Erken's pigeon ragout from 1914: pigeons split lengthwise, salted, steamed tender for about 1 hour in a brown sauce of pork, onion, flour, butter and bouillon with bay leaf, clove, mace and lemon; the sauce is strained, thickened with potato starch if needed and seasoned with capers.
Source: Henriette Schønberg Erken, Stor kokebok, 1914-utg. s. 300 (falt i det fri)
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About the dish
From the chapter on poultry and game in "Stor kokebok" (1914). Pigeons were common festive food in older Norwegian households, and Erken here uses Maggi's bouillon cubes - a modern industrial product in her time.
How to make it
1
Prepare the pigeons
Split the cleaned pigeons lengthwise in two, sprinkle a little salt over them and let them stand like that for half an hour.
2
Brown pork and onion
Slice the onion and cut the pork into small cubes. Put it in a pot and sauté it over the heat for 10 minutes.
3
Make the sauce
Stir in flour and butter and let everything brown fairly lightly. Add the water with the dissolved bouillon cubes a little at a time, and put in bay leaf, peppercorns, clove, mace and lemon slices.
4
Steam the pigeons tender
Dry the pigeons off again, place them in the sauce and steam them tender over low heat for about 1 hour.
5
Keep warm
Take up the pigeons, place them on a warm platter and keep them warm until the sauce is finished.
6
Finish the sauce
Strain the sauce. If it is too thin, thicken it with a little potato starch and give it a boil. Stir in the capers, season with salt and pour the sauce over the pigeons.
Changes from the original
The ingredients are given in modern measures and spelling (tablespoon, a pinch of mace, bouillon cubes instead of Maggi bouillon cubes). Pork is interpreted as fresh, fatty pork belly/bacon. The method is divided into numbered steps in modern Norwegian.
📖1914
Original 1914 recipe
Verbatim from the first edition of the Big Cookbook.
Foto: Faksimile: Nasjonalbiblioteket
ProofreadPage 300
4 duer
1 løk
150 gr. flesk
35 gr. hvetemel
80 gr. smør
1 l. vand, 4 maggibuljongterninger
1 laurbærblad
2 pepperkorn
1 nellik
1 knivsod muskatblomme
3 citronskiver
1 spiseske kapers
potetesmel.
De rensede duer skjæres i to dele langsefter, strøes med litt salt, staar ½ time saaledes. Løken skjæres i skiver, flesket skjæres i smaa terninger, haves i en gryte og rystes over varmen i 10 minutter, mel og smør røres i og alt brunes ganske let; vandet med de opløste buljongterninger tilsættes litt efter litt, laurbærblade, pepperkorn, nellik, muskat og citronskiverne lægges i. Duerne avtørres igjen, lægges i sausen og dampes møre ved svak varme ca. 1 time; saa tages de op, lægges paa et varmt fat og holdes varme, til sausen er færdig. Sausen siles; hvis den er for tynd, jevnes den med litt potetesmel, gives et opkok, kapersen røres i, saltes efter smak, og sausen heldes over duerne.
📖1949
Revised 1949 recipe
From the revised edition of the Big Cookbook.
Foto: Faksimile: Nasjonalbiblioteket
ProofreadPage 333
4 duer
salt
1 løk
150 gr. flesk
35 gr. hvetemel
80 gr. smør
1 l. vann
2 norexterninger
1 laurbærblad
2 pepperkorn
1 nellik
1 knivsodd muskatblomme
3 sitronskiver
1 spiseskje kapers
potetesmel.
Løken skjæres i skiver, flesket skjæres i små terninger, has i en gryte og ryster over varmen i 10 minutter, mel og smør røres i, og alt brunes ganske lett; vannet med de opløste terninger tilsettes litt efter litt, laurbærblade, pepperkorn, nellik, muskat og sitronskivene legges i. Duene avtørkes igjen, legges i sausen og dampes møre ved svak varme ca. 1 time; så tas de op, legges på et varmt fat, og holdes varme til sausen er ferdig. Sausen siles; hvis den er for tynn, jevnes den med litt potetesmel, gis et opkok, kapersen røres i, saltes efter smak, og sausen helles over duene.
In stores now
Clean, minimally processed groceries matched to the ingredients — approximate prices.
1914 (proofread, p. 300) → 1949 (proofread, p. 333)~42% of the text changedremovedadded
4 duer salt 1 løk 150 gr. flesk 35 gr. hvetemel 80 gr. smør 1 l. vand, 4 maggibuljongterninger vann 2 norexterninger 1 laurbærblad 2 pepperkorn 1 nellik 1 knivsod knivsodd muskatblomme 3 citronskiver sitronskiver 1 spiseske spiseskje kapers potetesmel. De rensede duer skjæres i to dele langsefter, strøes med litt salt, staar ½ time saaledes. Løken skjæres i skiver, flesket skjæres i smaa små terninger, haves has i en gryte og rystes ryster over varmen i 10 minutter, mel og smør røres i i, og alt brunes ganske let; vandet lett; vannet med de opløste buljongterninger tilsættes terninger tilsettes litt efter litt, laurbærblade, pepperkorn, nellik, muskat og citronskiverne lægges sitronskivene legges i. Duerne avtørres Duene avtørkes igjen, lægges legges i sausen og dampes møre ved svak varme ca. 1 time; saa tages så tas de op, lægges paa legges på et varmt fat fat, og holdes varme, varme til sausen er færdig. ferdig. Sausen siles; hvis den er for tynd, tynn, jevnes den med litt potetesmel, gives gis et opkok, kapersen røres i, saltes efter smak, og sausen heldes helles over duerne. duene.
The pigeons are steamed tender in the sauce over low heat for about 1 hour. Allow around 110 minutes in total, since the pigeons must first be salted and stand for half an hour, and onion and pork are cooked for 10 minutes before the liquid is added.
How are the pigeons prepared?
The cleaned pigeons are split lengthwise in two, sprinkled with a little salt and left like that for ½ hour. Then they are dried off again before being placed in the sauce.
What gives the sauce its flavor?
Onion and pork cubes are lightly browned with flour and butter, and the liquid is 1 liter of water with 4 bouillon cubes. The seasoning is bay leaf, 2 peppercorns, 1 clove, a pinch of mace, 3 lemon slices and a tablespoon of capers. Potato starch is used for thickening.
Where does the recipe come from?
From Henriette Schønberg Erken's "Stor kokebok" from 1914, page 300. It is intended for 4 servings with 4 pigeons.
