the milk a little at a time, and keep beating for 2 to 3 minutes until everything comes together into one smooth, sticky mass. Cover and chill for 15 minutes.
2. Pour the water into the wide saucepan, add the salt and bay leaf, and bring to a boil. Turn the heat down until the water barely bubbles.
3. Dip a teaspoon into the hot water, scoop up a heaped spoonful of meat and use the second spoon to push it gently into the pan. Dip the spoon again before each scoop so the mixture slides off. Work quickly and make about 30 small meatballs, roughly the size of a walnut. They do not need to be perfectly round.
4. Keep the water at a bare simmer for 8 to 10 minutes, nudging the meatballs once so they cook evenly. Cut one in half to check. Pork is safe at 160°F (71°C) in the center if you have a thermometer.
5. Lift the meatballs out with the slotted spoon into a bowl and cover them. Pour the cooking water through the sieve into the jug and discard the bay leaf. You need 2 1/2 cups (600 ml) for the sauce; skim off any foam from the top.

The curry sauce

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons (45 g) butter
• 1 medium yellow onion
• 1 small leek
• 1 tart apple
• 1 tablespoon mild curry powder
• 1/3 cup (40 g) all purpose flour
• 2 1/2 cups (600 ml) meatball cooking water
• 1/2 cup (120 ml) whole milk or light cream
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• to taste salt and black pepper

Method

1. Melt the butter in the medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and leek and cook, stirring often, for 5 to 6 minutes. Add the apple and cook 2 minutes more.
2. Sprinkle in the curry powder and stir for 1 minute so the spices cook in the butter. Then add the flour and stir for another minute until it has disappeared into the vegetables.
3. Pour in about a third of the hot cooking water and whisk hard until smooth. Add the rest in two more parts, whisking each time, then bring to a gentle simmer and cook for 10 minutes, stirring now and then so it does not catch on the bottom.
4. Stir in the milk or cream. Taste and add salt, pepper and the sugar if the curry tastes sharp. If the sauce is too thick, loosen it with a little more cooking water.
5. Slide the meatballs into the sauce and stir gently to coat them. Cover and heat over low heat for 5 minutes, stirring once.

The rice

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups (300 g) long grain white rice
• 2 1/4 cups (540 ml) cold water
• 1/2 teaspoon fine salt

Method

1. Put the rice in the sieve and rinse it under cold running water, moving it about with your fingers, for about a minute. This washes off loose starch so the grains stay separate.
2. Put the rice, water and salt in the saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat. Stir once, turn the heat to the lowest setting, put on the lid and cook for 15 minutes without lifting it.
3. Take the pan off the heat and leave it covered for 5 minutes, then fluff the rice with a fork.

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