If there is one thing that the Dutch and English have in common is their love for potatoes. Mashed potatoes with curly kale and sausages is for many Dutch people their favourite winter dish. It is for me at least. And conveniently, it’s is easy and quick to make vegetarian!
It is cold outside. The days are short. The heating is on. And I am happy! Because I finally have a good reason to make kale mash again. Unfortunately, in the UK (where I currently live) they don’t have smoked sausage, let alone a vegetarian version, but mash is mash. And with vegetarian bacon and vegetarian sausages it is just as tasty.
If you do happen to be in the Netherlands, there are plenty of vegetarian smoked sausages to be found these days if you want to keep this dish “traditional”. I used to use the Unox version, but that was a few years ago and since then several brands have come out with a vegetarian version. The Unox version was tasty, but I’m sure the other, new versions, are just as good (or even better). Like Vivera, for instance, which also has good vegetarian bacon. So a perfect combination for this dish!
One last tip: if you would like some gravy with your mash, don’t forget that there are now several packs or granules of gravy available that are suitable for vegetarians. Make it separately to serve with the mash if you want!
Kale mash (Dutch classic)
10 minutes preparation + 15 minutes cooking — serves 2
Ingredients
- 1 pack of vegetarian sausages
- 1 pack of vegetarian pre-cut bacon (or rashers)
- 400 grams curly kale
- 850 grams potates
- 100ml (soy) milk
- Pepper and salt
- Oil
Preparation
- Peel the potatoes and cut into pieces of about 2 cm.
- Wash and cut the curly cale into pieces and remove stems that are too thick to eat.
- Pre-boil 1.5 liters of water in a kettle.
- Make sure to cut the bacon into small bits (about 1cm).
Preparing the mash and sausages
If you are using the Dutch vegetarian smoked sausage, skip step 7 and instead follow pack instructions (like heat it up in the microwave or add to the pot with potates and kale for the final few minutes.
- Boil the potatoes in a large pot of water for 8 minutes.
- Meanwhile, heat up some oil in a pan and fry the bacon until it starts to get crispy.
- Remove the bacon from the pan, add a bit more oil, and add the vegetarian sausages to the pan. Fry for about 8-10 minutes, turning frequently, until they are golden brown.
- Add the kale to the potatoes and boil for another 4 minutes.
- Warm the milk if you’re used to this, so you’re ready to add this when the potatoes and kale are done.
Bringing it all together
- Drain the potatoes and kale.
- Put the potatoes and kale back into the pot and add in the milk while mashing the potato and kale.
- Stir in the bacon pieces to the mash.
- Season the mash with salt and pepper to taste.
- Serve the mash with the sausages.
Enjoy your meal!
Did you like this?
Leave a comment below if you made this recipe, and let me know what you think. Tips and feedback to improve the recipe are always welcome too!