Æbleflæsk – a recipe for classic Danish fried apples with pork belly and bacon. Æbleflæsk is an old Danish dish for the lunch table. If you don’t know it, it is best described as sweet and tart fried apples with lovely crispy pork, which tastes wonderful served warm on a slice of rye bread. There are countless versions, and like other classics, people often have strong opinions about the right recipe. Which apples are best? Should they be peeled, and cut into cubes or wedges? Fresh or smoked pork? And should there be onions in it?
This is my family’s recipe, the way my grandparents always made it. We have æbleflæsk during the autumn apple season, and it is an absolute must at our Christmas lunch on the first Sunday of Advent and on Boxing Day. We always use Belle de Boskoop cooking apples, which have a lovely flavour and get tender in just the right way. They are not peeled, as the skin gives texture and flavour. We cut the apples into rough cubes and fry them without onions, but you can of course add some.
When it needs to be extra delicious, like here, we use both fresh pork belly and slices of hand-cut bacon. If you are short on time, a pack of diced bacon works fine too. The bacon gives a really good flavour with the apples and can be mixed in or placed on top at the end.
It is easy to make: fry the pork and bacon, take them out of the pan and fry the apples in the fat. When the apples are almost tender, sprinkle over the sugar and let it fry with them, and that is really all there is to it. How much sugar you need depends on your taste and on how sweet the apples are. Add it a little at a time, as æbleflæsk should not be too sweet. It is not a dessert, after all. Æbleflæsk can be frozen. For more Danish Christmas lunch dishes, try my Christmas meatballs or Danish tartlets with chicken and asparagus. Enjoy!
Danish fried apples with bacon
Ingredients
Instructions
Fried apples with bacon
Fry the pork belly and bacon in a frying pan until crispy. Place them on a plate with kitchen paper to soak up the fat. Pour off a little of the fat, but leave enough in the pan to fry the apples in.
Rinse the apples thoroughly and cut them into medium-sized cubes. Fry the apples in the fat, stirring gently along the way.
When the apples are tender, sprinkle over the sugar and keep frying. Taste and add more sugar if you like. Add a little more fat if it gets too dry. Serve the apples warm, topped with the crispy pork belly and bacon, with good rye bread, preferably homemade. Enjoy!
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