Fårikål
Norway's national dish — lamb and cabbage slowly simmered with peppercorns until meltingly tender.
Budget Friendly
Comfort Food
One Pot
Ingredients
- 1 kg bone-in lamb shoulder, cut into large pieces
- 1 kg white cabbage, cut into large wedges
- 2 tbsp whole black peppercorns
- 2 tbsp flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 400ml water
- Boiled potatoes, for serving
Instructions
- 1 Layer cabbage wedges and lamb pieces in a large heavy pot, starting and ending with cabbage.
- 2 Sprinkle flour, salt, and peppercorns between the layers.
- 3 Add water. It should come about halfway up — the cabbage will release more liquid.
- 4 Bring to a gentle boil. Reduce heat to the lowest setting. Cover tightly.
- 5 Simmer for 2-3 hours until lamb is falling off the bone. Do not stir — just let it be.
- 6 Taste the broth and add salt if needed.
- 7 Serve in deep bowls with boiled potatoes. The broth is the best part.
About This Recipe
Fårikål is Norway's official national dish, voted so by the Norwegian people themselves. It's also one of the simplest recipes in existence: lamb, cabbage, peppercorns, salt, water. That's it. No onions, no garlic, no herbs — just the pure flavor of lamb melting into cabbage over 2-3 hours.
Every autumn, Norwegians celebrate Fårikålens Dag (Fårikål Day) on the last Thursday of September. The dish is layered in a pot — cabbage, lamb, cabbage, lamb — and left to do its thing. The result is impossibly tender.