Raggmunk is Swedish home cooking at its most honest: grated raw potato stirred into a thin pancake batter of milk, egg and flour, then fried in butter until the strands of potato on the edges turn crisp and lacy. It has been a classic in Sweden since at least the early twentieth century, and it is always eaten the same way, as raggmunk med fläsk och lingon, with strips of fried salt pork and a spoonful of lingonberries. The combination of salty, rich pork, crisp potato and sharp, sweet berries is one that Swedish cooking returns to again and again, and for good reason.

It sits somewhere between a pancake and a Swiss rösti, softer than the second and much crisper than the first. It costs very little, takes half an hour, and is the kind of supper Swedish families make on a cold weekday evening. It is also the dish of a country that has found a use for the lingonberry in every course of the meal, which is a kind of genius.

Stirred lingonberries

Ingredients

• 1 cup (110 g) frozen lingonberries
• 3 tablespoons (40 g) granulated sugar

Method

1. Put the thawed berries and sugar in the small bowl. Stir and press with the fork every few minutes for 20 to 30 minutes, until the sugar has completely dissolved and some berries have burst.

The fried pork

Ingredients

• 12 oz (340 g) lightly salted pork belly or thick cut unsmoked bacon

Method

1. Lay the slices in the cold second skillet in a single layer, in batches if needed. Set it over medium heat and cook for 8 to 12 minutes, turning a few times, until the fat has rendered and the pork is crisp. Pork belly is safe at 145°F (63°C) and here goes well beyond.
2. Lift the pork onto paper towels on a plate and keep it warm in the low oven with the pancakes. Pour 2 tablespoons of the fat into a cup; you can use it with butter for frying the pancakes.

The potato pancakes

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 cups (300 ml) whole milk
• 3/4 cup (95 g) all purpose flour
• 1 large egg
• 1 teaspoon fine salt
• 1 3/4 lb (800 g) floury potatoes
• 4 to 6 tablespoons (55 to 85 g) butter

Method

1. Whisk about half the milk with all the flour until smooth and thick, then whisk in the rest of the milk, the egg and the salt. Mixing the flour with a little milk first prevents lumps. Leave to rest for 30 minutes.
2. Heat the oven to 200°F (95°C) and set the wire rack on the baking sheet inside. Grate the potatoes on the fine side of the grater. Pile them in the middle of the kitchen towel, gather up the corners and twist hard over the sink to squeeze out as much liquid as you can.
3. Stir the squeezed potato into the rested batter straight away so it does not darken.
4. Melt about 1 tablespoon of butter in the large skillet over medium heat until it foams. Stir the batter, then ladle in about 1/2 cup (120 ml) and spread it quickly with the back of the ladle into a thin round about 6 inches (15 cm) across. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes without moving it.
5. Turn the pancake with the spatula, add a little more butter around the edge, and cook for another 3 minutes, pressing it down lightly once.
6. Move the pancake to the rack in the warm oven, where it stays crisp. Stir the batter each time before ladling, add butter as needed, and fry the rest in the same way. You should get 8 to 10 pancakes.

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