Korvgryta - Swedish Sausage Stew

This stew makes a simple yet tasty everyday dinner. My husband is not too fond of soups generally; he feels that one gets hungry again too quickly. But this stew will fill the emptiest of stomachs. 

We make it with the traditional Swedish Falukorv, which is a mild and round flavoured smoked sausage, but I am sure any number of similar sausages could make tasty substitutions. 

The first time I tasted this dish was in the school canteen. Our school had an amazing cook who made the same food for us as she cooked for the inn she also ran. Everything was made from scratch by this lady and her two helpers.

Currently Sweden is debating whether schools should make school meals on the premises or if it is better and cheaper to buy meals from big food industries. Some politicians argue this would be more efficient. However, it turns out that the schools that make their own food do so more cheaply per portion than the huge manufacturers. And that is without even considering the environmental costs, and the value of making things local.

Anyway, a boy in my year in school was so fond of this dish that he ate 10 bowls of it! Now that is a successful recipe!

Here is the recipe given to me by aunt Anna in the canteen:

3-4 portions

Ingredients:

300-400g falukorv, cut into slices

4-6 potatoes

1-2 carrots

1-2 leeks

stock cube

salt, white pepper

2-3 dl water

mild mustard

fine cut parsley

10 allspice berries

Prepare leek, potatoes and carrots and slice them. Layer into a pot with allspice. Just cover with water, add stock cubes and bring to a boil. Let simmer for a while, then add sausage. Brush the sausage slices with 1-2 tablespoons of mild mustard. Simmer until the vegetables are cooked. Taste and season, serve with cut parsley.