Danish Breaded Pork Patties (Karbonader)

This traditional dish is in Danish called Karbonader or sometimes Krebinetter. I have always called them Krebinetter. However, I must confess after having searched around the internet I think the most common name for this dish is Karbonader. The word Karbonader can’t be translated into English but they can be called Danish Breaded Pork Patties. I am not sure if this dish was originally invented in Denmark. However, it has always been a popular and traditional dish on the Danish dinner table.

In the old days these Karbonader was traditional served together with a stew of carrots and green peas. Today, I personally prefer to serve these breaded pork patties together with a nice and fresh green salad and some bread.

It is really simple to make Karbonader. In the original recipe the meat used, is a mixture of ground pork and veal. This gives the best and most traditional taste. However, I know that it can be difficult to find ground veal meat in some countries. In that case you can also just use ground pork meat with about 10-12% fat.

The instructions are simple; shape the ground meat into thick patties, dip them in a mixture of a beaten egg and some water, cover them in breadcrumbs and then finally fry them on a frying pan with some butter or oil. Then you have some delicious Krebinetter.

Danish Breaded Pork Patties

2-3 people
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Danish title: Karbonader
Cuisine: Danish
Category: dinner

Ingredients:
500 g (1 lb) ground pork 12% fat (traditional it’s a mix of pork and veal meat)
1 egg
2 tbsp water
70 g (2.5 oz) bread crumbs
salt and pepper
50 g (1 1/2 oz) of butter (or oil)

Instructions:
1. Start by dividing the meat into 5 portions of about 100 g each (or 1/5 lb each) and shape them into circular thick patties.
2. In a deep plate; beat the egg together with the water.
3. In a second plate; mix the bread crumbs together with salt and pepper.
4. Now dip the pork patties in the egg mixture and then in the breadcrumbs. Make sure the entire patty is covered with breadcrumbs. One time should be enough but if you like a thicker layer of breading – then repeat this step one more time.
5. On a frying pan; add the butter and fry the breaded pork patties for about 5-8 minutes. Flip them over from time-to-time.

Tip: Serve the Karbonader together with a nice salad and maybe some bread.